GK Films

Background
GK Films is an British/American film and television production company founded in 1990 by English film producer Graham King, located in Santa Monica, California. In 2005, the firm, which was known as Initial Entertainment Group at that time, signed a deal with Warner Bros. Pictures.

1st Logo (November 20, 1998-June 14, 2002)
Visuals: Three letters "I", "E", and "G") fly from left, up and right sides. The words "Initial Entertainment Group, Inc." appear below, the logo shines. Then the explosion-like light effect appears in the middle.

Variant: There is a version where it was seen in a different still print version sharing the screen with the USA Films logo on Traffic.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A soft and quiet music composition with piano and strings.

Availability: Used on Very Bad Things, Traffic, The Florentine, and Savior. It is unknown if it appeared on the international theatrical release of Ali, as all other international home video prints and TV airings use the next logo.

2nd Logo (December 20, 2002-September 5, 2008)
Visuals: On a light background, seven silver bars fly from beyond, zoom out and move to the center of the screen. They stand in a row and rotate vertically to reveal "INITIAL" word. The separation line stretches below, with "ENTERTAINMENT GROUP INC" underneath. The logo is outlined by transparent shield.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: None. However, on Laws of Attraction, there are swooshes when the bars fly in, with drums overlapping, followed at the end by a cymbal crash.

Availability: Was seen on the original DVD releases of Aviator, Laws of Attraction and Gangs of New York as well as most international prints of Ali. It was also seen replacing the first logo on old films, and plasters the Paramount Pictures logo on international prints of Next (2007). Not every film have the logo, especially it's not seen on Blu-Rays, which use American prints.

1st Logo (March 6, 2009)
Visuals: There is a panorama of the city where the camera zooms out in blue skies. The ladder appears to be sticking out of the clouds, the shadow man climbs it and switches the lamp on. When it lights, the white letters of GK FILMS appear, and we can see starfield above and clouds below. The ladders becomes I, and man jumps off and hides himself behind L.

Technique: 2D computer animation.

Audio: A soft orchestral theme composed by Andrew Hagen.

Availability: Appears on the first GK movie The Young Victoria.

2nd Logo (January 29, 2010-)
Visuals: There is a close-up of a giant dirty-white construction of "GK" letters, whose parts are disarranged. When we zoom out, the letters get into normal view and a soft flash creates "films". The flash is behind "f". There are also some light effects in the background.

Variant: On Camelot and Continuum, "films" is replaced by "-tv" and the logo is tinted in the colors of brown and blue.

Technique: CGI by Devastudios.

Audio: A dramatic fanfare composed by Simone Benyacar and Craig Stuart Garfinkle, or the opening theme.

Availability: Seen on current movies by Graham King like The Town and Edge of Darkness.

3rd Logo (Argo variant) (October 12, 2012)
Visuals: On a black background, the GK Films print logo from before zooms out and spins to the middle of the screen, as several copies of it streak out a la the CBS Special Presentation open.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: None.

Availability: Only seen on Argo.