Eight years ago today, we started with a mission and a goal. Eight years later, we're making plans for our triumphant return. It hasn't been easy, but we're still here and we're still thriving.
THANK YOU to all our supporters. And to our detractors--keep doing what you do, too, because it still helps us move forward. 2013 is going to be, without a shadow of a doubt, a really big year for us.
Marque it down. The Cat is back!
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Saturday, April 7, 2012
And Just Like That, A New Logo Rises
Well, damn.
Not 24 hours after we released what we thought was our new and final logo, we saw something on Facebook that completely, unequivocally, changed the game. After we released the logo, a friend caught what I had written about liking what we had, but not getting exactly what we wanted. He offered the services of his "brother," and said he could create something for us that, if we liked it, would be ours free and clear. I rejected the offer at first, happy enough with what we'd just dropped (and not wanting to go through the process again with another designer - one I feared wouldn't do any better), but my friend gently pushed, so I said, "what the hell" and even gave a bit of direction - a "let's see if he can at least do this" piece of input. My friend said we'd have something the next day, to which I scoffed. Surely it wouldn't be good, I thought, not with such a rushed job.
Let me take this moment to say I don't mind being proven wrong if it's for the greater good.
I check Facebook the next morning, and see I have a friend request from "Hiram Lewis." "Okay, this is the guy Jai was talking about," I tell myself. I go to check out his page (as I always do before I add someone - I suspect everyone does this) and lo and behold - right there at the top of his timeline - this:
"Hey, that says..."
Then it hit me. This was his take on our logo! I had another notification, telling me I was tagged in a post - this one from Jai. "What do you think, Kevin?"
What do I think? I think it's amazing! I think it's awesome! I think...
I think I have a big decision to make. Big. Huge. I called Shaundra , my girlfriend/sales and marketing manager/dutiful sounding board in and told her I wanted to show her something. Then I sprang it on her. She was flabbergasted. I told her that now I had a big choice to make, and she said, "There is no choice. That's your new logo."
Not wanting to jump to conclusions, I did what I always do - stepped away and took some time to think about it and gibe the image a chance to fade in my mind before I looked at it again to see if that initial punch was still there. I also wanted to see what our followers thought - many of whom had weighed in the night before when I released the "new" logo. So I posted Hiram's design and simply asked which one they liked better.
It was a landslide. Even those who had praised the previous design said Hiram's was the better of the two. And not only was it an amazing job, not only was it the something different I set out for in the first place - he actually gave me what I wanted - the cougar facing dead ahead. And looking damn good doing it. Something I thought was simple, yet no other designer seemed to be able to do. And yet here it was - done in, I was told, 20 minutes. For free.
And so, just like that, the decision was made, and for the second time in 24 hours, I was proclaiming a new logo for Cougar's Marque Entertainment. I've spoken with Hiram since, and there's a couple of tweaks being made, but we're extremely excited about moving ahead with his design as the visual brand for our company. I already know how I want to animate it for the big screen (another friend gave us a killer idea for the "E" in "Marque"); I can't wait to see it for the first time.
Thank you, Hiram Lewis. This logo most certainly lives up to our company's motto. It is, indeed, "The Marque of Excellence."
Not 24 hours after we released what we thought was our new and final logo, we saw something on Facebook that completely, unequivocally, changed the game. After we released the logo, a friend caught what I had written about liking what we had, but not getting exactly what we wanted. He offered the services of his "brother," and said he could create something for us that, if we liked it, would be ours free and clear. I rejected the offer at first, happy enough with what we'd just dropped (and not wanting to go through the process again with another designer - one I feared wouldn't do any better), but my friend gently pushed, so I said, "what the hell" and even gave a bit of direction - a "let's see if he can at least do this" piece of input. My friend said we'd have something the next day, to which I scoffed. Surely it wouldn't be good, I thought, not with such a rushed job.
Let me take this moment to say I don't mind being proven wrong if it's for the greater good.
I check Facebook the next morning, and see I have a friend request from "Hiram Lewis." "Okay, this is the guy Jai was talking about," I tell myself. I go to check out his page (as I always do before I add someone - I suspect everyone does this) and lo and behold - right there at the top of his timeline - this:
"Hey, that says..."
Then it hit me. This was his take on our logo! I had another notification, telling me I was tagged in a post - this one from Jai. "What do you think, Kevin?"
What do I think? I think it's amazing! I think it's awesome! I think...
I think I have a big decision to make. Big. Huge. I called Shaundra , my girlfriend/sales and marketing manager/dutiful sounding board in and told her I wanted to show her something. Then I sprang it on her. She was flabbergasted. I told her that now I had a big choice to make, and she said, "There is no choice. That's your new logo."
Not wanting to jump to conclusions, I did what I always do - stepped away and took some time to think about it and gibe the image a chance to fade in my mind before I looked at it again to see if that initial punch was still there. I also wanted to see what our followers thought - many of whom had weighed in the night before when I released the "new" logo. So I posted Hiram's design and simply asked which one they liked better.
It was a landslide. Even those who had praised the previous design said Hiram's was the better of the two. And not only was it an amazing job, not only was it the something different I set out for in the first place - he actually gave me what I wanted - the cougar facing dead ahead. And looking damn good doing it. Something I thought was simple, yet no other designer seemed to be able to do. And yet here it was - done in, I was told, 20 minutes. For free.
And so, just like that, the decision was made, and for the second time in 24 hours, I was proclaiming a new logo for Cougar's Marque Entertainment. I've spoken with Hiram since, and there's a couple of tweaks being made, but we're extremely excited about moving ahead with his design as the visual brand for our company. I already know how I want to animate it for the big screen (another friend gave us a killer idea for the "E" in "Marque"); I can't wait to see it for the first time.
Thank you, Hiram Lewis. This logo most certainly lives up to our company's motto. It is, indeed, "The Marque of Excellence."
Monday, April 2, 2012
The New Logo is Here!
Feast your eyes on the new logo for Cougar's Marque Entertainment! It's not as drastic a change as we originally planned, but during all the back and forth, we realized how cool our original logo was, and decided to more closely refine what we already had. And we're proud of the outcome. We can't wait to see this thing on the big screen!
 |
| To infinity... and beyond! |
Thursday, March 29, 2012
The "Logo Saga" - Update 3/29/12
Just signed off on the final revision. The logo looks awesome. Still, I might wait until I get the raw files from the design company and make one last version - for s#!ts and giggles. Wanna see something...
In any event, expect the unveiling SOON.
In any event, expect the unveiling SOON.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
The "Logo Saga" - Update
Got the first set of revisions back...
Ever have a situation where you tell someone what you want multiple times, and you still don't get it - and it leaves you to wonder if they're refusing to do what you asked out of spite or if they just can't do what you want are aren't man/woman enough to admit it? Yeah, that's where we are now.
I think we're going to have to settle a little bit. We can (and will) have more revisions done, but we have things to do and can't continue going back and forth. It's apparent they can't do what we're wanting; I just wish they would've said that upfront. #givemewhatiwantandillgoaway
Ever have a situation where you tell someone what you want multiple times, and you still don't get it - and it leaves you to wonder if they're refusing to do what you asked out of spite or if they just can't do what you want are aren't man/woman enough to admit it? Yeah, that's where we are now.
I think we're going to have to settle a little bit. We can (and will) have more revisions done, but we have things to do and can't continue going back and forth. It's apparent they can't do what we're wanting; I just wish they would've said that upfront. #givemewhatiwantandillgoaway
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
The "Logo Saga" - The Next Generation
THE LOGO SAGA - UPDATE: The online company I went with for our new design hit us back with five concepts. Although they did nice work, none of the concepts fits what we're going for. We can do revisions, though, and I'm about to hit them up with some notes. If they can bring their half to match the half I've come up with, it's gonna be NICE.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Hardware Upgrade
Check it out - our new editing system, fresh from the factory! We needed a major upgrade in order to make the kind of projects we're planning, so this is the first - and most crucial - step in making those projects a reality. It's really on now - this revolution WILL be televised!
Another look...
Another look...
Friday, March 16, 2012
The "Logo Saga" - The End in Sight?
The "Logo Saga" is coming to a close (so we hope). Thank you big time to Chris Alexander, David Quintana-Lujan and Ejai Aitch for your individual offers; I've decided to go with an online logo company that another local filmmaker has used - to great success - so this little adventure should be wrapped within a week.
Who would've thought it would be this hard? Oh well, it'll be work it. Another brick laid in the foundation of our inevitable rebirth...
Who would've thought it would be this hard? Oh well, it'll be work it. Another brick laid in the foundation of our inevitable rebirth...
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
New Logo, Take Three
Well, out of the three artists I hired last week to create our new logo, one flat out said they couldn't do what I wanted (apparently, they aren't as talented as they'd like to make folks believe), one only did a third of the work they said they would (revealing after the fact that they're really just a beginner at Photoshop - of course that wasn't mentioned in their pitch), and the last one... is two days late on their delivery and hasn't responded to my update request. At least they were dirt cheap. The logo saga continues...
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
New Logo, Take Two
Oookay, so we need to select a new artist for our logo. The first one - sheesh. Places, everyone. Take two...
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Monday, February 20, 2012
Rebranding on the Horizon?
Contemplating ideas for a logo re-design. Time to freshen things up a bit...