Channel 1 Ostankino

Credits

Descriptions by
KosMir

Captures by
KosMir

Video captures courtesy of
OxiExtras, Ярослав Волков, Олег Разумовский [hukin07], miller10socialrev, The Kot 2016 and snp7394

Background

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union on December 26, 1991, the All-Union State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company was liquidated in the next day. The Russian State Television and Radio Company «Ostankino» was founded on its basis, and launched its own TV channel named Channel 1 Ostankino, replacing CT USSR Programme One on January 1, 1992. On April 1, 1995, Channel 1 Ostankino was replaced by ORT (Общественное российское телевидение/Public Russian Television), which is known as Channel One Russia today.

1st ID (January 1, 1992-March 31, 1993)

• 

  From a B&W recording of the ident

Visuals: Over a moving picture of a blue cloudy sky, a square containing the same picture of a cloudy sky with its drop shadow pans down from the top. A square turns out to be a group of nine cubes as six cubes out of them flip to the bottom to reveal their back sides (which are white; while all of the cubes' other sides are blue), representing a blocky number "1". The other three cubes then flip to the right to reveal that their back sides are blue. After the picture of a cloudy sky stops moving, the word "ОСТАНКИНО" zooms out to the bottom of the screen below the Channel 1 Ostankino logo. Once the word "ОСТАНКИНО" got to its place, its drop shadow appeared.

Technique: 2D computer animation, with CGI graphics for the cubes and live-action photograph for a cloudy sky.

Audio: A majestic 3-note synth choir theme sounding similar to the early 1992 intro of their news program of the time, with three metallic hits.

Availability: As of now, the only known full recording of this ident is in B&W. However, two colored recordings of this ident do exist, though the former is in low quality, while the latter cuts off in the 2nd half.

2nd ID (April 1-July 18, 1993)

• 
• 
• 

Visuals: On a white paper-like floor with several rotating, colorful spotlights against a mirror glass wall, a lying, golden 3D text:

В ЭФИРЕ
ТЕЛЕВИДЕНИЕ
"ОСТАНКИНО"

slides in from the bottom, rotated 90° to the left. The camera then turns to the bottom-right to reveal the whole text.

Variants:

• An alternate variant exists where the floor's texture is a dark green marble-like background; the text is also light blue.
  • There's also a still version of the said variant: Here, the text is pink and it has a light blue bevel, and the background looks different. Even though the text is 2D-looking in this variant, it still has a 3D effect.

Technique: CGI animation. For the still version, a printed card using traditional ink and paint.

Audio: A long droning note accompanied by a computerized whoosh followed by a 5-note triumphant ditty, then a synth bell rendition of the same ditty and a final triumphant note with a cymbal crash.

Availability: The regular variant was used as a Sign-On ident, which would occasionally repeat several times before the broadcast starts.

3rd ID (July 19, 1993-January 16, 1994)

Visuals: On a plain medium blue background, a pyramid containing various colorful triangle-like shapes and dots from the top view zooms out and then rotates, to reveal the blue Channel 1 Ostankino logo on the underside of the pyramid. Then a pyramid from the bottom view with the logo slowly flips to the bottom-right corner of the screen, and the text with a white outline:

В ЭФИРЕ
ТЕЛЕВИДЕНИЕ
„ОСТАНКИНО”

quickly grows in from the bottom-left corner of the screen to the center, while flipping to face the camera. The ident then remains on-screen for 9 seconds.

Technique: CGI animation, with analog computer graphics for the text.

Audio: A peaceful synth choir/violin theme with triumphant notes.

4th ID (January 17, 1994-March 31, 1995)

Visuals: On a navy blue gradient background with a blue reflective surface, a light appears near the right side of the screen. Three very thick, colorful curved lines (L-R: red, green and blue) emerge from a light to a blue surface, making it ripple. Then, three cubes in the same colors along with their transparent copies flew out of a surface and landed on it. They rotate at fast pace to form one silver rounded cube, which has transparent navy blue Channel 1 Ostankino logos on each side of it. A rounded cube rotates to its usual postition of the logo as the camera turns to the bottom, while the Ostankino Tower appears near the right side of the screen with three balls (in the same colors as three cubes) surrounding it on a surface, which goes back to normal, but it now has multiple dots depicted on it. As a rounded cube slides near the top of the screen, the spaced-out text "В ЭФИРЕ" in a futuristic-looking font appears letter-by-letter above a rounded cube. Once a rounded cube got to its place, the text "ОстанкинО" fades in, zooming out to the bottom of the screen letter-by-letter. A rainbow line located between the first and last letters of the text "ОстанкинО" forms. After that, the text "ТЕЛЕВИДЕНИЕ" in the same font as "В ЭФИРЕ" slides in above a rainbow line. A blue light flashes from the sharp angle of the top of the Ostankino Tower.

Technique: CGI animation.

Audio: A majestic orchestral fanfare climaxing into a 8-note triumphant theme. Composed by Sergey Chekryzhov.

◄ CT USSR Programme One

Channel 1 Ostankino

Public Russian Television ►