What is an Ident?
When talking about idents in general, it is something created so it is significant to you and can be recognized as your make.
In the world of film and television, an ident is a small video clip that has maybe music, a logo and definitely the name of the studio or company that were involved in the production of this film/TV program. These are there so that when someone watches a film they have been involved in, they know straight away by the ident that represents them. This ident can also give a viewer a clue as to what the film is going to be like just through the style and music of their indent, so it has to be good!
Examples
Here are some famous idents used at the being of films before the title credits and sequences.
Evaluation of Idents
Disney ident- The Disney ident features the well known castle that people associate with Disney which is related to the fairy-tale stories that all Disney films tell. The castle is there to represent the fairy-tale stories and how they all end 'Happily ever after' and a castle is where most fairy-tales end or at least contain castle or fortress in it at some point in the film.
The music used is majestic and magical which is what Disney fairy-tales are. They are filled with made up animals that can talk and people that only exist in made up lands so by having this twinkling styled music just brings out the idea that magic is within all Disney films even more than just having the castle on screen. Also the majestic style of music that begins the ident represents the royalty and richness within the films tale again just adding to the castle image show on the ident.
The Disney logo almost looks hand written in almost like a childish text font which appeals to the audience in which the film is designed for. Also the writing is what we associate as a fairy-tale book fonts meaning they are just bringing out the connotations of the fairy-tale theme even more through their name and font style.
This is successful in the clever way it has incorporated the features within the film as well as bringing out the magic within Disney films through its choice of instruments in the music and the style of music they have chosen to dub over the top of the castle image.
An ident has to be recognizable and stand out which is exactly what the Disney ident does in a clever way by relating it to things that are associated with their style of film.
Dreamworks ident- The design of the studio ident clearly represents the name of the studio through its sky like setting and the fluffy clouds that appear through out. Also the actual content of the ident such as the man fishing on the moon not likely to happen as 1) its impossible to fish on the moon and 2) you'd probably die without wearing a space suit etc. so again it implies the idea the dream like atmosphere the studio and the film has.
The colours of the actual studio name at the end of the ident represents the jolly happy films that Dreamworks create. The style and colour of the studio name also appeals to a younger audience through its brightly coloured lettering. Even though Dreamworks films are in some ways are aimed at parents/ adults with its subtle crude sense of humour, Dreamworks main audience is mostly children and so by having bright colours it straight away catches the attention of the audience. It just represents this idea of fun and comical ideas in which Dreamworks base their films on.
The music used during this ident really does represent this idea of dream like fantasies along with the idea of fairy tales. This also brings out the idea of a mickey take of the traditional Disney styled film which is what Dreamworks in a way are about. The music represents this idea of a dream or a vision that someone may have when they're asleep when they were younger. By doing this they are bringing out the childhood of not only the children but also the adults that watch these films as a family.
Universal ident- This studio name is clearly represented through the images and music that is seen and heard during this ident. The name Universal is to do with planets and outer space which is why this studio ident has the theme of space in the music and the images on screen.
The light at the beginning is representing the sun shining on one side of planet earth which allows the studio to use it as a fade in effect to open the ident and reveal it to the person watching the film that this studio is apart of. Planet earth is there to represent the 'Universe' hence the name Universal. By using the image that they do it allows the viewer to see the clever way in which the studio have tied their name onto something that we all know exists.
The typography used here cleverly represents the ring that runs around Saturn and again another feature of the universe which again is used as a play on word for the name of the actual studio. The name of the studio also suggests that they are universally known meaning that everyone across the globe and further know about them. The idea that they are 'Universal' is suggesting to someone watching this ident that they are a big studio that everyone will know.
The ident is more aimed at teenagers around 16 and above as they will understand the meaning behind this cleverly designed ident. The scientific side of the ident is incorrect however it does what it needs to do and hooks the viewer making them memorable by all.
The use of the majestic music almost represents them as being regal. The idea that they are widely known comes into play again. The big fan fair music represents the large number of people that will and do know about them. It represents that their films are never small they always go all out to bring entertainment to the audiences that watch their films.
So thats all you really need to know about idents next thing we need to do now we have an idea as to what an ident is, we need to learn a few more advanced camera techniques.
Dreamworks ident- The design of the studio ident clearly represents the name of the studio through its sky like setting and the fluffy clouds that appear through out. Also the actual content of the ident such as the man fishing on the moon not likely to happen as 1) its impossible to fish on the moon and 2) you'd probably die without wearing a space suit etc. so again it implies the idea the dream like atmosphere the studio and the film has.
The colours of the actual studio name at the end of the ident represents the jolly happy films that Dreamworks create. The style and colour of the studio name also appeals to a younger audience through its brightly coloured lettering. Even though Dreamworks films are in some ways are aimed at parents/ adults with its subtle crude sense of humour, Dreamworks main audience is mostly children and so by having bright colours it straight away catches the attention of the audience. It just represents this idea of fun and comical ideas in which Dreamworks base their films on.
The music used during this ident really does represent this idea of dream like fantasies along with the idea of fairy tales. This also brings out the idea of a mickey take of the traditional Disney styled film which is what Dreamworks in a way are about. The music represents this idea of a dream or a vision that someone may have when they're asleep when they were younger. By doing this they are bringing out the childhood of not only the children but also the adults that watch these films as a family.
Universal ident- This studio name is clearly represented through the images and music that is seen and heard during this ident. The name Universal is to do with planets and outer space which is why this studio ident has the theme of space in the music and the images on screen.
The light at the beginning is representing the sun shining on one side of planet earth which allows the studio to use it as a fade in effect to open the ident and reveal it to the person watching the film that this studio is apart of. Planet earth is there to represent the 'Universe' hence the name Universal. By using the image that they do it allows the viewer to see the clever way in which the studio have tied their name onto something that we all know exists.
The typography used here cleverly represents the ring that runs around Saturn and again another feature of the universe which again is used as a play on word for the name of the actual studio. The name of the studio also suggests that they are universally known meaning that everyone across the globe and further know about them. The idea that they are 'Universal' is suggesting to someone watching this ident that they are a big studio that everyone will know.
The ident is more aimed at teenagers around 16 and above as they will understand the meaning behind this cleverly designed ident. The scientific side of the ident is incorrect however it does what it needs to do and hooks the viewer making them memorable by all.
The use of the majestic music almost represents them as being regal. The idea that they are widely known comes into play again. The big fan fair music represents the large number of people that will and do know about them. It represents that their films are never small they always go all out to bring entertainment to the audiences that watch their films.
So thats all you really need to know about idents next thing we need to do now we have an idea as to what an ident is, we need to learn a few more advanced camera techniques.
