Logo research and analysis/Conventions of the very beginning of the trailer

A logo is used to represent someone or something. Whenever a specific logo is seen, then it usually refers to something, and is therefore, symbolic. The most common feature of a logo is that it has to be simple. It is known that if a logo is too complex, then the consumer may not remember the logo as well as they could do, and therefore, it will slip their mind. Below are a few examples which follow this rule:

This is the "firefox" logo. As you can see, this is not complex at all. It is relevant to what it sells, and the name. A gradient that is similar to fire’s colours are shown on the fox, as well as it being wrapped around a world. The world is implemented in this logo to imply that this is relevant on a global scale, which it is, as this provides a service to roam the internet.

This is the Batman logo, commonly used in its comics and films. They have used a simple shape (an oval) as the base of their logo, and used a bat in the middle, which is relevant to the name of their brand. They have also used distinct and contrasting colours, as it emphasises the colours and more importantly, the bat in the middle. No complex graphic effects have been used here.

However, in relevance to our trailer, I have to produce a production logo before the actual screening of the trailer. This is to give an authentic feel to the trailer, but also to avoid copyright if I was to use existing production logos/animations. Below are some production logos that follow the same conventions as the logos above:

Pixar have produced many famous films, such as Buzz Lightyear, Toy Story, Monsters Inc., and Finding Nemo. This logo that "Pixar" uses is essentially just text. However, as simple as it is, there isn't a design or symbol that can be linked to the production name "Pixar". However, the use of san serif font symbolises that this is a production firm that representative of high class. Below the production name, they have included what type of company they are, which is informative to the viewer. As plain as this logo is, it follows the same convention as the logos that I've mention before: Simple.

"MGM" are also a very recognised film production firm. Their most notable film that they have produced is the series of "James Bond". Although their logo may seem more complex than the others I've mentioned, it does get their point across. The use of the lion is the most noticeable symbol out of every other aspect of the logo, as it's the easiest design to recognise. Also, they have used one colour for their logo (predominantly gold). Also, the production firm name is on the top of the logo, without any inference of other designs, which makes it easy to read. However, the other computer generated images (CGIs) make this logo a bit confusing. This means the viewer may not remember the whole design, but most noticeably the lion. The lion is also emphasised in animation, through the roar sound effect that MGM have added in:

How will this affect my horror trailer?

Understanding the conventions of a logo will allow me to create an effective logo that I will look to include in the trailer. None of these logos are specific to a genre, as the production firm have nothing to do with the involvement of the trailer. It is important that I create an effective trailer, so it is easy for the consumer to digest the information that is given to them in such a short amount of time. Usually in trailers, the production logo does not appear for more than 5 seconds, so the viewer would not have enough time to see the logo. I have featured various examples below, as well as indicate how many seconds the production logo shows up for, and between what times:

Great Gatsby - 2 seconds (0:06 - 0:08)
Dark Knight Rises - 4 seconds (0:06 - 0:10)
Love Actually - 3 seconds (0:06 - 0:09)

It is also important to note that whilst finding out about the logos within the trailers, I have noticed that the green screen with information of age group restrictions at the beginning lasts for exactly 6 seconds, including any transition effects that may be included. It is also important to note that it is 6 seconds in the beginning, despite the genre of the trailers being different. I can conclude that the genre of the trailer has no effect to how long the information is displayed in the beginning. Therefore, as it is a convention of a trailer, I will apply that into my trailer so it doesn't seem any different to the other trailers that have been produced for professional purposes.