ABC

Standing alongside storied brands like Coca-Cola, Levis, and Ford, the American Broadcasting Company has had a profound impact on contemporary culture. And like those brands, ABC has an iconic logo. Designed by Paul Rand in 1962, the original mark—flat, clean, crafted to be easily reproduced in the age before computers—has subsequently undergone updates to align with every taste and trend imaginable. We shared a vision with our partners at ABC to avoid yet another iteration, drawing inspiration instead from the brand’s Rand-ian roots to create a clean, sleek identity with the simplicity and flexibility to last.

At its best, ABC moves people emotionally while pushing American culture forward exponentially. This unique blend of emotion in action is emblematic of the brand and key to its continued success. Working with stakeholders across all lines of business, we conducted brand vision workshops to help establish a new foundational brand strategy—one that empowers internal teams to make more magic and establishes clear aspirations for the company within the larger Disney ecosystem.

From polished glass to splashes of liquid light, Paul Rand’s original logo design has experienced many treatments over the decades. But for a brand that needs to come to life consistently across linear, digital, and practical platforms—not to mention numerous affiliates—3D treatments can create challenges. Taking inspiration from Rand’s flat, graphic design, we redrew the logo in two iterations—a hero “Rand” and its sidekick “Ring”—to empower effortless, consistent attribution at every scale without sacrificing an ounce of equity or audience affinity.

Leaning into the glamour and appeal of ABC red while leveraging the perfect circles found within the redrawn logo, ABC’s new cross-platform identity is deceptively simple and endlessly iterative. Befitting a brand driven by characters and committed to diversity, the design system allows talent to shine with pops of its own unmistakable personality. Complementary typefaces enable both information and expression, while the motion language flexes across the full spectrum of storytelling. Like the redrawn logo, ABC’s visual identity has been reduced and optimized, allowing the brand to shine on any stage.

Continuing the theme of sleek simplification and cross-platform functionality, we partnered with YouTooCanWoo to harness and reinterpret the core DNA of ABC’s longtime mnemonic, ultimately crafting a chic, nimble audio cue that serves as a bold new signature—one that works with any mood, genre, or setting to reinforce the indelible ABC brand.