NCircle Entertainment

Background

NCircle Entertainment is an American DVD distributor focused on children's programming that was founded in 2006. It is a division of Alliance Entertainment (unrelated to the Canadian company of the same name) and is based in Irvine, California. The company is known for their issues of Cookie Jar Entertainment properties.

1st Logo (2006-2007)

Logo: Just the NCircle Entertainment print logo, composed of "NCiRCLE" in a paintbrush-like font within a yellow ring, on a white background.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Rare. Seen on early NCircle releases including the DVD release of Mario's Movie Madness.

2nd Logo (2007-2013)

Logo: On a gray/light blue striped background, we see an orange "N" moving and turning around, then we cut to a yellow ring bouncing from the left. Then the "N" runs away from the yellow ring. It comes to the left and briefly stops in place, before continuing to run away from the ring. It comes to the front of the screen. The yellow ring comes to the back of the "N", and drops like a coin as "CiRCLE" appears from the right letter by letter, then the word "entertainment" slides from the right.

Variant: There is a Stay Tuned bumper variant where the logo is on a bubble background with the NCircle Entertainment print logo is shifted down a little, and the words "STAY AROUND AFTER THE PROGRAM TO SEE PREVIEWS OF MORE GREAT SHOWS FROM NCiRCLE entertainment" are shown above the logo.

Technique: The "N", the yellow ring, and the words, all CGI. A big improvement over the previous logo. This was done by motion designer Ryan Hartsell, using Cinema4D and Adobe After Effects for compositing.

Music/Sounds: A soft pop tune with a handclap beat and a synth-piano section, ending with chimes on the final piano section. A car horn is heard as the "N" stops in place, as well as a child's laugh near the end, and after the music ends the child says, "NCircle".

Music/Sounds Variants:

During the logo's early days, the child's laugh and dialogue are absent.
The laugh and dialogue may be slightly delayed.

Availability: Common.

Seen on many DIC Entertainment and Cookie Jar releases, including several issues of the Super Mario Bros. cartoons such as Box Office Mario, Air Koopa, Mario Spellbound, Once Upon a Koopa, and Mario Bros. Mix (limited edition only), as well as The Legend of Zelda, Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic Underground, Horseland, and Heathcliff DVDs.
Also seen on DVD releases of The Wiggles, Pocoyo, The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!, Sid the Science Kid, Dino Dan, WordWorld, Chloe's Closet, and The Gruffalo.

3rd Logo (2013-)

Logo: On a white background, first we see an orange N, but it's in a bold font instead of a child-like font, appears with a yellow firework, the word "Circle" appears letter-by-letter, The color of the fireworks are: blue and yellow, yellow and white, blue and red, pink, sky blue, and transparent. When the logo finishes the word "entertainment" appears, and many of the 2D fireworks randomly appear, the yellow ring appears via a bouncing effect, and a lime-green firework appears.

Technique: 2D animation.

Music/Sounds: A drumroll, a 7-note happy tune, a twinkling noise and the child from the previous logo once again saying "NCircle" (which, for some strange reason, includes the tail end of the piano chord).

Availability: Current.

Seen on current NCircle Entertainment releases, such as Llama Llama Red Pajama.
Also seen on their YouTube channel.
It also appears on the Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go DVD releases in the USA and Canada, respectively as well starting with "Time for Teamwork!"