DreamWorks Pictures

Logo description and capture by JuniorFan88 Editions by Shadeed A. Kelly, Jeff B., KirbyGuy2001 (Logoblin), MrThorax281, iheartparamount, and indycar

Background: DreamWorks Pictures (also known as "DreamWorks, LLC", "DreamWorks SKG" or "DreamWorks Studios") is an American film studio that was established in 1994. DreamWorks was formed as an ambitious attempt by media moguls Steven Spielberg, Jeffery Katzenberg and David Geffen (which is where the "SKG" insignia came from) to create a new Hollywood studio. The studio primarily released their own films, although some films were co-released or released some territories by another studio (most often Universal Studios and Paramount Pictures and in some cases, 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, Warner Bros. Pictures and Columbia Pictures). On December 11, 2005, the founders agreed to sell the studio to Viacom to become a division of Paramount Pictures. The sale was completed on February 1, 2006, but the studio became independent again in 2008. On February 9, 2009, DreamWorks struck a distribution deal with Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures (through their Touchstone Pictures label), which has been effective since 2011. DreamWorks Animation was formerly a subsidiary of the studio until the two split into separate companies in 2004. DreamWorks Pictures is now legally known as "DW II Management, Inc." with the "DreamWorks" name and logo being used under license from DreamWorks Animation. Paramount owns the rights to the studio's live-action films (from the studio's inception until the spin-off from Viacom) after purchasing rights held by Soros Strategic Partners LP and Dune Entertainment II LLC, as well as the films they distributed until the partnership ended, with U.S.TV over-the-air rights handled byTrifecta Entertainment and Media. On December 16, 2015, Spielberg, Jeff Skoll, Anil Ambani of Reliance Anil Ambani Group and Darren Throp of Entertainment One formed Amblin Partners with DreamWorks becoming the adult label of the new company. Later on, Universal signed a deal to distribute the later titles by Amblin so Universal Studios will distribute the studio's material once the distribution deal with Disney expires. Films produced by DreamWorks with distribution handled by Walt Disney Studios have still retained distribution by the aforementioned company after the contract expired in 2016. DreamWorks Animation (which was acquired by NBCUniversal in 2016) owns all of the studio's animated films.

(September 26, 1997-) DreamWorks (1997)

Nicknames: "Little Boy Fishing on the Moon", "Fishing Boy", "DreamWorks Fishing Boy", "Fishing for Dreams"

Logo: It starts out at night with a crescent-shape moon and some clouds in a reflection of water, then we see a bobber and fishing reel splash into the water. The camera then pans upwards through bunch of clouds to see a boy, sitting on top of a crescent-shape moon going fishing. Suddenly, a "D" appears, and as the camera pans to the right, letters such as "R", "E", "A" and the next proceeding letters follow, although parts of the letters are covered by the clouds. We then swoop past a whole bunch of several clouds, engulfing the screen. They then revolve away to reveal the text "DREAMWORKS" with "SKG" appearing underneath with lines on the left and right of it respectively, and the text is set by the dark of night with clouds to accompany it.

Variants:

A short version of this logo was seen on trailers for films and at the end of films released through Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Touchstone Pictures, starting with I Am Number Four. However, Real Steel has the still version of this logo at the end. Some films have the logo fading out early after it has been formed. Sometimes, the logo may be zoomed out further than usual.

Trivia: The idea for this logo was a concept from co-founder Steven Spielberg. He originally wanted the logo to be CGI depicting a man fishing standing on the moon, but his frequent collaborator Dennis Muren suggested a hand-painted logo instead. Artist Robert Hunt was then commissioned to design the logo. Spielberg loved one of Hunt's designs, a boy sitting on a crescent moon while fishing, and it was made into a full-motion logo. The boy who is seen sitting on the moon is based upon Hunt's son, William.

FX/SFX: The bobber dropping, the reveal of the letters. Great CGI from Industrial Light & Magic that still holds up more than twenty years later. It was directed by animation supervisor Wes Takahashi, and Hunt provided some of the resources for the logo.

Music/Sounds: A dreamy orchestral piece with an acoustic guitar section. Composed by John Williams.

Music/Sounds Variants:

On MouseHunt, the same music is heard, but the guitar section at the end is replaced with a French horn playing the same notes (which was used for the short version of the 1996 DreamWorks Interactive logo). On some prints of Antz (such as the Region 4 DVD releases of the film), the logo is silent, even though original prints and the 1999 Aussie VHS had the opening theme playing. This may have been an error in production or distribution. On some films, the opening soundtrack is used, along with the sound of the bobber splashing into the water. On the US DVD release of Evolution, when you select the "English 2.0" track, the fanfare for the 1993 Columbia Pictures logo will be heard instead. This most likely boils down to the fact that Universal mistakenly used the 2.0 English track from the Sony owned international master.

Availability: Very common. It premiered on The Peacemaker (which is also DreamWorks' first film) and has been used in nearly every DreamWorks film ever since. Was seen on some 2001 Region 4 DVD releases as well and pre-2004 DreamWorks Animation films, from Antz to Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas. This logo preceded the 1997 BBC Video logo on the DreamWorks Home Entertainment DVD release of three Wallace & Gromit films. Current prints of the studio's animated films and pre-2008 live-action films may have this logo be proceeded by a Paramount Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures or DreamWorks Animation logo. It also appeared on DreamWorks Animation's only direct-to-video film Joseph: King of Dreams.

Editor's Note: An effective combination of 2-D and 3-D animation, with the music also being a highlight. This logo has been in use for 20+ years and counting.