The UK’s Channel 4 worked with London-based creative agency Optical Arts and its divisions Art Practice and Love Song to tuck little scenes from life into its familiar Channel 4 logo for five new idents that follow the channel’s new masterbrand.
To create the idents, Channel 4 and Optical Arts worked with 17 creatives, artists and filmmakers tasked with reflecting daily life in the UK, with scenes ranging from late-night shopping in the neighborhood bodega to a teenager trying on endless outfits to teens hanging around outside of school and many more. The various creatives were given an open brief that suggested they develop ideas based on one of five themes: identity, the land, system, release and love. Each of those themes resulted in one ident.
In the above brand film, the camera starts squarely on the Channel 4 logo but then swoops down and to the left to let us enter the 3D logo by a side door, so to speak, and into a bodega. From there, the camera continues to swoop and reveal, swoop and reveal, until all the scenes have been displayed. The 3:28 film’s narration was written and voiced by British writer John Joseph Holt.
“Our idents reach 50 million people in the UK every month, so we wanted to represent all of us, the rich diversity of our nation, our communities, and our passions,” said Zaid Al-Qassab, chief marketing officer at Channel 4. “This is not only a representation of Channel 4, this is the most viewed piece of public art in the UK, that will be seen for many years to come, so it was important to us that it spoke to everyone. Whoever you are, we hope you will find something that speaks to your heart.”
The scenes were shot across four studio days and four days on location in and around Glasgow, Ireland, according to Channel 4. Time Based Arts handled post production.
CREDITS
Executive Creative Director: Lynsey Atkin
Creative Directors: Mike Skrgatic, Daniel Wolfe, Lynsey Atkin, Bafic
Directors: Saman Aminzadeh, Optical Arts, Bafic, Mike Battcock, Will Dohrn, Daniel Eatock, Mike Skrgatic and James Allen, Verity May Lane, Maria Lax, The Line, Louis McCourt, Justyna Obasi, Elliott Power, The Romantix, Dan Tobin Smith, Daniel Wolfe
Voiceover: John Joseph Holt
Agency: Optical Arts
Founder/Creative Director: Dan Tobin Smith
EP/Studio Director: Hannah May
Creative Directors: Fabrice Le Nezet, Martin Pryor, Joe Jackson
1st AD: Rob Blishen
Moco: Simone Tartaglia & Dennis Henry
SFX: David Plewis for Asylum
CG Team: Nicolas Damour, Flora Macleod
Creative Assistant: Minna Griffiths
Technical Assistant: Elliott Lowe, Jack Lovell
Production Assistant: Stephanie Skarbek
Agency: Art Practice and Love Song
Creative Director (Art Practice): Mike Skrgatic
Creative Director (Love Song): Daniel Wolfe
EP: James Guy
Producer: Bonnie Anthony
Production Manager: Julia Guignabel
Production Assistant: Katie Reid
Directors of Photography: Daniel Landin, Eponine Momenceau
Moco: Simone Tartaglia, Tomi Keeling
1st AD: Rob Blishen
Production Designer: Arthur De Borman
Casting Directors: Kharmel Cochrane, Claire Catterson, Found Casting, Belinda Norcliffe
Agency: Time Based Arts
Producer: Chris Aliano
2D Supervisors: Stephen Grasso, Leo Weston, Miguel Wratten
CG Supervisors: Mike Battcock, Sam Osborne, Nick Smalley
2D Team: Manolo Perez, Jamie Crofts, Olivia O’Neil, Lucy Lawrence, Valeria Scalamandre, Eleonora Laddago, Bernie Varela, Chris Fraser, Dan Cowley, Tom Robinson
CG Team: Ben Cantor, Nigel Timms, Bethan Williams, Ian Baird, Jordan Coles, Maxime Ponsart, Joe Ibbett, Teodora Retegan, Quentin Corker-Marin, Stephen Ross
Grading: Max Ferguson Hook, Simone Grattarola
Audio Post Production: String and Tins
Sound Supervisor: Will Cohen
Sound Design: Lawrence Kendrick, Culum Simpson, Jim Stewart, Kaspar Broyd, Adam Smyth, Joe Wilkinson, Adam Hare, Will Cohen, Mike Bamford
Music Composers: Will Cohen, Culum Simpson, Adam Smyth, Jim Stewart, Kaspar Broyd, Miink, Cal Swingler, J. Caesar, Matthew Watson, Daniel Freeman, Anthony Moore
Music Supervisors: Laura-Leigh Smith, Mike Bamford
Producers: Laura-Leigh Smith, Rachel Hough
Tags: 4creative art practice channel 4 idents love song optical arts time based arts