
King and Country (K&C), a full-service, design-centric production company, recently created the main title sequence for Texas Rising, a five-part television miniseries based on the Texas Revolution against Mexico and the birth of the Texas Rangers that premiered on History on Memorial Day, May 25th. Directed by Roland Joff , and starring Bill Paxton, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Ray Liotta, Brendan Fraser, Olivier Martinez and Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Texas Rising is the latest in K&C's long line of collaborations with History, including the ratings record-breaker Hatfields & McCoys, as well as Vikings, Houdini, American Pickers and Gangland Undercover.
King and Country are incredible production partners, says Krista Liney, VP, On-Air for History. They give careful thought and consideration into each project they undertake. The creative is always unique and on brand, which is not always an easy balance to strike. These are not the kind of guys who paint by numbers. We have had such immense success with King and Country in the past that they were our first call.
For Texas Rising, History wanted a fresh take on the Western genre, with a visually stunning open that also offers some insight into the narrative. The two-minute main title sequence, built and animated by K&C entirely in CG, chronologically depicts historical moments of the series' eight fundamental plot points in highly detailed and layered graphic arrays that twist, change and unfold to reveal many hidden details of the story chapter by chapter.
View the main titles here: https://vimeo.com/129063465
The main titles open on a graphic representation of Sam Houston's Army, the flags weathered and the weapons worn from months spent at war. As the Texian swords retract in front of the backdrop of Goliad, the next array reveals they are surrounded by Mexican cannons, symbolizing their retreat and subsequent massacre. An array of gold uniform detail surrounding Santa Anna's sword and medal is subsequently woven through with Emily West's lace and yellow roses symbolizing her seduction and betrayal of the political and military ruler of Mexico. As Santa Anna's blood spills from his medal and down his sword, it in turn ignites the battle and victory at San Jacinto. The story continues through to the failed militarization and ensuing destruction of the Comanches. The final scene shows the Mexican coins turning over to reveal an array of tin stars, a lasting symbol of the official birth of the Texas Rangers.
When History approached us to create the main titles, we responded with an idea steeped in metaphor and driven by narrative that really set the stage for this epic story, says Rick Gledhill, K&C's Director and Creative Director. It's a modern approach to a classic genre. It's darkly beautiful and it's magic lies in the details. Every single element of the show, down to the smallest button, is damaged, tarnished and war-torn, and great care was taken to make our models and textures true to both the show and History.
Every frame of the array design is full of symbolic details, adds Liney. King and Country's research and level of creativity were truly impressive.
The complicated title sequence required making over 50 photorealistic computer-generated models and duplicating them hundreds of times to make the elaborate repeating pattern arrays. K&C addressed these challenges by prepping all shots beforehand and creating a custom model referencing system that allowed for the large volume of models to be worked on simultaneously with layout, animation and rendering.
The most challenging part of the process was to achieve an extra layer of realism by adding depth of field to all the shots, which helped give the illusion that the arrays were shot with a real camera. Had they been built in real life, each would have been a four-foot art piece, not allowing for adequate depth of field, especially in extreme close-ups. K&C chose to render it photographically accurate with CG with its final output tallying more than 15,000 rendering hours to create the beautifully complex images.
K&C was also tapped by History to create the miniseries' promo package, which involved using cinematic live-action vistas from the show's shot footage and incorporating elegant yet gritty animated typographical title cards for the promo toolkit.
We were happy to collaborate with History again on another epic project like Texas Rising', says Jerry Torgerson, K&C's Executive Producer and Partner. Over the years, the strong relationships we have created have allowed us to be a part of some of their best work. It says a lot to K&C that History continues to place such enormous trust in our concepts and creative team to deliver beyond big.
Client: History SVP, A+E History Marketing: Guy Slattery VP, History On-Air: Krista Liney Senior Creative Director: Michael Scalere
VFX & Animation Company: King and Country Director / Creative Director: Rick Gledhill Executive Producer: Jerry Torgerson VFX Supervisor: Andrew Cook Art Director: Henry Castelton Producer: Seth Gantman Coordinators: Rebecca Park and Kate Lynn Abigail Designer / Animators: Henry Castelton, Jon Lorenz, Greg Mitchell, David Perry, Dan Bucknam & Brad Mitchell 3D Artists: Yu Okuizumi, Andrew Cook, Tim Salikov & Oyekunle Jegede Sketch Artists: Chad Jackson & Dan Hamilton
About King and Country:
King and Country (K&C), a full-service, design-centric production company has earned international recognition for breakthrough projects spanning commercials, original promos and launch campaigns for major networks, and much more. The innovative production foundry, established in 2006 by directors Rick Gledhill and Efrain Montanez and executive producer Jerry Torgerson, unites A-list talents representing every facet of production and
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
19/08/2026
As the cost of IP nears price parity with traditional SDI, Reynolds argues that ...
19/08/2026
A private 5G bubble was chosen instead of traditional broadcast RF for the race ...
19/08/2026
(L-R) Rafael Manuel and Isabel Sicat attend the Filipi ana premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 23, 2026, in Park Cit...
19/08/2026
Studio owners invited to have their say on rates cuts
The Music Producers Guild (MPG) are inviting UK-based studios to take part in an in-depth survey that ...
19/08/2026
Vintage-inspired desktop interface revealed
Harrison's latest hardware offering sees them head into the world of audio interfaces, delivering a 10-in/12...
19/08/2026
Granular effect remains locked to scale and tempo
Described as your dream granular effect , Minimal Audio's latest creation is capable of turning any s...
19/08/2026
First polyphonic SWAM instrument incoming
Audio Modeling's latest physical-modelling orchestral instrument is just around the corner, and is now availab...
19/08/2026
World Cup Games Generate 84 Billion Minutes Across FOX, Fox Sports 1 and NBCU...
19/08/2026
July brought typical peak-holiday drops in viewership, driven primarily by viewers stepping away from screens and a visible decline in reach across both traditi...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Henry joins BCE as the company accelerates its commercial strategy and expands its international presence across the media, broadcast and technology markets. He...
19/08/2026
iWedia, a leading provider of software solutions for connected TV devices, today announced a major milestone in Android platform optimization with the successfu...
19/08/2026
NTP Technology announces that ST 2110-30 audio-over-IP connectivity with AES67 and RAVENNA capabilities is now available for the brand's world-class audio i...
19/08/2026
Net Insight has been selected to provide its Nimbra platform by the service provider Big Blue Marble, formerly ORS Group, as the core media transport solution f...
19/08/2026
LiveU has supported Coventry City FC and several other top-flight UK football clubs through one of their most demanding live production challenges of the year, ...
19/08/2026
Nature Seekers Documentary Shot with Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF
Brie Clayton August 18, 2026
0 Comments
Filming endangered turtles required camera...
19/08/2026
Neyrinck Brings D-Control Consoles Back to Life on Apple Silicon with D-Control ...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Australia, implemented a comprehensive communications infrastructure that brin...
19/08/2026
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest contribution solutions, will spotlight a major leap forward in remote guest con...
19/08/2026
Integrated platform melds media asset management, playout automation and newsroom workflows
EMAM, PlayBox Neo and SNEWS have officially launched Nuvex, a conne...
19/08/2026
Screen Australia releases the Private Investment Toolkit to strengthen screen in...
19/08/2026
Do Aussies truly value local content? Unpacking Screen Currency 2026 with Deirdr...
19/08/2026
There's an early Christmas gift for Bookish fans, as UKTV confirms the re-commission of the hit U&alibi drama, created by and starring Mark Gatiss. Viewers ...
19/08/2026
Wednesday 19 August 2026
Sky gives sports fans the chance to watch multiple liv...
19/08/2026
On Saturday September 5 Katie Taylor will step into the ring for the fight of her life against Flora Pili in front of 80,000 fans in Croke Park. A legendary fig...
18/08/2026
SportStream 2026, a free three-day virtual event, will take place September 15-17. One registration provides access to all three days of live programming and on...
18/08/2026
BeckTV will introduce BeckFlow to the European market at IBC2026, demonstrated on the Providius stand (10.F53).
BeckFlow is a web-based schematic documentation...
18/08/2026
Boland Communications will introduce a SMPTE ST 2110 input option for its 4K monitors at IBC2026, along with a new 55-inch super-narrow bezel display for video ...
18/08/2026
Dolby Laboratories and the Seattle Seahawks have announced a partnership integrating Dolby OptiView into the Seahawks' live streaming coverage, making the S...
18/08/2026
For BMG Executive Producer of Sports Production, Graham Taylor, producing live s...
18/08/2026
TMRW Sports has appointed Rufus Hack as President of Golf, a newly created role in which he will lead the company's golf businesses including TGL presented ...
18/08/2026
SMT will provide race technology for FOX Sports' coverage of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. on August 23, when the NTT INDYCAR SERIES races ...
18/08/2026
The live, YouTube-native roundtables combine fan voices, credentialed reporters,...
18/08/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/08/2026
The industry legend sounds off on replacing the Heat's iconic Medusa score...
18/08/2026
William F. Rasmussen, the sports fan-turned broadcaster and entrepreneur whose out-of-the-box idea of a 24-hour cable sports network, ESPN, changed forever the ...
18/08/2026
DAZN Group has completed its acquisition of ViewLift, a provider of streaming and digital solutions for sports content owners. The acquisition was first announc...
18/08/2026
The American Association of Professional Baseball (AAPB) has added SI TV, Sports Illustrated's 24/7 streaming channel, as a broadcast partner for the remain...
18/08/2026
The Esports Foundation has announced that the inaugural Esports Nations Cup (ENC), originally scheduled for November 2026 in Riyadh, will be postponed to Novemb...
18/08/2026
Diversified has announced a new Global Managed Services Practice, consolidating the company's managed services capabilities into one organization. Rob Mello...
18/08/2026
Appear has completed a proof of concept with Thoroughbred Racing Productions (TRP), demonstrating multi-camera remote live production over bonded 5G cellular an...