Titanus

Titanus
Founded:	1904 (120 years ago)
Founder:	Gustavo Lombardo
Location:	Italy
Website:	https://titanus.it/en/

Background

Titanus is an Italian film production and distribution company that was founded in 1904 by Gustavo Lombardo. It's the oldest film studio in Italy, but now mainly focuses on television.

1st Logo (October 17, 1945)

Visuals: On a black background, there is a simplistic black shield consisting in the middle of the screen, which consists of a dark gray top displaying a curvy "S.A." with a shadow and a shawl which contains a cursive "Titanus". There are two texts above and below the shield, those being "LA" and "PRESENTA", both of which are in a serif font.

Technique: A still printed image.

Audio: None.

Availability: Can be seen on Gloria di gloria.

2nd Logo (February 15, 1947)

Visuals: A slightly remodified version of the previous logo: the shield is now fully white and striped, "S.A.", now colored grey, is smaller and thinner, and the two ends of the "Titanus" shawl are cut off. "presenta" is now lowercase and in a cursive font.

Technique: A still printed image.

Audio: None.

Availability: Can be seen on Cronaca nera.

3rd Logo (February 11, 1950)

Visuals: On a grey background, a more detailed shield can be seen in the middle of the screen. The shield consists of a dark grey top, cut along the bottom diagonally and draped over a striped grey base. A shawl with the cursive text "Titanus" on it, now fully wrapped around the shield, is also seen, along with the text "S.A." in the small section created above the shawl. "la" and "presenta" can be seen in the top left and bottom right respectively with shadows visible.

Variants: A zoomed in version of the normal logo at the time,the same.But in a wall.

Technique: A still printed image.

Audio: The opening theme of the movie.

Availability: Can be seen on Tormento.

4th Logo (December 18, 1952-April 21, 1965?)

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Visuals: On a sunburst background, a redesigned version of the shield can be seen in the middle of the screen. The entire shield is now in 3D, positioned at a downward angle. "S.A." can no longer be seen, but instead a thick line running through the split, and the top is now more ornate. The shield also appears to have a metallic sheen and shadows, with it surrounded by a black aura. "LA" and "PRESENTA" are also now in all capitals and in Times New Roman. Sometimes, there is no text.

Variant:

• There is a different version with a different sunburst background and a different black aura painting; and "LA" and "PRESENTA" is in a gothic font. It appeared on La ragazza con la valigia (1961).
• Like the second logo, a color variant also reportedly to exists on some color films.

Technique: A still printed image.

Audio: Same as before.

Availability: Used in tandem with 3rd logo.

5th Logo (March 20, 1953-November 21, 1986)

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Visuals: Same as before, but the text is now all in the same gothic font, the aura is ommitted, and the entire logo is placed on a solid grey background. Sometimes, there is no text.

Variants:

• In 1953, when the logo was in color, the striped section became red, while the border turned gold. The background also becomes blue.
• The color variants may vary per movie.
• Sometimes, the background is black.
• There is a widescreen version.
• A textless variant exists.
• There is a version used internationally, which omits "LA" and "PRESENTA". Instead, the text reads "PRESENTS". This was used outside Italy.
• Later on, sometimes, there is no extra text and "DISTRIBUZIONE" can be seen on the red stripe. The logo also casts a shadow, meaning this version may be a painting.
• On some 1967-1974 films, such as The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, the entire logo is now a crudely made clay model, resembling the first logo, but with the shield in red, the shawl in blue, and the text and border in gold. "DISTRIBUZIONE" can also be seen on the stripe. The other text is also in yellow.

Technique: A still printed image.

Audio: The now signature fanfare of Titanus, which consists of harp strums and an ascending xylophone theme, before ending with a proud trumpet fanfare. The early version used a different xylophone theme with flourishes, ending with a 7-note trumpet fanfare. On the trailer of Pane, amore e fantasia, the trailer theme of the 1954 logo was used.

Availability: It can be seen on several old films up to 1986; example of the Italian films are Le Amiche, Il Bidone, Mio Figlio Nerone, Steve Reeves' Romolo e Remo, and Delitto d'amore, among others, which can be viewed on DVD releases, the bootleg copies, the RaiPlay streaming and ok.ru website.

6th Logo (February 3, 1954)

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Visuals: On a gray gradient background with a black circle in the center, fifty white stars circle around the outside (ala Paramount). After that, the text "50 ANNI DI ATTIVITÁ" ("50 YEARS OF ACTIVITY") wipes inside the top half in an arc, along with "CINEMATOGRAFICA" ("CINEMATIC") on the bottom half. After that appears, a rapidly spinning star appears in the center of the circle which then morphs into a monochrome version of the Titanus logo with "Presenta" in script below it. Then the logo fades out.

Technique: 2D cel animation.

Audio: A collection of xylophone notes for the stars and text, which then segues into a dramatic brass fanfare.

Availability: Only used during its 50th anniversary; seen on Questa è la Vita.

7th Logo (Late 1980’s-Early 1990’s)

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Visuals: The screen fades in on a silver city skyline on a sky blue background. The screen pans down the city, revealing itself to be on a frame that is part of a filmstrip. While it pans down, dandelion-colored lights start to appear all around the city windows. As we pan away from the filmstrip, various standing lights are flying around it, emitting lights. The two lights shine through the sprockets of the filmstrips. A flash appears around the filmstrip, making everything into a silhouette. The filmstrip starts to curl as letters of the word "Titanus" in a Freestyle Script font fly from the screen one by one on the filmstrip. The text "DISTRIBUZIONE" in Avant Garde Bold zooms out and places itself under this. After this, the camera zooms in on the filmstrip, making the background black.

Technique: CGI animation.

Audio: A majestic fanfare with laser zaps and tubular bell sounds for the letters zooming.

Availability: Seen on films such as Nero.

8th Logo (September 12, 1986-2005)

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Visuals: On a blue background, the Titanus shield from before zooms out, but its in silver and redrawn to look a bit flatter and turned upwards a bit. As it zooms out, "una produzione" can be seen above the logo. After it stops, white sparks appear all over the logo.

Technique: 2D cel animation.

Audio: Once again the signature Titanus music. Sometimes it's silent.

Availability: Seen on many TV films and shows such as Desencontros, Il commissario, Classe di firro, and the first two seasons of Orgoglio.

9th Logo (January 29-March 13, 2006)

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Visuals: Same as before, but the logo is now in a golden color, with a constant shine over it. The sparks are also cleaner and the text shines.

Technique: Same as before, but with a shine.

Audio: Again, the same as the second logo.

Availability: Seen on season 3 of Orgoglio.

10th Logo (April 7, 2008-2010)

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Visuals: On a dark blue background, a recreation of the Titanus shield from the 2nd logo zooms out, but with a shine effect over it. The rest of the logo plays out like the 4th logo.

Technique: Same as before.

Audio: Like the last 4 logos, the trademark Titanus music once again.

Availability: Seen on Rebecca, la prima moglie. Also, it is probably no longer in use.

11th Logo (March 31, 2016-)

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Visuals: On a blue background, the shield from before zooms out, but resembles the 4th logo more with realistic textures and a constant shimmer. After the shield zooms out, the cursive text "dal 1904" is written in the bottom right corner of the screen.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: Just the Titanus music.

Availability: It debuted on Titanus' website back in 2014 and is currently used since One Kiss.

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