Following the acquisitions of DIRECTV and WarnerMedia, AT&T quickly found itself showing up in a variety of new and unfamiliar environments and experiences, including sports, movies, entertainment, and news. Traditionally thought of as a telecommunication company, AT&T was now appearing alongside well-known entertainment brands such as HBO, Warner Bros., and CNN. In order to build contextual relevancy with the content it was now presenting, delivering, and sometimes developing, we needed to explore new ways to use AT&T’s core brand elements, including color, typography, sonic, and the iconic Globe logo.

Historically, the animation of the AT&T Globe logo had been limited to short and relatively conservative motion sequences in applications such as end cards for commercials. The animation typically included a slight rotation on a vertical axis similar to the rotation of the earth. We now needed to expand on this thinking and explore new behaviors for the Globe that would allow it to show up in movies, social media, sports and sponsorship activations, load screens, product interfaces, etc.

To help us define potential new animated behaviors for the Globe logo, we partnered with Buck, a creative group known for outstanding motion design and animation, to explore bold, unexpected, and cinematic ways for the Globe to move. The resulting body of work helped to inspire new ways of thinking about the movement of the Globe and has influenced and supported work across the brand. Below is a snapshot of this exploration.