BY Armin

New TV Channel is Reel Zimple

Just like there is a sucker born every minute it seems like a TV network is born every other minute to satisfy all us suckers. The most recent addition to the airwaves is the all new ReelzChannel, devoting its 24/7 airtime to everything there is to want to know about movies. The identity of the channel along with that of some of its original programming was designed by New York-based Trollbäck + Company, whose TV track record includes the redesign of CourtTV, AMC and the repackaging of CBS’ On-Air graphics.

“The resulting identity and on-air package” reads Trollbäck’s web site, “celebrate the simple graphic shapes associated with movie language, from our film-reel-like logo, to the network ID’s, and show opens that draw inspiration from film-reel leaders, the MPAA logo, and movie posters.” The channel’s main identity is indeed simple and effectively so with an equally simple, bold and legible wordmark — maybe a little extra leading in the two lines would help though — to accent the icon making it a highly legible logo as a TV bug and a highly impactful one in interstitials and opens. As Trollbäck’s on-air montage demonstrates, the icon animates beautifully and in a variety of ways. If this identity suffers from any affliction, it might very well be Circleitis and the unavoidable circle-filled world that it lives in in environments like the web site — this screen shot [pop-up] shows five logos plus the icon on the sign up box, totaling 30 circles! — and I assume in printed materials where circles are likely a big part of the visual language. Nonetheless, ReelzChannel has the advantage of claiming ownership of the four circles-in-a-square motif and that goes a long way in establishing brand awareness as its programming makes its way to more and more cable and satellite providers. Which brings us to the ID’s of these programs.

Trollbäck’s style veers heavily unto the simple and flat side, most of the time to great visual effect, but these identities fall lacklusterly flat and become the lowest common denominator in graphic language, from the faux 70s typeface of The Big Tease to the literal check mark in The Check List, all these identities feel undeveloped and, more importantly, do not display the elegance of the channel’s logo. Overall, though, this seems like quite a succesful identity launch for Trollbäck and only viewers’ interest will determine the fate of a channel that has strong competition from all the entertainment shows currently on TV, not to mention sites like Rotten Tomatoes and Ain’t it Cool News that bring us the reel (ha!) dirt on the movie business.

To read (and see) more about ReelzChannel, visit Trollbäck’s sub-site for this work, and a press release on Dexigner.

\n\nJust like there is a sucker born every minute it seems like a TV network is born every other minute to satisfy all us suckers. The most recent addition to the airwaves is the all new ReelzChannel, devoting its 24/7 airtime to everything there is to want to know about movies. The identity of the channel along with that of some of its original programming was designed by New York-based Trollbäck + Company, whose TV track record includes the redesign of CourtTV, AMC and the repackaging of CBS’ On-Air graphics.

Many thanks to our ADV @ UnderConsideration Partners