Written and Compiled by Nicholas Aczel and Sean Beard
Logo Pictures by Eric S. and V of Doom
Editions by V of Doom and Eric S.


Background: Alliance Atlantis was founded in 1998 as a merger of Alliance Entertainment Corporation and Atlantis Communications, both which were founded in 1985. Alliance Atlantis was acquired by CanWest and an affiliate of Goldman Sachs in 2007. The movie business now operates independently as Alliance Films, and the international television distribution businesses is now owned by Goldman Sachs.


Alliance Entertainment Corporation

1st Logo
(1985-1991)

Nickname: "Alliance Entertainment Corporation"

Logo: On a shady blue gridlined BG, the metallic stylized text


appears in the center of the screen, and the underlined text "ENTERTAINMENT CORPORATION" uncovers below it. The "ALLIANCE" shines.

Bylines: During 1985-1986 had the joint byline "An RSL • ICC Company" written below "ENTERTAINMENT CORPORATION." Dropped in 1986 as the merger between two of producer Robert Lantos’ movie companies, RSL • ICC and French-Canadian film distributor Vivafilm Ltée., was completed.

FX/Cheesy Factor: The graphics look quite ugly, and the light effects look cheesy.

Music/Sounds: None, played over the ending theme of a show. However, a version of Alliance Releasing has a light synth theme.

Availability: Uncommon, at least in America. Seen on a daily basis on reruns of Night Heat on Canada’s TVtropolis and DejaView channels (which are owned by CanWest Global, who just bought out Alliance Atlantis's cable networks), and should be intact on all other Alliance shows of the period whenever rerun on Canada’s many cable networks.

Scare Factor: Medium; the terrible look of the logo may not sit well with people.



2nd Logo
(1991-1998)

Nickname: "The Metallic A"

Logo: We see a dark night sky with mountains of metallic silver gemstones below, one of which streaks brightly. The screen cuts to a bird’s eye view of the gemstones. One of the pyramid-shaped gemstones rises into the air. We cut to a side view of the gemstone turning in the sky, then a facing view of the gemstone turning up on its side until it shapes a long isosceles triangle. A spark flies from the bottom left of the triangle. When the spark nears the top, it brightens and the triangle turns into a boomerang-shaped metallic A with the text "ALLIANCE" written below. The spark reaches the top and streaks again.

Vivafilm Variant: On French-language theatrical films, the text "VIVAFILM" appears under the Alliance logo.

FX: It’s all CGI.

Music/Sounds: Lush synthesizer music, with a ding when the spark brightens.

Availability: The short TV version appeared on Beast Wars: Transformers, Due South, Once a Thief, ReBoot, and lots of other shows. The long version sometimes pops up on movies and made-for-TV movies, being seen, for example, on uncensored prints of the controversial movie Crash (1996) years ago. However, the chances you might see this logo nowadays are lower, considering that it may be plastered over with the 1999 AA logo.

Scare Factor: Not all that scary.
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Atlantis

1st Logo
(1985-1989)

Nickname: "Sunburst"

Logo: The screen is divided with the top half black and the bottom half blue. A golden sun rises from under the blue. When it is halfway up the screen, the text "ATLANTIS" zooms out and flashes. The blue disappears and we are left with a black background with a sunburst in the middle and the "ATLANTIS" below it shining.

FX: The light effects.

Cheesy Factor: Early animation.

Music/Sounds: A six-note bell tune, followed by a horn fanfare.

Availability: Look HARD for this one. The shows it was on are no longer on American TV, but may still appear on the ex-AA cable channels in Canada.

Scare Factor: Low to medium; the somber music may bother more than a few.



2nd Logo
(1989-1995)

Nickname: "CGI Sunburst"

Logo: On a CGI sky above, sea below background, the familiar sunburst, now in CGI, rises from the sea. The text "ATLANTIS" zooms out and settles itself below the sunburst. A star shines on the "S" in ATLANTIS.

FX: The sunrise, the zooming "ATLANTIS". This logo is basically a souped-up version of its predecessor.

Cheesy Factor: Somewhat primitive CGI, which would improve by the 3rd logo.

Music/Sounds: Plays over the ending theme on most shows, but sometimes had it's own music: a jingle with a choir in it.

Availability: Can be seen if Sci-Fi is still rerunning The Outer Limits. It also appeared on Ray Bradbury Theater (which is no longer on TV), and The Nickelodeon Wildside Show (which was last seen on Noggin a few years ago, before the demographic change).

Scare Factor: Low. Coming after the previous logo, this is pretty harmless. The lack of the dark colors and somber music helps.



3rd Logo
(1995-1998)

Nickname: "CGI Sunburst II", "Laser Sunburst"

Logo: On a black background, two parallel golden laserlights draw a round curve across the screen. As we zoom out and turn up on their side, we notice at the focal points of the lower curve 5 laserlights, about an inch apart, draw lines connecting with the upper curve. There is a flash of light and we see the CGI sunburst with the text "ATLANTIS" below it on a dark marble background.

FX: The sketching laserlights, the light flash. Awesome CGI abound.

Music/Sounds: Digitally synthesized whoosh sounds amongst a dreamy choir, ending with a 5-note electric piano tune.

Availability: Seen on reruns of Earth: Final Conflict, The (New) Outer Limits, Psi Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal, and other shows produced during the period. Also appears on some made-for-TV movies.

Scare Factor: None; just great CGI animation.



4th Logo
(1998)

Nickname: "Chyron"

Logo:On a black background, the silver text stack " ATLANTIS" folds onto the screen.

FX: The letters folding.

Cheesy Factor: The folding letters look cheesy.

Music/Sounds: Possibly the end theme of the show.

Availability: Rare.

Scare Factor: I suppose none.
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Alliance Atlantis

1st Logo
(1998-1999)

Nickname: "Chyron"

Logo: On a black background, the silver text stack "ALLIANCE ATLANTIS" folds onto the screen. A red horizontal line draws between the "ALLIANCE" and the "ATLANTIS."

FX: The letters folding, the line drawing.

Cheesy Factor: The folding letters look cheesy.

Music/Sounds: The ending theme of a show. Sometimes it would have a 2-note orchestral piece

Availability: Pretty much gone in America, it appeared on The Famous Jett Jackson and NightMan, among other shows.

Scare Factor: None; it’s only BORING.



2nd Logo
(1999-2005)


Nickname: "Gold-Black A"

Logo: We see a cloudy gray sky with snow-capped mountains of gold-black metallic gemstones below. Two of the gemstones streak into the air, positioning themselves to the shape of a long isosceles triangle. The image fades into the boomerang-shaped Alliance "Metallic A" but with the bottom left gold and the top right black. The text "ALLIANCE ATLANTIS" is seen below. A spark flies from the bottom to the top.

Variants:

• As with Alliance logo #2, only the short version is used on TV shows, but the long version opens some made-for-TV-movies.
• The company's URL www.allianceatlantis.com sometimes appears below the name.
• On French-language theatrical films, the text "VIVAFILM" appears under the Alliance logo. Vivafilm Ltée. is now called Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm and is their French-Canadian division.

FX: The flying spark, the CGI.

Music/Sounds: A majestic symphony fanfare.

Availability: Despite not being current, is still common. Can be seen on older Degrassi: TNG episodes on The N, among other shows.

Scare Factor: Low. This logo is not all that scary.



3rd Logo
(2004- )

Nickname: "Golden A"

Logo: On a dark cloudy background with a yellow light (ala NBC Universal) with a couple yellow lines, we see the "A" logo from before. A spark appears on the bottom-left, and moves to the top and brightens. (There's a long version, which will be described later). The words "ALLIANCE ATLANTIS" turns around to face us.

FX: The spark, the sky moving.

Music/Sounds: A triumphant fanfare.

Availability: Appears on all episodes of the CSI: franchise from 2004 onwards on CBS and Spike TV, and all episodes of Degrassi: The Next Generation from 2004 onwards on The N and in syndication. However, with the recent liquidation of Alliance Atlantis's entertainment division into GS Capital, the status of this logo is unknown for now.

Scare Factor: Low, due to the dark atmosphere and loud music.