TV Idents Research

RESEARCH & EXAMPLES

TV idents come in all different forms. It is the little video a few seconds before a TV programme starts. It usually tells you what channel you are watching. It is a critical part of a TV channel. The likes of the big companies in TV such as ITV, BBC, Channel 4 + 5 and also MTV.  They have indents in many forms.

The purpose of the idents are to entertain the viewers and keep them watching as it is eye-catching and appealing to the viewer. The idents that are made, may feature a celebrity/star from a certain show. This would show that the show and the channel are both family friendly and suitable for the younger audience, making it more enjoyable to watch for the family. Idents are featured on pretty much every channel out there which is broadcasted on TV. Some idents are presented differently. Some may be animated and cartoon and others may be consisting of real people playing a part or doing a certain activity, as well as, a video of wildlife being narrated over.

Channel 4 – These idents focus on a tin man which make the shape of a number 4. The tin man is around everyday life of the other people. This shows that the channel is welcome to everyone who would want to watch and fits in with the general middle class. For example, the ident where the tin man is playing football with a group of children and teenagers in the streets of Liverpool, shows that anyone can watch the shows on that channel and it is suitable for all ages. The whole purpose of the big tin man where to ‘feel like a bigger expression of the channel’ according to the creative director behind it, Dan Watts.

Channel 4 Ident Liverpool

BBC – BBC idents began in the early 1950s, when they first displayed the logo between programs to identify its service. 2 December 1953 saw the arrival of the first ident, nicknamed the "Bat's Wings". This was an elaborate mechanical contraption constructed by Abram Games, which featured a tiny spinning globe in the centre, surrounded by two spinning "eyes", with lightning flashes to either side. Unlike later idents, this was filmed, rather than live.

The BBC’s most famous indent emblem was the globe. It first appeared on 30 September 1963. This was the first ident that had an announcer/narrator speaking over the rotating globe. It was the next step of the idents going forward, to where we are now. There was a long road with the technology we have, short films are now used, but with the same message.

The idents that are made now, are really to entertain. Especially by the BBC. The BBC also try and relate their idents to what is coming onto the show next. Example – If Match of the Day is scheduled next, the BBC will put the football related one with the little kids football training is on. Not only does it tie in, it will also promote other kids around the age to get up and start something they may enjoy like football or any other sport. If the next scheduled show is a David Attenborough wildlife show, then the BBC will most likely put the circling hippos. Sometimes they do mix it up with general idents for everyday shows. 

BBC One Hippo

BBC One Football Circle

The way there is a circle of people or animals in the older idents, convey with the channel name. The circle could perhaps be the ‘O’ from BBC One. This is also backed up with the fact that whenever a BBC ident is shown, there is always a number 2 shown on them, whether it may be the actual number or in the shape of the number. The circle symbolises the ‘O’ from BBC One and the 2 symbolises the 2 from BBC 2.

 

ITV - The ITV idents are generally for the entertainment purposes. They come in alltypes of forms and techniques to show that it is ITV. This will immediately entice a viewer. The fact that the powerful bright colours and ‘wacky’ ways saying ITV are being shown, will get the viewer’s attention to look at it. From there, they have the attention focused on the TV, where then the narrator will say what is next being shown. This may then make the viewer stay focused on the channel and watch the next show.

ITV2 idents feature lots of objects. This is seen to be more entertaining. This is due to the whole channel portraying that. ITV 2 is the ITV channel that showcased the more of the reality TV, fun quiz shows and things that are not serious enough for ITV1. The likes of Love Island, Celebability and Ibiza Weekender will be shown on their as they fit in with the whole of the connotation of the channel, and the ident is what makes that with the constant bright colours and objects that can be seen as humorous and more entertaining that the idents on ITV1. 

MTV - MTV is a big one for the idents. They are100% focused on the entertainment of the audience hence the reason of the fun and appealing idents. MTV is a channel based on reality TV and Music. The fun that everyone watches, usually to a younger demographic. The idents, again, fit this. The use of the colours they use appeals to the people who will watch it, similar to ITV2. 

The colours/ representation will always vary for MTV. This is because it is primarily a music channel. With that, they will cover a large variation of genres from Pop, Hip/Hop, Electric and Rock (+ A LOT more). They have to try and please everyone but also fit in with what is trending at the time. At the time of writing this, Pop music is the most popular listened to , so they will focus on more of them to try and entice, however go back 30 years, you have Rock/Metal being the main demographic and people listening to the likes of Guns N Roses, Greenday, Nirvana etc. MTV here, would of focuses on ways to entice that audience towards them through many ways, one being idents. 

WHAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED

As an ident is a small film that is featured in between shows and adverts on a certain TV channel, you want the the channel to stand out on the animated and want a number of different ways to feature it and in different styles. For exmaple, if you have a channel such as ITV 1, you would want the ident to be more professional as that is where the main shows and serious content get shown, whereas, ITV 2 allows to be more fun with the idents as the channel's content is a lot more comedy based with entertainment being the number one priority with porgrammes such as Family Guy, Love Island, Ibiza Weekender etc. 

You want to have a colour scheme that fits the atmosphere of the channel and it's whole intention, to fill that portrayed atmosphere even more. The main purpose of the TV industry is to keep viewers entertained and keep them entertained as well as trying to entice more and more viewers to widen the audience. 

The type of channel I will be producing idents for is a music channel called 'JAM TV'. I have chosen this name because it is going to be a music channel that is dedicated to guitar music, or songs that feature a guitar part. The reason for this is because is it something I do have a passion for and like to listen to whatever I am doing. My plan is to have a different variation of styles when producing my ident however I would focus on one style especially, being graphical, as it is my prefered way of presenting things.