Cinemax (Film and Television Rating Bumpers)

From the Audiovisual Identity Database, the motion graphics museum

Background

1st ID/Bumper (August 1, 1980-March 1984)

Visuals: Mostly the same as HBO's rating bumpers of the time.

Announcements:

  • G: "The following feature has been rated G by the Motion Picture Association of America."
  • PG: "The following feature has been rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America. Parental discretion is advised."
  • R: "The following feature has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. It is intended for mature audiences, and parental discretion is advised. This feature will be shown on Cinemax only at night."

Variants:

  • An alternate version of the "R" bumper has a more verbose announcement: "The following feature has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. It is intended for mature audiences, and parents may wish to consider whether it should be viewed by those under seventeen. This feature will be shown on Cinemax only at night. For further information, please consult your Guide."

Technique: 2D animation.

Audio: The announcement being read.

2nd ID/Bumper (April 1984-January 1985)

Visuals: Same as HBO, but with a black-gray gradient background.

Announcements:

  • G: "The following feature has been rated G by the Motion Picture Association of America."
  • PG: "The following feature has been rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America. Parental guidance is suggested."
  • R: "The following feature has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. It is intended for mature audiences and parental discretion is advised."

Variants:

  • For certain unrated programs that contain questionable material, there is a bumper with this announcement: "The following program deals with mature subject matter that may not be suitable for all viewers. Discretion is advised."
  • On some occasions, a closed-captioning disclaimer would appear after, with a TV chat balloon symbol appearing in the top-left like the ratings symbols, with the white text below reading "Closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired."

Technique: A still, computerized graphic.

Audio: Same as before.

Availability: Same as before.

3rd ID/Bumper (February 1985-March 1987)

Visuals: Same as HBO, but with a Cinemax logo wallpaper background.

Announcements:

  • G: "The following movie has been rated G by the Motion Picture Association of America."
  • PG: "The following movie has been rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America. Parental guidance is suggested."
  • PG-13: "The following movie has been rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America. Some material may be inappropriate for young children. Parents may wish to consider whether it should be viewed by those under 13."
  • R: "The following movie has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. It is intended for mature audiences. Parents may wish to consider whether is should be viewed by children under 17. Cinemax will show this feature only at night."

Variants:

  • For certain unrated programs that contain questionable material, there is a bumper with this announcement: "The following program deals with mature subject matter that may not be suitable for all audiences. Viewer discretion is advised."
  • An alternate version of the "R" bumper has this announcement: "The following movie has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. This indicates that it contains material of an adult nature. Parents may wish to consider whether is should be viewed by children under 17. For further information, please consult your program guide. Cinemax will show this feature only at night."
  • For closed-captioned programs, there is an extra card with the text, "Closed-captioned for the hearing impaired." It may be on a separate card that fades in part of the ratings bumper with the text fading in after the rating fades out.

Technique: A still, computerized graphic.

Audio: Same as the first two.

Availability: Same as the previous bumper.

4th ID/Bumper (April 1987-March 1989)

Visuals: Same as HBO's bumper of the time, but the background has Cinemax's logo.

Announcements:

  • G: "The following movie has been rated G by the Motion Picture Association of America."
  • PG: "The following movie has been rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America. Parental guidance is suggested."
  • PG-13: "The following movie has been rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America. Some material may be inappropriate for young children. Parents may wish to consider whether it should be viewed by those under 13."
  • R: "The following movie has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. It is intended for mature audiences. Parents may wish to consider whether is should be viewed by children under 17."

Variants:

  • For certain unrated programs that contain questionable material, there is a bumper with this announcement: "The following program deals with mature subject matter and contains frank and explicit language that may be unsuitable for all audiences. Viewer discretion is advised."
  • For programs broadcast in stereo, there is an extra card by a featuring a blue headphones symbol with the word "STEREO" under it. Below it, the text reads, "In stereo where available."
  • For closed-captioned programs, there is an extra card with the text, "The following program is closed-captioned for the hearing impaired."

Technique: A still, computerized graphic.

Audio: Same as the previous bumper. This was also the last bumper to provide an explanation of the R rating.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

5th ID/Bumper (March 1989-1994)

Visuals: On a white marble background, a black box is shown on the top left side and contains the rating of the movie ("G", "PG", "PG-13" or "R"). The right side next to it is the text "The following movie is rated [X]." Below it are up to three black boxes containing symbols, with texts beside them, pertaining to that particular broadcast:

  • The letters "ESP" ("En Español" or "In Spanish Where Available")
  • A "TV speech bubble" symbol ("Closed-Captioned")
  • Headphones ("In Stereo Where Available")
  • Dolby's "double-D" logo ("In Stereo and Surround Sound Where Available" or "In Dolby Stereo Surround Sound Where Available")

Below all that is a black rectangle with the word "CINEMAX" in yellow inside it.

Variants:

  • For unrated programs (typically not movies), a rare bumper is used for a particular broadcast used in programming.
  • On the mature subject matter bumper (which is reminiscent of the unrated variant), words are added above them: "The following program is intended for mature audiences" or "The following program contains scenes and language of a frank and explicit nature. Viewer discretion is advised."

Technique: A still, computerized graphic.

Audio: The same Bill St. James voiceover as the 1989-1994 HBO rating bumper.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

6th ID/Bumper (1994)

Visuals: The same as before, but enhanced and, as a result of premium TV channel companies wanting parents to have additional explanations of why the movie had the ratings it did, there's now a second screen depicting what the program contains.

Variant: For TV shows and specials, it just showed whether the program was in mono or stereo, if a Spanish audio track was available, and then it went into the second screen.

Technique: A still, computerized graphic.

Audio: Same as the last bumper, except it happens as soon as the bumper fades in and a new voiceover is used. None for the TV show/special variant.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers. An example of this is the March 20, 1994 showing of The Last of the Mohicans.

Legacy: Many of the categories that were used here (such as "Adult situations") were eventually discontinued by the next bumper's debut.

7th ID/Bumper (1994-1997)

Rating Bumper: The background is an orange daytime backdrop. On the left side of the screen is the movie's rating. Above them is the text "The following movie is rated [X]." Under that is up to three boxes containing white symbols, with text beside them, pertaining to a particular broadcast:

  • The letters "ESP" ("En Español")
  • A "TV speech bubble" symbol ("Closed Captioned")
  • Headphones ("In Stereo Where Available")
  • Dolby's "double-D" logo: ("In Stereo and Surround Sound Where Available" or "In Dolby Stereo Surround Sound Where Available")

Under all that is the Cinemax logo. All the text is black with the logo, and the rating and boxes red.

Content Bumper: On the same background are the words "The following program contains:", and below it are one to five boxes containing various letter symbols regarding the content of a particular program.

  • AC (Adult Content)
  • AL (Adult Language)
  • BN (Brief Nudity)
  • GL (Graphic Language)
  • GV (Graphic Violence)
  • MV (Mild Violence)
  • N (Nudity)
  • RP (Rape)
  • SC (Strong Sexual Content)
  • V (Violence)

TV Ratings: Starting on January 1, 1997, Cinemax began to precede its series and specials with bumpers featuring the TV ratings that were adopted by the rest of the industry: "TV-G", "TV-PG", "TV-14" and "TV-M" (later "TV-MA").

Variant: Starting in 1996 or 1997, after President Clinton enacted the V-Chip act, bumpers for TV ratings were added.

Technique: A still, computerized graphic.

Audio: Same announcer as before, but also in a different recording.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

8th ID/Bumper (1997-2001)

Visuals: Unknown

  • The letters "ESP" ("En Español")
  • A "TV speech bubble" ("Closed-Captioned")
  • Headphones ("In Stereo Where Available")
  • Dolby's "double-D" logo ("In Stereo and Surround Sound Where Available")

Content Bumper: Unknown.

TV Ratings: Unknown.

Variants: Unknown.

Technique: Unknown.

Audio: For the first time in Cinemax history, none.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

9th ID/Bumper (2001-2003)

Rating Bumper: Unknown.

  • The letters "ESP" ("En Español")
  • A "TV speech bubble" ("Closed-Captioned")
  • Headphones ("In Stereo Where Available")
  • Dolby's "double-D" logo ("In Stereo and Surround Sound Where Available")

Content Bumper: Unknown.

TV Ratings: Unknown.

Variants: Unknown.

Technique: Unknown.

Audio: None.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

10th ID/Bumper (2003-2008)

Visuals: Unknown

  • Dolby's "double-D" symbol ("Stereo & Surround Sound")
  • CC ("Closed Captioned")
  • ESP ("En Español")

Content Bumper: Unknown

HDTV Bumper: Unknown

Variants: Unknown.

Technique: Unknown

Audio: None.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

11th ID/Bumper (2008-2011)

Visuals: Unknown

  • Dolby's "double-D" logo ("Stereo & Surround Sound")
  • CC ("Closed Captioned")
  • ESP ("En Español")

Content Bumper: Unknown

HDTV Bumper: Unknown

Variants: Unknown

Technique: Unknown.

Audio: None.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

12th ID/Bumper (2011-2016)

Visuals: Unknown

  • Dolby's "double-D" logo ("Dolby Digital 5.1")
  • CC ("Closed Captioned")
  • ESP ("En Español")

Content Bumper: Unknown

Technique: Unknown.

Audio: None.

Availability: Same as the previous bumpers.

13th ID/Bumper (2016-)

Visuals: Unknown

  • The closed captioned symbol is the "CC" text in a rounded square
  • The "Dolby where available" symbol is the Dolby logo from 2007 and the "where available" text is below said logo.
  • The Spanish simulcasts symbol is just "ESP".

Variant: Unknown.

Technique: Unknown.

Audio: None.

Availability: Current.

Retrieved from "https://www.avid.wiki/Cinemax_(Film_and_Television_Rating_Bumpers)?oldid=848812"
Cookies help us deliver our services. By using our services, you agree to our use of cookies.
More information