Prime’s new film Gangs of Lagos needed an engaging title treatment that would accurately depict its gritty, authentic Nigerian storytelling. International markets all had a shot at the work, but South Africa’s creative agency, Machine_ shone through.
Creatives from around the world were tasked to create the Gangs of Lagos “title treatment”. This is how the film’s title would appear across multiple platforms, acting as a “logo” for the film. Here’s how the Machine_ team approached the task.
“The most powerful logos are the ones that you can ‘feel’ – or that make you feel something,” says Jabulani Sigege, Machine_ Cape Town’s Executive Creative Director.
“The creative ask was to come up with a title treatment that conveyed the grittiness of the new Prime film and to appropriately echo its genre,” explains Juan Geel, Machine_ Cape Town’s Creative Director.
“It had to feel not only like it belonged on the streets of Lagos,” says Jabulani. “But that it was born there.”
Haven’t seen the new film? Watch the Gangs of Lagos trailer here.
The creative solution
“We approached the task with an intention to make it feel visceral, unpolished and urban,” says Juan.
“Using a bold, timeless San Serif font for the type, we then created a distressed texture that cuts into the typography to give it a gritty feel,” explains Juan.
But the task wasn’t only about the type, it was also about getting the colour tone right. “The bright yellow that we chose is inspired by what is dominant on the streets of Lagos in the film. It evokes a sense of how the inhabitants strive to find light among the darkness of the situation,” he explains.
“Creativity is not magic, it is information visualised,” says Prime Video Africa’s Creative Director, Viwe Mfaku. “The more unapologetic and proud we are about being in Africa, the more our creativity will stand out globally.”
Want to know more about the creative process? Watch this video:
To see another example of Machine_’s rebranding, CI and logo work for another global client, click here.
More about Gangs of Lagos
From the acclaimed filmmaker Jáde Osiberu, Gangs of Lagos is one of the most highly anticipated films to come out of Nollywood – the world’s second-largest film industry.
The film – with authentic Nigerian storytelling – centres on a group of childhood friends who each must navigate destiny, growing up on the bustling streets and neighbourhood of Isale Eko, Lagos.
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