Beyond Screen Productions

From the Audiovisual Identity Database, the motion graphics museum


Background

Beyond Screen Productions is the Australian television division of Beyond International Group, best known for producing the hit Discovery Channel show MythBusters. They also produced Beyond 2000, which the company's name is derived from. On October 5, 2022, it was announced Banijay would acquire Beyond International through its Australian subsidiary, Screentime. The acquisition was completed on December 30, 2022.[1] Two years later, Mikael Borglund bought back Beyond's production arm from Banijay but agreed with them on a distribution deal and Banijay retained Beyond's distribution division.



1st Logo (September 10, 1988-1989)

Visuals: On a black background, there is an in-credit logo, consisting of the text "BEYOND" in a serif font, with the word "INTERNATIONAL" and "GROUP" in a plain, spaced-out lettering. Copyright info is shown below the logo.

Technique: A still, computerized graphic.

Audio: The end theme of the show.

Availability: Seen on the short-lived Fox version of Beyond 2000, titled Beyond Tomorrow.

2nd Logo (1989-1991)


Visuals: On a time-lapse cloudy sky background with wireframe lines, there is a black rhombus that rotates to the right, revealing it as a drawn star. A purple streak draws over the rhombus, and a purple line draws in and settles to the center. The same text from the previous logo slides in one by one.

Variants:

  • Sometimes, the copyright info is shown below the logo.
  • An in-credit version of the logo exists.

Technique: CGI and live action.

Audio: None.

Availability: Seen on the trailer of The Magic Riddle and VHS editions of Beyond 2000.

3rd Logo (1990-1996)


Visuals: On a black and blue gradient background, a black and gray marbled 3-D rhombus spins around before it stops facing the front. Then, a silver star outline and a purple streak (the same one from the previous logos) that goes through it appears, followed by the text from the last two logos fading in below.

Variants:

  • Sometimes, the copyright "© [YEAR] BEYOND PROPERTIES PTY LTD" is shown below.
  • On non-USA prints of The Magic Riddle, "DISTRIBUTED BY" appears above "BEYOND", while "DISTRIBUTION" and "PTY LTD" replace "INTERNATIONAL" and "GROUP" respectively.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: None or the end theme of the show.

Availability: Seen on shows of the era, such as Fire, The Magic Riddle, The Zone and Beyond 2000.

4th Logo (August 9, 1996-September 26, 1999)


Visuals: A shortened version of the 1996 Beyond Films logo, albeit with a byline that says "Beyond Distribution Pty Limited" fading in right after "BEYOND" does.

Variants:

  • On Stingers, the star symbol is seen with the Beyond wordmark cropped out, and "Beyond Simpson Le Mesurier" is seen below in a plain sans-serif font.
  • On Sex/Life, the byline is replaced with copyright text.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: The second half of the fanfare from the film logo, or the closing theme of the show.

Availability: Seen on Beyond 2000, Halifax P.F., season 1 of Stingers and The Gift.

5th Logo (June 8, 1999-2013)


Visuals: A shortened version of the 1999 film logo, but "FILMS" is replaced with "PRODUCTIONS".

Variants:

  • Sometimes, the copyright disclaimer is seen below the logo.
  • A variant has been spotted without the copyright date, on the MythBusters episode "Salsa Escape".
  • Another variant has been spotted without the word "PRODUCTIONS" or the copyright stamp, on Lab Rats Challenge.
  • On Silversun, "PRODUCTIONS" is replaced with "SIMPSON LE MESURIER", referring to series creator and producer Roger Simpson and co-producer Roger Le Mesurier.
  • On some shows, "PRODUCTIONS" is replaced with "DISTRIBUTION".
  • A print version of the logo exists.
  • An in-credit version of this logo also exists.
  • Sometimes, "PRODUCTIONS" is replaced by either "ACTION" or "SCREEN PRODUCTIONS".

Technique: CGI.

Audio: The second half of the fanfare from the 1999 film logo. Rarely, the closing credits music is used instead.

Availability:

  • Seen on their shows and documentaries that they produced or distributed until 2013 such as Kid Detectives, Backyard Science, Beyond Tomorrow, MythBusters, Answered by Fire, Something in the Air and Toybox, among others.
  • Check your old recordings of MythBusters for this one, as most 2005 episodes only have a copyright screen. In 2006, Discovery added on-screen credits to this show (including the reruns), although at least one airing of an early MythBusters episode (the Shattering CD-Roms one to be specific) retained the original credits and this logo.
    • The best source for this logo is the DVD collections from the Discovery shop and downloads of the episodes from the iTunes Store.
    • Most episodes on DVD and TV in Australia have the fanfare variant shown at the show's start.
  • It was also shown on the children's game show Lab Rats Challenge; the latter show is often reran on the Australian versions of Cartoon Network and Boomerang.

6th Logo (2013-)


Visuals: On a black background, there is a purple star zooms out. A streak draws in from the star, and then the star rotates. The background turns white and the text "BEYOND" zooms out, and lines draw in. The logo shines, and some purple lines disappear. The word "PRODUCTIONS" fades in on the bottom right of the word.

Variants:

  • There is a version where the word "DISTRIBUTION" replaces "PRODUCTIONS".
  • Another version exists where the word "RIGHTS" appears below the logo. This became the current distribution arm since 2020, when TCB Media Rights was acquired by Beyond International.
  • On Wild But True, the logo is superimposed with "SCREEN PRODUCTION" below.
  • A rare version has been spotted on the movie Manny Lewis. Here on a black background with city spotlights, there is an orange-red trail like a shooting star, which zooms out to create a streak, which draws down to form the star with the "SCREEN PRODUCTION" text variant now in shiny silver.
  • A print version exists.
  • A short version of this logo exists.
  • A still version of this logo also exists.
  • There is also a version that was used on Dumbotz, with the Beyond star except the arc now made of purple paint, and with the word "DISTRIBUTION" now on the bottom left and the word "kids" seen on both the logo and on the bottom right.
  • On Halifax: Retribution, the word "LONE HAND" appears below the logo, replacing "PRODUCTIONS".
  • Most of the time, the logo appears in-credit or superimposed.
  • It sometimes shares the screen with other logos.
  • On unscripted shows, the star is red just like the Beyond Home Entertainment logo, and the text below the logo reads "ACTION".
  • Sometimes, "ENTERTAINMENT" or "MEDIA RIGHTS" is seen below.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A piano tune, ending in a string. Composed by Nathan Brand. In other cases, none.

Availability: Seen on shows and documentaries by the company, such as My Kitchen Rules, Charles: Our New King and Dumbotz, among others.

7th Logo (May 18, 2023-)


Visuals: On a black background, there is the 2013 Beyond logo zooms in. To the left of it, the Banijay "B" logo appears and below is the standard Banijay subsidiary byline "We are Banijay".

Technique: Simple digital effects.

Audio: Same as the previous logo.

Availability: First debuted on John Farnham: Finding the Voice.

References