Samantha 2878 Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 Doesn't look like JCBD to me at all. I believe all the MGFX graphics packages are done in-house. Just because there's a few things that look like things he'd do doesn't mean he did it. And see, to me at least, there are a LOT of design elements (camera perspective and animation, motion of text) that say that John Christopher Burns did this one. Compare to the WKBN stuff from 2008 or the WJCL/WTGS "Coastal Source" graphics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
promoguy98 252 Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 This work doesn't "seem" like the typical fare put out in recent years by the usual suspect companies. I think everyone can agree that jcbD, if it's indeed his work - that he loves him some thick, rich, beveled layers and bold stripes and isn't afraid of dipping into a wide range of color palettes! He does have some distinct camera moves that come across in a way that is unique to his approach and it's pretty consistent even back from the days of him producing opens for WGN, Headline News, 11Alive etc, etc. I am also reminded of the WKBN and Coastal Source elements too. Clean but thick, beveled and richly layered are words I would use to describe his 90's look and his more recent work. To me, it's not exactly flashy and futuristic, but it is different from the rest of the pack. If it is not his work, I would like to think that someone at Media General or the company that created the pack was inspired by his sense of style and attempted to recreate some if it. Ah, it's just some thoughts, I could be totally off the mark! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weeters 1811 Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 Apart from the smartphone and button elements, the whole thing looks like a bad combination of VizRT and jcbD design work. It's not VizRT because if you look closely, the metal bevel on the tablet reflects the rest of the scene. As far as I know, none of the VizRT versions on the market support that kind of reflection, only "fake" reflections using textures. It looks more like Cinema 4D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jero23 105 Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 The way the highway shields in the background animate also tell me yes. Personally I like the return to "Alabama's 13" for the branding (which the station used with TVbD graphics in the very late 80s/early 90s). The very type treatment of "Alabama's" also screams John Christopher Burns. It's actually a very good resolution to what I'm sure was a concept that could have been executed much worse. Sorry, but I disagree. "Alabama's 13" just doesn't seem to fit and just too broad to me. The "NBC 13" branding was more sufficient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyrannical bastard 3471 Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 Doesn't look like JCBD to me at all. I believe all the MGFX graphics packages are done in-house. Just because there's a few things that look like things he'd do doesn't mean he did it. Media General has had a habit of buying packages and syndicating them themselves to their stations. Their first uniform look started in the 1990s at WFLA and was later syndicated to most their newly-acquired Park stations, along with WCBD. These look to be custom jobs done for each station. By the time they acquired the former Spartan stations, they began to take the 2000 WFLA package (done by VDO) and syndicate it themselves. If memory serves me correctly, I believe they hired the designer who created the package from VDO, and he was tasked with creating elements for each station. Each station had the pieces and parts and could create customizations in house. It would take almost 6 years to deploy this package to all of their stations, the last ones would be WDEF (which still uses parts of this package after being sold soon after to Morris Network) and WRBL. The next package was the 2006 Giant Octopus WFLA package. This time, Media General created a central graphics hub for all of their stations (MGFX). All stations (including the newly acquired NBC O&Os) would have this new package by mid-2008. Media General must have bought the entire package and left the customization to it's hub. Since they had eliminated graphic designers at the station level, deploying a graphics package was an easier task than ever before. The diversification began in 2011 with the original WCMH red package...leading to the blue, and then blue and red versions. For the sake of MGFX, it wouldn't surprise me if the "holes" in all of these packages are identical or similar enough for daily uses such as fullscreens, OTSs, video boxes, etc....the logic being that the looks can be tweaked enough so that the "holes" are in the same spot for everyone, making it possible to deploy elements that can seamlessly intertwine with multiple packages. As for the WVTM look, If John Christopher Burns did not have a hand in this package, I would be very surprised. Aside from the tablets and buttons, It is one of the most refined packages I have seen on a Media General station in a VERY long time with smooth animation as well as good use of fonts and their kerning. The last two packages Media General has acquired have been very clunky, awkward, and gratuitous (with use of 3D in the GO package) I'm not a fan of the Museo Sans either with the circle look. I'm still looking forward to see what happens with the former Young stations... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
promoguy98 252 Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 Media General has had a habit of buying packages and syndicating them themselves to their stations. Their first uniform look started in the 1990s at WFLA and was later syndicated to most their newly-acquired Park stations, along with WCBD. These look to be custom jobs done for each station. By the time they acquired the former Spartan stations, they began to take the 2000 WFLA package (done by VDO) and syndicate it themselves. If memory serves me correctly, I believe they hired the designer who created the package from VDO, and he was tasked with creating elements for each station. Each station had the pieces and parts and could create customizations in house. As for the WVTM look, If John Christopher Burns did not have a hand in this package, I would be very surprised. Aside from the tablets and buttons, It is one of the most refined packages I have seen on a Media General station in a VERY long time with smooth animation as well as good use of fonts and their kerning. The last two packages Media General has acquired have been very clunky, awkward, and gratuitous (with use of 3D in the GO package) I'm not a fan of the Museo Sans either with the circle look. I'm still looking forward to see what happens with the former Young stations... you are correct @Tyrannical as my memory is serving me the same thing. They also used another guy named Joe Bird, who had left VDO Images sometime in the 2000's and moved his freelance business to Madison, MS of all places. Bird created some specific station bought add-on pieces, along with general updates like the generic template for the sports open, new keyable topicals, and may have had a hand helping Graphics Rockstar Atteberry create some of the "Version 3" opens that more closely resembled the WFLA 2000 approach. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanewsguy 509 Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 I'm still looking forward to see what happens with the former Young stations... If you go to John Bernier's twitter page, it looks like WRIC refreshed their weather graphics and it seems they are using the same font that is in MG's circles package. It looks like this refresh occurred sometime in mid-October, which makes sense since MG was getting ready to close in on Young around that time. And don't say "well Media General didn't own them yet, they were still owned by Young". I'm sure MG had a say in this. And those look nicer than what they used to use: All the other graphics are the same for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samantha 2878 Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 The only downgrade is the tacked-on ABC logo, but given the affiliation contract that's a given. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TennTV1983 743 Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 WKRN has the same thing (along with the other former Young stations), although they managed to make it blend in with their current graphics. http://www.wkrn.com/category/203114/7-day-forecast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T.L. Hughes 752 Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 If you go to John Bernier's twitter page, it looks like WRIC refreshed their weather graphics and it seems they are using the same font that is in MG's circles package. It looks like this refresh occurred sometime in mid-October, which makes sense since MG was getting ready to close in on Young around that time. And don't say "well Media General didn't own them yet, they were still owned by Young". I'm sure MG had a say in this. And those look nicer than what they used to use: All the other graphics are the same for now. Actually, the font on the two above graphics is the one that ABC has been using in its promo packages and generic credit sequences since this past August. It's called ABC Modern. I wish there was a downloadable version of it, someone would have to recreate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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