The Purpose of Idents:The main purposes of idents are to create a strong sense of branding through reminding the viewers what station they are watching. Idents can also create an atmosphere and set up the show that follows the ident. It is important that viewers can get a feel of the channel they are watching as it will allow them to understand what the channel shows and if it is suited to their interests. Branding:A brand is the image a company builds for itself, and dictates how the channel acts so as to keep its audience watching. It is important for a channel to have a brand as it creates a sense of what the audience can expect to see when watching the channel which helps to attract an audience and maximise viewers. This is especially useful for commercially driven channels which rely on advertisement breaks as it means more people will see the adverts, meaning that more companies will want to advertise on their channel which maximises profits. An example of an ident that builds a brand is E4's Caravan Park ident. This builds a brand for E4 as it keeps to their overall theme of being wacky and a bit weird, for example, there is a lot of hidden writing in the ident such as "Pull my Finger", "The Pilot's a Girl", "These things fly themselves really" and "I done a bad". E4 is weird and wacky as they often show what are considered to be unusual programmes. Most of the programmes that they air are American, that they have purchased the airing rights to, however, E4 also show programmes such as the inbetweeners and phone shop which are original British comedy shows. As well as this there is a lot of unusual imagery used in the ident such as a lone man, dressed as a bear, dancing outside the caravan where dance party is going on. This is mixed with more normal imagery such as children playing, someone fixing the satellite on his caravan and an elderly man driving a mobility scooter. Packaging and Repackaging:Packaging is how a channel is presented including its logo and idents. A package of idents is a collection of idents that that channel will use at different times to promote different shows just as they are about to air, or to set a certain tone or mood before a programme. Re-Packaging is where the ident package changes to an entirely new set of idents, or when they are altered over time. It is important that channels rebrand and re-package themselves from time to time as it allows the channel to get a fresh look and feel which can keep viewers enticed to watch the channel as they feel the channel has actually changed significantly, even if only the idents and logo have changed. The timing of this is also important. Re-Packaging should only occur when the existing package is starting to date and look aged, or if the themes in them are no longer relevant, this will feel more natural to the channel's viewer base, whereas it may feel rushed if a channel repackages itself in the middle of it's existing package's life time. An example of a channel that has been re-packaged is Channel 4, which changed over from it's 2004 package on Tuesday 29th September 2015 at 9PM, starting with their new clock ident, which featured a hidden clock face in-between colour shifting blocks. Example of a Channel 4 2004 Ident: http://theident.gallery/player.php?id=C4-2007-ID-BOWLS Example of a Channel 4 2015 Ident: http://theident.gallery/player.php?id=C4-2015-SCENE-RED-1 Identity:BBC Four shows their identity of being more educational and airing nature programmes than its sister channel BBC One by having more natural and simplistic imagery in their idents, though these images are usually divided into 4 squares, this ties in with the idea that they show more educational and natural programmes and documentaries, and also ties into the channel's name being BBC Four as the imagery is divided into 4. It is important for idents to correspond with a channels ethos as an ident reflects the beliefs and views of the channel and gives viewers a general idea of what they air and what the channel's outlook is. BBC 4 shows it's target audience through its idents as their full package shows natural and intellectual imagery, which relates to the channel's target audience as the programmes BBC4 airs are mostly nature and historical documentaries targeted towards an intelligent and inquisitive audience. It is important that the target audience is represented in a channel's idents as viewers want to feel like they belong with that channel and are made to feel welcome when watching that channel, this will make viewers want to continue watching that channel and to constantly come back to that channel to watch again. Segmentation within Scheduling:The definition of scheduling is a plan of procedure, usually written, for a proposed objective, especially with reference to the sequence of and time allotted for each item or operation necessary to its completion according to dictionary.com Scheduling of idents is the process of deciding, in advance, when idents will be shown, and what programmes they will precede / follow. It is important as viewers don't want idents to pop up al the time on screen, but a brand needs to be made so that viewers can get a better feel of the channel they are watching. Idents are typically scheduled to appear between programmes or very briefly at the start and end of an ad break. Idents appear semi-frequently on most TV channels so that the viewer can get a feel for the channel that they are watching yet it is not forced on the viewer by having idents appear constantly. Marketing:Idents display some of the main themes of the channel and build an image of what the channel's views and outlooks are as well as the theme of the programmes that they air. This helps promote and market the channel to new viewers so as to attract them to keep watching that channel. An alternative way of marketing a chanel is through big programmes such as the world cup which are exclusive to specific channels - BBC One in the case of thew world cup. This means that viewers who only want to watch a specific show, will go to a certain channel just to watch the one programme they want to, even if they would not normally watch that channel. Idents can also be expanded on by creating specialised idents for certain shows, which helps to promote both the event and the channel, for example the olympics had a specifically designed ident to help promote the BBC and the 2012 olympics. Design of Idents:The design of idents is highly important as it can influence the sense the viewers get from watching the channel as well as the image the channel makes for itself. The ident designs need to fit with the theme, views and ethos of the channel as the channel doesn't want to send its viewers mixed messages about themselves. It is important that the channel maintains a strong brand and image so that its viewers gain a firm understanding of the channel and are made to want to come back and continue watching. BBC One's idents are all designed to include a circular motif for the logo reveal. This motif is used throughout all of the channel's idents and much of their promotional material, this has become a big part of their brand and sends the message to their viewers that they create well rounded content that should be able to be enjoyed by the vast majority of people. Yesterday's idents all include their logo in some kind of battle-eque situation, such as their logo being shot at or been shrouded in flames. These are fitting to Yesterday as it is a channel that mainly airs documentaries about wars and battles. Screen Tempo:It is important that idents fit the time that they are being aired. If an ident is preceding a programme, it is important that the ident matches the speed of the programme that is precedes. This doesn't just apply to the visuals of the ident, the music and sounds also need to match the tempo of both the visuals and the following programme, this is to ensure that the ident flows smoothly into the next programme and sets the tone for what the viewers are about to watch. It is important that there is no juxtaposition in tones so that viewers get a more constant viewing experience. An example of this is BBC One who air slower idents, such as their forest ident, before programmes like the one show which are calmer and include less action, whereas before a programme such as match of the day, they air their football ident, which not only ties in directly with the show, but also sets the tone in terms of speed and tempo before the programme starts. Idents may also appear at the start and end of an ad break. These idents are normally extremely short and snappy, they will only include a very brief action and the channel's logo. These idents need to be this short so that the viewers don't get annoyed by having a long drawn out ident forced upon them before they can continue watching their programme. Viewer Interaction:While idents do not normally address the audience directly, the casting announcers sometimes use terms such as "your evening", "your day" etc. This isn't used very often but it has the effect of making the viewers feel more involved and as though the channel is creating more customised content and shaping their programmes around the interests of the audience. An example of this is E4's E-Stings competitions, in which viewers can submit short animations or clips to become official E4 idents. Density of information:Idents usually do not include mass amounts of information at any one time. Typically idents only include the name of a programme and when it it being aired, this keeps the screen looking clean as oppose to packed full of information. Any additional information that needs to be included will normally be spoken by the production announcer. This is to keep what is on screen simple so that the audience can read the information easily in the relatively short amount of time that the ident remains on screen. Space and Time:Idents can often be set in different time periods. Most channels make their idents centred around modern day so that they can portray themselves as broadcasters of the modern world and for people of the modern day.
Some channels use very high tech and futuristic imagery in their idents. This could be the channel trying to portray itself as the broadcasters for the future and to say that they are trying to set the new trends, however, channels like E4 use the high tech, futuristic setting to portray themselves as wacky, different and humorous, this also helps to attract their target audience as it draws them into the idea that their channel is cutting edge and is moving ahead of the other competing channels.
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