Ident

An ident is an important part of a film. It acts as a brand logo for the company, making them instantly recognisable as part of that film before their name even comes across the screen, whether by the image or the sound.
The Big Six have idents that represent them, often showing the world or universe to show how powerful they are. This is especially the case in the Universal Studio's ident, with the image of Earth and dynamic music to accompany it, this ident shows connotations of power and authority over others.

Independent film companies often have a smaller and more simplistic styles idents in comparison to the Big Six, such as in the case of the independent film company IFC Films

Based on this research I had the idea to create a small and sheltered feel to the ident, as I wanted it to seem like a small independent film company. To do this I wanted to find a shadowed image, using only black, white and grey colours because it added to this feel and when the name of the company appeared it would stand out from the image.
I decided to use Google images to find the picture I wanted by searching for 'Shadow'

The initial search results

The picture used in the ident

I chose this image because it gave that impression of being sheltered and isolated that I was originally looking for. From this I then decided to name my company 'Safehouse' as it matched the picture and the overall idea. 

Secondly I decided on the typography. For the font I wanted to use an elegant and seemingly old fashioned style, because I felt that it would go well with the image and the name. I used the Calligraphic style that I found on Final Cut Pro, and from there I decided to have the font red. The colour red has connotations of danger, blood and violence, which contrasts with the name of the company 'Safehouse' which has connotations of being protected from harm and danger. This creates a sense of irony between the name and the style.

Using sound clips from Final Cut Pro, I added the sound of a crash of thunder then overlapped it with the sound of a wolf howling. I chose these sounds because they create a feeling of tension and suspense, which went well with the overall theme of my ident.

I decided to place the thunder at the very start of the clip before the image fades in because this helps to create a brand for my company. Eventually just by hearing the crash of thunder followed by the howl the audience of the film would know who it has been produced by before the image and name fades onto the screen. I created a cross dissolve at the start and end of the image to further create the feeling of tension from the ident that the sound originally helps to create. I also applied the feature of fading in and out of the screen to the font as it helps to create a sense of mystery.

The Finished Piece

Safehouse Productions

An Introduction

Welcome to my blog

My name is Bethaney Crofts and this is my blog for AS Media Studies. As well as Media I take English Literature, Psychology and Sociology at Weston College.
As part of my AS Media coursework I have been asked to make an opening sequence to a film. This blog will include the detailed process of each step in making this, from the initial research to the final piece.