BBC Film

Background

BBC Film (formerly BBC Films) is the film division of the British Broadcasting Corporation, which was founded on June 18, 1990.

BBC Films

1st Logo (July 18, 1990)

Logo: On a black background, the BBC's coat of arms zooms out and settles itself in the center. After this happens, the white text "A BBC Films Production" types itself in underneath.

Technique: The coat of arms zooming out and the text appearing.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Very rare. This can be seen on Antonia & Jane.

2nd Logo (November 10, 1990-September 10, 1997)

Logo: It's just a white box with "FILMS" under the 1988 BBC logo of the time, in the closing credits.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the movie or none.

Availability: Check old BBC movies for it.

3rd Logo (April 3, 1998-January 18, 2002)

Logo: A live-action flame bursts from the left side of the screen. A bright yellow splash appears and creates the BBC logo from 1997 with "Films" next to it.

Technique: The flash.

Music/Sounds: Wind chime sounds accompanied by several violin-like notes.

Availability: Rare. Seen on I Went Down and and the UK release of Billy Elliot, among other films.

4th Logo (May 9, 2003-September 21, 2007)

Logo: A huge explosion occurs, leaving white particles. The 1997 BBC logo with "F I L M S" or "Films" next to it appears.

Technique: The explosion and the particles flying around.

Music/Sounds: An ethereal whoosh and a dreamy string piece.

Availability: Seen on all films from the era.

5th Logo (March 9, 2007-September 22, 2020)

Logo: A blue light opens in the center, leaving white particles flying everywhere. Three plates of the 1997 BBC logo zoom in, rotating in the process. The word "FILMS" zooms in.

Variants:

An in-credit version was seen at the end of their films.
In 2015, "25 YEARS" was added below the logo.
In Mrs. Brown's Boys D'Movie, the logo was moving from the top right to its usual position at the end of the 2013 Universal Pictures logo.

Technique: The explosion and plates moving.

Music/Sounds: A mellow string tune with drumbeats.

Availability: Very common.

It was last seen on their film that the company produced until 2020 such as Eastern Promises.
The logo made it's last appearance on Supernova.
This logo appears at the beginning of films when it aired on BBC channels although this never appeared on the actual prints of some movies like Starter for 10.
Surprisingly this logo was seen after the Searchlight Pictures logo and before the DNA Films logo when the BBC airs those two films (which are The History Boys and Far From The Madding Crowd) as the actual prints never had this logo until the end.

BBC Film

(February 11, 2021-)

Logo: On a black background, the camera rotates around the current BBC Film logo, which consists of the 1997 BBC logo and the bold text "FILM" below it. All of the parts are raised up with invisible blocks of different sizes, but the logo is left in 2D when the camera faces the top of them.

Variant: At the end of films, a smaller still version is used.

Technique: The camera.

Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the movie.

Availability: Current. It first debuted on Can't Get You Out of My Head and The Mauritanian, and will appear on all upcoming productions from them.