Skydance Media

Logo descriptions by EnormousRat, BenIsRandom, and Colorband

Background: Skydance Media (formerly Skydance Productions) is a production company founded by producer David Ellison. His sister, Megan, founded Annapurna Pictures.

1st Logo (December 22, 2010-July 31, 2015) Skydance Productions (2010)

Nickname: "The Front of the Sun"

Logo: We start with a bright orange flash on one side of a giant letter. The camera zooms out to reveal the Sun and other letters floating in space, supported by metallic constructions. Then we move right and only the corona of the Sun remains in background. All letters leave their supports and form "SKYDANCE" word, with "PRODUCTIONS" underneath already formed.

Variants: On the trailer for True Grit (the first film itself to use the first normal logo), part of the sun blur is seen and there is only the stars in the sky. On Terminator Genisys and Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (the latter is the last movie to use this logo), the logo is enhanced to have the word "PRODUCTIONS" deleted and the sun's glowing is absent. "SKYDANCE" shines as the logo formed.

FX/SFX: The animation of the letters. Superb CGI from Picture Mill.

Music/Sounds: A majestic orchestral fanfare. Sometimes, it's silent or it uses the opening theme of the movie.

Music/Sounds Trivia: The fanfare for this logo was written and composed by film composer Pinar Toprak. A behind the scenes video of the making of the fanfare was uploaded by Toprak herself and can be seen here.

Availability: First seen on True Grit, and also appears on Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol and G.I. Joe: Retaliation, among others. The version with music can be found on Picture Mill's website. The last movie to use this logo was Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, released on July 31st, 2015. It made the last appearances on most trailers for Star Trek Beyond, as well as Jack Reacher: Never Go Back.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (July 22, 2016- ) Skydance Productions (2016)

Nicknames: "The Front of the Sun II", "The New Front of the Sun"

Logo: We fade into a sun (presumably our Sun) that is spinning. We zoom out as it gives off some form of solar flare. The zoom reveals coronal rain all over the sun, as a big serif "S" flies in from the left. A "K" then flies in, and so on, until we see the finished product. While all this is happening, we are still zooming out. We stop to reveal our finished product; the word "SKYDANCE" in a slightly-spaced out serif font. It shines and zooms in, set on a space background.

FX/SFX: The sun giving out a solar flare and coronal rain, the text flying in, and it shining while zooming in. Very nice CGI from Imaginary Forces.

Music/Sounds: Same as the previous logo.

Availability: First seen on Star Trek Beyond and newer films from the company.

Editor's Note: None.