Earlier this week, Apple revealed new branding that will appear at the start of Apple TV shows. The new title card features a colorful presentation of the Apple logo, and according to AdAge, the company took a more traditional approach to creating the look.
Instead of using computer-generated graphics or AI, Apple, working with TBWA\Media Arts Lab and Optical Arts, made the visual part of the branding with a glass Apple TV logo model and lighting effects captured with a camera. According to AdAge, this production approach aligns with a presentation that Apple VP Tor Myhren made at Cannes Lions back in June, where Myhren spoke about the importance of human creation at a time when AI-based tools are emerging. AdAge has a highlight video that shows the behind-the-scenes production of the shoot.
Besides the five-second clip that appears at the start of shows, a 12-second version was made to appear at the start of Apple Original Films (a.k.a. movies). There’s also a one-second “sting” made for trailers.
The music accompanying the branding was made by Finneas, Billie Eilish’s brother and collaborator, solo artist, composer, and producer. In a report by Variety, Finneas states that he had HBO’s static sound and NBC’s peacock chimes in mind when creating the Apple TV jingle he dubbed “Mnemonic.”
While Finneas did use digital tools to create the final product, he primarily relied on his piano as the basis for the sound. “I played a chord that felt kind of hopeful and kind of optimistic, but had gravity to it and hopefully had a little bit of an enigmatic, mysterious quality,” he told Variety. “And so I had this chord thing happening and then I started building the sounds around it.”
Author: Roman Loyola, Senior Editor, Macworld
Roman is a Macworld Senior Editor with over 30 years of experience covering the tech industry, focusing on the Mac and other products in the Apple ecosystem. He is also the host of the Macworld Podcast. His career started at MacUser, where he received Apple certification as a repair technician (when Apple did that kind of thing). He's also worked for MacAddict, MacLife, and TechTV.