Gaumont Buena Vista International

Credits

Descriptions by
DreamMechanic, Shadeed A. Kelly, Thisisanswer, videomaster13, Supermarty-o, MegaAveron25 and TheLogoFan2004

Captures by
Supermarty-o and Sagan Blob

Video captures courtesy of
MikeElby

Background

Gaumont Buena Vista International (GBVI) was a joint venture between Gaumont and Disney's Buena Vista International division, established in January 1993. GBVI ensured the distribution of films of its two parent companies in France.

After 10 years of existence, the partnership ended in 2004. Disney preferred to distribute its own films independently as Buena Vista International France, while Gaumont instead partnered with Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International and formed Gaumont Columbia TriStar Films.

(1993-2004)

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Nicknames: "Water Drops", "Water Daisy", "Water in Space", "The Other Daisy of Doom"

Logo: On a space background, we see a drop of water coming from the top-right corner of the screen and another coming from the bottom-left corner of the screen. They meet in the center of the screen where they spin into a circle. As a blue light flashes around them, they merge into a spherical water drop. At this point, the space background becomes brighter, causing stars to fly towards the screen. As the water drop zooms forward, a ring banner with the words "Gaumont Buena Vista International" embossed onto it forms. As it gets very close to the screen, the words quickly breaks away from the banner and zoom into the front of the screen as the water drop forms the classic Gaumont daisy shape albeit with lines on the top and bottom half to make space for the words. The words zoom back out to form the logo as the black background becomes a CGI view of a sky-sea background. The background pans upward into the sky as clouds move out of view.

Variants:

• There is a shortened version where only the last half of the logo is seen. This variant mainly appears on trailers.
• There's a variant where the logo is colored/tinted golden instead of blue. Mostly due to color fading (which is common on many film prints).
• A videotaped version also exists.

FX/SFX: The water drops appearing, them forming the big water drop, the formation of the Gaumont logo and the backgrounds. Fine CGI for the time.

Music/Sounds: First, we hear a low pitch string key, then some synthesized descending bass sounds, a synthesized cymbal crash when the spherical water drop is formed, a synthesized water pouring sound as well as choir, a high-pitched dolphin noise that echoes when the text and text are formed, a reverberating electric guitar note when the text zooms into the screen as the daisy forms and then some more choir sounds. The trailer variant is silent.

Availability: Ultra rare. It was seen on French theatrical prints of Disney/Buena Vista and Gaumont films during the era, but most home video prints remove this logo. The short variant appears on the trailer for Toy Story on a French VHS of 101 Dalmatians and a French 35mm trailer to Kiki's Delivery Service. Also appears on local films that the joint venture distributed, such as the English-language film The Fifth Element.

• It also appears on French theatrical prints of Studio Ghibli films like Spirited Away and Castle in the Sky, but the French DVD releases do not have it.

Editor's Note: None.