As there are only 3 entries so far, the deadline will be extended to November 30th 2013!
Welcome to the next challenge of CRTextAndTypography
This is a series of recurring, but maybe irregular typography related challenges for everyone to take part in. They will have a start date and end date and each deviation must be submitted after the start date. Only deviations created with each challenge in mind will be accepted.
So without further ado, I present the:
Welcome to the next challenge of CRTextAndTypography
This is a series of recurring, but maybe irregular typography related challenges for everyone to take part in. They will have a start date and end date and each deviation must be submitted after the start date. Only deviations created with each challenge in mind will be accepted.
So without further ado, I present the:
Trajan Replacement Challenge
The main objective of this challenge is to evaluate the appropiate interaction between meaning, words, lettering and typefaces. The goal is to create a type treatment, or typographical logo, that focuses on one word or phrase as its main focus.
The idea is to find a movie or tv show logo that uses Trajan and give it a possibly more appropiate type treatment instead. You will find Trajan is used in a lot of movies and it has sort of become "The Hollywood Font".
A little background information about Trajan
Trajan is a typeface which was created in 1989 for Adobe based on the Roman lettering which can be found on Trajan's Column in Rome. The column stems from 113 AD, at which point in time type was usually drawn into the stone with brushes and then carved along the drawn letterforms. It is in its origin a uppercase-only typeface.
There are also other typefaces based on the inscription on Trajan's Column, some of them (like Trajan Pro) contain lowercase letters or small caps and other vary only slightly from each other.
Trajan on its own is not a bad typeface, don't get me wrong. But just like Comic Sans and Helvetica it suffers from being used without a second thought as to whether it makes sense to use it or not. The challenge is about researching typefaces like anything else you would research to create art.
So, why does Trajan "need" to be replaced?
Despite it's young age, the typeface has become quite famous for being featured as a typeface in many type treatments for movies or tv shows; which also gave it the dubious title of being "the movie font" as such.
Examples of Trajan being used for movie titles are:
Titanic, Lord of the Rings, The Lion King, The Mummy, Stargate, Interview with the Vampire, Black Swan, Monster's Ball, A Beautiful Mind, Gosford Park, K-Pax, Minority Report, High Crimes, The Score, Meet Joe Black, Gladiator, Thor, Star Wars: Episode I, Hotel Rwanda, Cruel Intentions and so on …
And it doesn't stop at the movies, TV shows use it as well:
Sex and the City, Game of Thrones, The Unit, Castle, Law & Order, Supernatural etc.
It is impossible for Trajan to be the right choice for all of these titles and logos. Taking into account its history and the ridiculous variety in genres it is used for, it is most likely not a good font choice for most movies.
Your challenge:
Take into account the atmosphere of the movie, the time it is set in, the genre etc. Every movie has its own character and so do have fonts
Try to find a pair that works together.
Find a movie or tv logotype which uses Trajan and create a new type treatment for it.
Take into account the atmosphere of the movie, the time it is set in, the genre etc. Every movie has its own character and so do have fonts
Try to find a pair that works together. Rules
- You can use an existing font/s or create the type for the treatment from scratch.
- All media is allowed, digital, traditional and mixed media.
- The design should stand on its own, the main-focus is on the typography. You can create a poster for it as well, whether it's a typographic poster or a poster that contains additional imagery, it does not matter. Posters are addititonal only though, you still have to submit the type only.
- Credit all stock/resources used, only legitimate images are allowed (no googling images from the movie/show and using those); remember to follow the stock provider's Terms of Use!
- You can submit as many entries as you like, you have to submit each of them to the group one at a time.
- Send a note to CRTextAndTypography titled "Trajan Challenge Entry" AND/OR submit it to the group's Trajan Replacement folder. (If you don't submit yourself, I will request the deviation being submitted to the group)
Deadline: November 30th 2013.
Additional Input
Not every font based on the inscriptions in Trajan's Column is called Trajan. Many of the movies/shows use fonts that are very similar, but with small differences. So even if in the examples some of the fonts may not be Trajan, but if the typeface is based on a Roman Column, it makes you wonder if it's right for a science-fiction movie
"Type Treatment" may sound a bit abstract at first, but you could see it as a typographic logo. Work with typography in a unique way that fits to the theme you choose. Edit the font, make up your own font, it doesn't matter. But the result has to be readable, it has to be words.
Any questions? Do not hesitate to ask
The challenge is for starters as well as advanced typographers or anybody who is curious to work with type
If you want to try new things and think outside the box, you are most welcome to join the challenge. No prior knowledge is necessary to take part
Let's get creative
The challenge is for starters as well as advanced typographers or anybody who is curious to work with type
If you want to try new things and think outside the box, you are most welcome to join the challenge. No prior knowledge is necessary to take part Let's get creative
