Kodama and the Imaginary Forces team took a bold approach to the logo animation, building on the classic comic book flip concept—a staple of Marvel’s brand identity—and infusing it with darker hues and urgent motion.
“The latest Marvel Studios logo builds on the rich creative history between Imaginary Forces and Marvel Studios,” remarks Kodama. “Our goal was to retain the iconic essence of the comic book flip while pushing it into new visual territory within the
Thunderbolts* canon.”
The lightning-fast sequence features thousands of comic book images from the pages of Thunderbolts*, projected onto a drifting 3D rendering of the Marvel wordmark. The camera pans in, around, and through the passageways of each letter. The logo is never fully revealed and eventually dissolves into blackness — a foreshadowing of The Void, Sentry’s alter ego, and a key narrative element in the film.
“We wanted to create something truly epic and large-scale,” remarks Kodama. “The sequence tells a story, albeit a subtle one, evoking the gritty, morally complex world of the Thunderbolts*. Aesthetically, it’s also a notable departure from the warm and vibrant hues of the previous logo animations, with the black slowly creeping in and overtaking everything, creating a sense of mystery and unease.”
To express The Void sonically, Imaginary Forces overlaid a haunting sound effect over Michael Giacchino’s iconic ‘Marvel Studios Fanfare,’ reflecting the character’s hollow, engulfing nature.
“Fans get jazzed the minute they hear the fanfare and they know it well,” adds Kodama. “So, sonically augmenting it was a simple but highly effective choice to subvert expectations and add intrigue.”
As a long-time branding and storytelling partner, Imaginary Forces created its first Marvel logo animation for the 2002 release of Spider-Man. This ‘instant classic’ featured a stop-motion sequence of comic book prints from the Marvel archive. Ten years later, they partnered with Marvel Studios, developing the next iteration: a stereoscopic 3D reimagining that premiered before Thor: The Dark World (2012).
“Back in 2002, no one could have predicted Marvel would grow into the expansive Marvel Cinematic Universe we know today,” concludes Kodama. “We’ve been thrilled to collaborate with Marvel on the evolving logo animations over the years. Being part of the MCU’s next chapter is always an exciting and rewarding experience.”
Project Credits
Creative Director: Tosh Kodama
Art Director: Henry Chang, Kathy Liang
Animator: Charlie Proctor
Editor: Lexi Gunvaldson
Intern: Ella Caperton
Producer: Jake Fritz
Coordinator: Nic Luong
Executive Producer: Renée Robson
Executive Creative Director: Peter Frankfurt
About Imaginary Forces
Imaginary Forces was founded in 1996 in Los Angeles and is an award-winning creative company specializing in design-based visual communications. First known for designing iconic film titles, Imaginary Forces has brought motion design into the worlds of advertising, architecture, gaming, and documentary film production.