Silver Pictures

Background
Silver Pictures is the production company of Joel Silver, founded on June 24, 1980. However, it did not have a logo until a decade later, which was first introduced on its television division, a year before the first film was released.

1st Logo (October 4, 1991-November 5, 2003)
Nicknames: "The Square", "The CGI Chip", "The Chip"

Logo: On a black background with water below, a 3D  object emerges from it slowly and ripples as it rises. After it's uncovered, the camera zooms back quickly to reveal that the object is a chip with "SILVER PICTURES" coming from below; the letters separated from each other.

Trivia: The chip is based on a block pattern that Frank Lloyd Wright designed for the exteriors of the legendary Storer House in Los Angeles. Joel Silver, a Wright enthusiast, restored the Storer House in the 1980s.

Variant: On widescreen prints of the film Ricochet, a spotlight is seen shining on the bottom right corner of the screen; with the radius taking up almost half of the background. Pan-and-scan prints of the film would have a flash appear with the chip, giving it an appearance of a spotlight on the background for a brief second. This is presumably due to film damage.

FX/SFX: The chip rising and the camera zooming. Very nice early CGI.

Music/Sounds: An orchestral fanfare composed by Michael Kamen (who also did the music for the 1991 Morgan Creek and 1994 New Line Cinema logos) that ends with nine orchestral hits.

Music/Sounds Variants:
 * On Ricochet (the first film to use this logo), the theme is more frenetic. There is also an unused fanfare with harps and pounding timpani drums throughout used on the film's soundtrack, composed by Alan Silvestri. This was intended to be the standard fanfare for the logo.
 * On a French VHS of The Last Boy Scout, translated Le Dernier Samaritain, the theme begins at the tail end of the credits before the logo appears.
 * On some movies, the opening/closing theme is used.

Availability: Can be seen on films from the period, such as Swordfish, The Matrix trilogy, Demolition Man, The Last Boy Scout, Ricochet, Richie Rich, and Executive Decision.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (2003)
Nicknames: "The S", "The Gears"

Logo: On a black background, some gears turn and are held up by strings, as the camera zooms out and scrolls down. After a bit, it stops and eases back to reveal a bordered rectangle with an "S" and "SILVER PICTURES" stacked below. The gears then fade away.

FX/SFX: The gears and the scrolling of the screen.

Music/Sounds: A metallic beeping-like sound followed by machinery turning on when the logo is revealed.

Availability: Just one of two experimental logos for the company. They might be circulating around online.

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (2003)
Nicknames: "Gears II", "The Chip II", "The CGI Chip II", "The Chip with Gears"

Logo: On a black background, we see some gears in half a square with a metal prong protruding to the bottom. The camera eases back on top with the company name in on the top of the screen seen backwards; before going front as it eases back and rests in the middle. The square turns into the chip from the 1st logo as it shimmers.

FX/SFX: The gears and the camera.

Music/Sounds: Machinery-like humming with the sound of gears.

Availability: Like the previous logo, it was only a prototype and wasn't used in any films.

Editor's Note: None.

4th Logo (October 21, 2005- )
Nickname: "The CGI Brick"

Logo: We start by seeing angles with a light and a small square. The camera then zooms out a little and goes down from the gap of a new CGI-stylized brick as it turns towards a black background with the words "SILVER PICTURES" zooming down below it.

Variants:
 * A still version exists on early episodes of the second season of Veronica Mars.
 * A warp-speed version exists on later episodes of the second season of Veronica Mars.
 * Starting with later films from 2007 onward, the company name is removed.

FX/SFX: The positioning of the cubes with light effects. Awesome CGI done by Prologue.

Music/Sounds: None or the opening theme of the movie. However on Veronica Mars has the eight orchestral hits from the end of the 1st logo.

Availability: Common. Seen on films like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, The Invasion, and V for Vendetta among others.

Editor's Note: None.