AS1: Task 3 - Understanding the design of a suit television idents

What is a suit of idents?

A suit of idents is when a TV channel designs new idents, this isn't just one ident it is a group of them. These idents don't all have the similar theme. Each are very diverse but have to link together to create the same meaning/purpose. To have a range of idents than just one provides more interest for the audience as there is a range of different styles. 

The first BBC suite began in 2002 and continued for another four years, until 2006, ever since the BBC have maintained their idents uniquely. 

BBC "Rhythm & Movement" ident:

Tai Chi ident:

To begin with, the music and movement of this chinese ident is very slow, calm and relaxing. This already gives the impression that it is aimed at adults between the ages 30 - mid 50s. Because of the age group it is aimed to, this kind of ident would be shown in the afternoon when everyone is back home from a busy day. As you can see the only colour that is worn is red, this is to communicate to the viewers by letting them know that when they see this colour they instantly know that they are watching the BBC. 

  

Salsa ident:

Secondly is the Spanish ident. The aim of this type of ident is to get people in a dancing or happy mood and the best way to get viewers to that level is by doing salsa. The music is mature giving the impression that it is aimed at adults but mainly at salsa dancers. For the kind of style and mood that is set, the ident would be set in the evening before a dancing show or entertainment programme because it fits in that particular category. 

Skateboard ident:

This theme straight away shows us a group of young adults skateboarding in a skate park. If you notice, all the young adults are male so this is directly aimed at males who are in their 20s or late 20s and this gives the impression that the BBC do notice more urban and/or retro people; even though they are a high standard channel that is looked up to. What adds interest to the advert is the fact that the slow motion certain parts of when they are skateboarding. Like the part where they are flipping the skateboard in the air, this grabs the viewers attention because it comes across as cool and a bit more trendy. 

Masai ident:

The Masai ident is probably the most different one out of the four I have discussed so far because it is an African cultured theme. The place of where it is filmed, the people, their clothes are all based on the culture which is interesting because the BBC have taken into consideration of not just fancy or cool lifestyles but other third world countries/tribes such as the Masai tribe, and involved them in today's television. Adding onto that, even though BBC idents always have red clothes or objects in them, you can see that they aren't wearing a lot of red. This is because the BBC want to be able to maintain the culture and tradition that they have. 

How are all idents similar?

The 'Rhythm & Movement' suite has a basic theme which is colour the red, the BBC keep their red theme because it is an intriguing colour. This theme is unmissable, attractive and makes people want to watch the BBC which is why the BBC have chosen such theme for all idents. 

The 'Rhythm & Movement' sweep are aimed at different audiences. For instance, the four idents I chose from the suite are the Tai Chi, african (Masai), Salsa and skateboard indents. Instantly we see that there are different ethnicities, cultures, ages and genders included in the idents and the BBC do this to communicate or in other words aim the purpose of the advert towards all these different people. The Tai Chi ident is not only aimed at Chinese people but people that may have an interest in the internal Chinese materials art. Secondly is the Masai advert. This is more direct as it is aimed at the people from that tribe only and we know this because of the clothes they wear, and the fact that where it is filmed like it's in Africa. This is the same with the Salsa and skateboarding ident. The Salsa would mainly be aimed at people who like to dance it or just generally have an interest in it. Skateboarding would be aimed at people who love to skateboard, and even though in the advertisement we see only men skateboarding woman may also have a free interest in it.  

What the BBC do that is interesting is that they stick to the basic song of their music but they change the rhythm for each ident they create, like the salsa ident for example. The song is the same but the rhythm is changed to spanish because the ident is salsa. Same with the Masai ident, it is changed up to a more tribal and african style to match with the style of the ident shown. This kind of suite is a leeway for viewers to feel comfortable and involved in the channel itself; making them feel as important to the programme as well.