American TV channel TBS (Turner Broadcasting Station) has revealed a new identity created by branding and design studio, Trollbäck+Company.

The refreshed look is claimed to elevate “one of TV’s top comedy brands to a genre-fluid, taste-driven entertainment destination”.

“This was more than just a redesign or a refresh of on-air toolkits,” says Bo Bishop, executive director of creative strategy at Trollbäck+Company, who is said to have collaborated closely with key stakeholders across WarnerMedia to define the new strategic vision for the brand. “This was a true philosophical and creative evolution. It involved thinking about the brand holistically and working with stakeholders to define what TBS already does so well — and then using that foundation to reimagine what it can do next. We didn’t just create a new visual approach, we established a new brand character.”

Centred around TBS’ existing hex-shaped logo, which was created by designer Sean Heisler back in 2015, the new identity uses motion to unlock the logo shape as a tool “for expression and a symbol of attribution”.

“By liberating TBS’s hex shape, we turned it from a static box into an elastic and expressive element that is treated differently depending on the platform and tone of the content,” explains Trollbäck+Company’s design director, Nadia Husain.

Alongside reimagining the TBS logo, the agency also developed a new colour palette and type system. The former uses gradients instead of single colours.

“It’s designed to express mood and tone of content rather than identify a rigid genre. The gradients also have fun names: Warm Gold, Electric Blue, and Sunny Violet. Because everything about the brand should be a bit fun and unexpected,” comments Husain.

Further complementing the colour palette are two interdependent typefaces: a serif for voice-driven brand expression and a sans serif to deliver information.

“The brands that endure are the ones that balance consistency and elasticity,” concludes Alex Moulton, Trollbäck+Company’s chief creative officer. “We wanted to establish something that could sustain the brand for years to come. And this evolution for our partners at TBS is exactly that.”

The new TBS brand evolution is live now, with future collaborations between Trollbäck+Company and TBS said to be on the way.

Trollbäck+Company
www.trollback.com