ABC DVD

Credits

Descriptions by
mr3urious, TrickyMario7654, OZ Paramount 87 and CooleyBoy10

Captures by
TrickyMario7654 and iheartparamount

Video captures courtesy of
AustralianTVClassics

Background

ABC DVD (formerly ABC Video) is the home entertainment division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Their releases are currently distributed by Roadshow Entertainment (they were formerly distributed by Video Selection Australia though Roadshow Entertainment from 1991-1993). Starting in 1996, they co-distributed BBC Video releases in Australia along with Roadshow Entertainment.

ABC Video

Contents   Logo (July 2, 1990-March 23, 2006)

ABC DVD

Contents 1st Logo (April 2, 2001-March 19, 2009) 2nd Logo (November 6, 2008-2019) 3rd Logo (2018?-)

ABC Video

Logo (July 2, 1990-March 23, 2006)

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Visuals: A purple textile-like background fades in, with a more colorful background in its center third. The background starts moving, and a glassy ABC Lissajous logo fades in and turns upward in the center. "VIDEO" then fades in below.

Trivia: This logo is based on ABC's 1988-95 ident package. The main background seen here was made specifically for this logo.

Variants:

• There are some known variations, with the appearance of this logo at the start, and/or the cutting/fading out transition after the logo at the end is abrupt on some VHS releases.
  • On the 1991 VHS of ABC For Kids: Video Hits, the logo cuts in from black at the beginning and the music begins when the purple textile background starts to move to the left. At the end, the logo slowly fades out for 20 frames of animation.
  • On the 1992 VHS of ABC For Kids: Video Hits Vol. 2, the logo fades in from black slowly at the start, and fades out at the end for 12 frames of animation.
  • On the 1993 re-print of ABC For Kids: Video Hits and the 1997 VHS of The Wiggles: Wiggledance!, the logo quickly fades in from black at the start for 6 frames of animation, and cuts to black at the end.
  • On ABC For Kids: Live In Concert and the 1993 VHS of Wiggle Time! The Wiggles Video, the logo fades in from black at the start, and fades out at the end for 8 frames of animation.
  • On the 1994 VHS of The Wiggles: Yummy Yummy!, the logo fades in from black at the start, and cuts to black at the end.
  • On the 1995 VHS of The Wiggles: Big Red Car and the 1996 VHS of The Wiggles: Wake Up Jeff!, the logo fades in from black for 8 frames at the start, and cuts to black at the end.
  • On the 1997 VHS of The Wiggles: Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas, after the G rating, the logo abruptly fades in from black for 7 frames of animation, and cuts to black at the end.
• On the 1999 restoration of Nureyev's Don Quixote, the logo is squished to a 16:9 aspect ratio.

Promotional Variants:

• One promotional variant opens on a satellite shot of the earth. When this specific promo ends, it fades into the logo with the ABC logo turning. This was used from 1991-1994. On tapes with this promo, it cuts directly from the end of the ABC Video logo.
• Another promotional variant has the logo slowly fade in from black at the start. Near the end, the logo slowly fades onto an orange background, where it is now a scribble-like drawing. Different styles of patterns also fade in on each corner of the logo, where they rapidly change patterns. These features continue throughout the promo. This was used from 1994-2000.
• Yet another promotional variant had the logo play out normally until the music finishes. When it does finish, the logo gets zapped by lightning, and the normal background is changed into different TV show clips with specific genres: Nature, Drama, Comedy, Sport, Lifestyles, Music, Opera, Dance and Celebration in that order. When the promo nears the end, the logo does its normal animation. The same promo can be seen on DVDs but it can sometimes be in the 16:9 aspect ratio. This was used from 2000-2006.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A gentle uplifting fanfare with a horn section, ending with six synth bell/choir notes (the latter three being the trademark ABC jingle).

Audio Variants:

• On earlier VHS releases from 1991-1993, and on the 2000-2006 promo variant, the music doesn't start until the textile background starts moving, and the glass fades in before the first note of the horn section of the fanfare.
• On most VHS releases from 1993-1998, the music starts after the logo fades in from black, and the glassy ABC lissajous appears at the second note of the horn section of the fanfare.
• On the 1994-2000 promo variant, the music has an echo effect added when the logo fades onto the orange background and changes into a scribble-like drawing.

Availability: Seen on all Aussie PAL releases of the period.

• Two of the earliest releases to use the logo are the Festival Video releases of Fireman Sam: Treasure Hunt and The World of David the Gnome: David to the Rescue!.
• It can also be seen on 1996-2005 BBC Video releases they distributed after the Roadshow Entertainment logo of the time, with Wallace & Gromit: A Grand Day Out, and Wallace & Gromit: A Close Shave being some of the first tapes to use this logo.
• Starting in 1999, this logo appeared at the end of their releases in place of the Roadshow logo.
• This logo was also used on their earlier DVD releases, such as Nature's Landscapes, Nureyev's Don Quixote and The Wiggles: Wiggly TV.
• It also appears at the end of periodical Playhouse Disney airings of The Wiggles: Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas, likely because they used a VHS master of it.
• This logo makes surprise appearances at the end of the Hong Kong DVD of The Wiggles: Wiggly Safari and on American Bananas in Pyjamas VHS tapes.
• Some tapes that used the 1991-1994 promo variant were The Best Bits of The Late Show, and Nature's Landscapes.
• The 1994-2000 promo variant can be found on the 1997 DVD of Wild Rhapsody.
• The 2000-2006 promo variant (16:9 version) makes an appearance on the 2010 re-issues of Kath & Kim Series 1-2, because they used masters from the original releases.
• One of the final VHS releases to use this logo was The Wiggles: Here Comes the Big Red Car which was released in 2006.
• This logo was absent at the beginning of the 1998 VHS tape of The Wiggles: Toot Toot! after the G rating (as the ABC for Kids logo was taking its place after it), one The Adventures of Tintin tape (Cigars of the Pharaoh), and the New Zealand VHS releases of two Noddy's Toyland Adventures tapes, Noddy And the Kite and Noddy The Champion.
• This logo makes an appearance on the 1999 Kultur VHS release of Nureyev's Don Quixote, due to it using the same transfer as the 1999 Australian DVD release.

ABC DVD

1st Logo (April 2, 2001-March 19, 2009)

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  Standard (2001-2008)
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  Alternate variant (2002-2008, 2009)

Visuals: On a black background, the glassy ABC Lissajous logo animates like in the ABC Video logo, except it's on the top half of the screen and much smaller. After that, the generic DVD logo zooms in underneath it.

Trivia: This logo is based on ABC's 1995-96 ident package, which also inspired the 1997 ABC Films logo.

Variants:

• On the majority of releases from 2002 to 2009, the "VIDEO" text is seen outside of the disc of the DVD logo.
• Starting from late-2005 until mid-2008, the logo is presented in 14:9 and the brightness is slightly higher. However on full screen releases, the logo is cropped to 4:3 from the 2005 master instead of the original 2001 master.
• On the releases of Jazz, Symphonic Hymns of the Forefathers, Brum: Airport and Other Stories and Cricket in the '70s: The Chappell Era, the logo has a fade effect at the start and end.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: The same music from the ABC Video logo, with an added loud whoosh sound for when the DVD logo zooms in.

Availability: Seen on 2001-2008 ABC DVDs, first appearing on the DVDs of Australia: Eye of the Storm, Tarkine: Peaceful Rest and Bird Suite all released on April 2, 2001. The variant with the "VIDEO" test outside of the disc of the DVD logo first appeared on the later prints of The Wiggles: Wiggly Safari. This is absent on the DVDs of The Wiggles: Whoo Hoo! Wiggly Gremlins!, The Hooley Dooleys: Wonderful, Thomas & Friends: Twin Trouble and The Wiggles: Top of the Tots after the G rating (which instead proceeds to the ABC For Kids logo from 1992-2009). The last DVD featuring this logo would appear on the 2009 DVD of The Wiggles: Go Bananas, which would also be the only ABC DVD from 2009 to use that logo.

Legacy: This logo is remembered by many Australians, whether fondly (considering its similarity to the ABC Video logo) or otherwise (because of the dark background and the Worldvision-like whoosh clashing with the calm music).

2nd Logo (November 6, 2008-2019)

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Visuals: On a black background, a twisted shape swings up in blue. A flash turns it red. Then, the screen cuts to a purple part of the logo, and the camera pans down. The logo flashes, revealing itself to be the ABC Lissajous logo from 2002, colored in red, magenta and sky blue. "ABC" appears below the Lissajous, with "DVD" under "ABC".

Variant: On Blu-ray releases like Wallace and Gromit: The Collection, the "DVD" text is removed, but is actually still slightly visible below the "ABC" text.

Technique: CGI by pictureDRIFT.

Audio: Several synth notes, with some whooshes and a noise similar to an orchestra tuning up. A low descending bass noise is then heard, ending in a calm guitar version of the ABC jingle with high-pitched sparkles.

Availability: Seen on ABC DVDs from the time period. Even though the 2002 lissajous curve logo started being used only as a secondary logo in favor of a revived 1975 logo in 2014, this logo continued to be used until 2019, when the company underwent a complete rebrand, officially dumping the 2002 logo all together.

3rd Logo (2018?-)

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Visuals: On a black background, the revived 1975 Lissajous curve logo, taking up most of the screen, draws itself in two halves. The logo zooms out as "ABC" fades in underneath (in the ABC Sans font), with "DVD" then fading in underneath.

Technique: 2D computer animation.

Audio: The tail end of the previous logo's music.

Availability: Seen on ABC DVD releases from around 2018 onward.