# YUSI Brand Guidelines

**Version 2.0 — February 2026**

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## Brand Essence

**YUSI** turns world cinema into classroom learning. Films curated for schools, mapped to learning objectives, and paired with teacher tools so every screening becomes an unforgettable lesson.

**The core insight:** Cinema creates emotional memory. Emotional memory drives learning. A well-chosen film does in 90 minutes what a textbook struggles to do in a semester.

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## Core Messaging

### Brand Name
**yusi** (always lowercase in UI/product contexts)
**YUSI** (uppercase in formal documents, institutional communications, legal)

The name is Arabic-resonant (يوسي), warm, and globally pronounceable. It suggests a companion and a guide who shows you new worlds.

### Primary Tagline
**See further.**

Two words. An invitation and a promise. Students see further than their textbooks. Teachers see further than the lesson plan. Schools see further than the test score. Cinema opens a window and YUSI makes that window part of the curriculum.

### Arabic Tagline
**شاهد أبعد.** *(See further.)*

Equal weight to English. Used in all bilingual materials, government documents, and Arabic-language contexts.

### Mission Statement
**We give students the world, one film at a time.**

Not "access to content." Not "educational video." *The world.* Cinema's unique power is that it transports to other cultures, other lives, other centuries. YUSI makes that transportation purposeful.

### Supporting Messages

**For ministry officials and education authorities:**
"Curriculum-aligned cinema that advances media literacy, cultural understanding, and critical thinking."

**For school administrators:**
"A managed platform that turns class time into unforgettable learning."

**For teachers:**
"Every film comes with the lesson plan built in."

**For students:**
"Stories that stay with you."

### Positioning Statement
YUSI is the only platform that curates world cinema specifically for school curricula, with every film mapped to learning objectives and equipped with teacher guides, discussion frameworks, and student reflection tools.

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## Brand Voice

### Character
YUSI speaks with the warmth of a trusted teacher and the curiosity of a student discovering something for the first time. Never corporate. Never cold. Never condescending.

Think of the teacher who puts on a film and the whole room goes quiet, not because they're told to be, but because they're captivated. YUSI is that teacher's tool.

### Tone Principles

**Warm, not casual.** We are in schools. We speak with respect and care, not slang or hype.

**Confident, not arrogant.** We believe deeply in what we do. We don't need to belittle alternatives.

**Evidence-informed, not academic.** We cite research because it matters, not to perform credibility.

**Bilingual by nature.** English and Arabic carry equal weight. Neither is translated from the other; both are original.

**Story-first.** We tell stories about learning. Even our institutional materials use narrative. Lead with what happens in the classroom, not with product features.

### What We Never Say
- "Disruptive" or "disrupting education"
- "Revolutionizing" or "transforming"
- "AI-powered" (we are curated by humans, not generated by machines)
- "Next-gen" or "cutting-edge"
- "Kids" (we say "students" or "young people" in institutional contexts)

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## Visual Identity

### Color Palette

| Name | Hex | Variable | Usage |
|------|-----|----------|-------|
| Yusi Saffron | `#C8872A` | `--yusi-saffron` | Primary brand color. Logo, CTA, accents, key words |
| Deep Night | `#0D1824` | `--yusi-night` | Hero sections, contrast blocks, footer |
| Warm Cream | `#FAF7F0` | `--yusi-cream` | Default background. Editorial and informational sections |
| Reef Teal | `#1A7B72` | `--yusi-teal` | Secondary accent, data, success states |
| Ember Coral | `#E05A38` | `--yusi-coral` | Youth accent, energy, highlights |
| Stone | `#8A7D6E` | `--yusi-stone` | Muted text, secondary copy |
| Parchment | `#EDE8E0` | `--yusi-parchment` | Subtle backgrounds, borders, cards on cream |

**Color philosophy:** Saffron is the primary. It is warm, globally resonant, and completely distinct from CULTSCALE's gold. The Cream/Night duality alternates on the page: cream for informational sections (how it works, roles, evidence), night for emotional moments (hero, quotes, CTAs). This rhythm makes the site feel warm and educational, not dark and cinematic.

**Default background is cream**, not night. Educational platforms default to light. Dark sections are used for emphasis and emotional contrast.

### Typography

**Primary Font:** Space Grotesk (Latin)
**Arabic Font:** IBM Plex Arabic
**Fallback:** system-ui, sans-serif

**Scale (UI):**
- Display: Space Grotesk Bold, 56–72px
- H1: Space Grotesk Bold, 40–48px
- H2: Space Grotesk Medium, 28–32px
- H3: Space Grotesk Medium, 20–24px
- Body: Space Grotesk Regular, 18px
- Caption: Space Grotesk Regular, 14px
- Label: Space Grotesk Medium, 12px, tracking 0.08em, uppercase

**Scale (Print/Deck):**
- Display: 42pt Bold
- H1: 32pt Bold
- H2: 24pt Medium
- Body: 20pt Regular
- Note: 15pt Regular

### Logo System

**The Mark:** A stylized "Y" — geometric, human. Two arms reaching upward and outward, a single stem grounding it. The Y simultaneously reads as:
- The brand initial
- A human figure with open arms (welcoming, aspirational)
- A convergence point (where cinema meets curriculum)

**Dimensions:** Square canvas, 1:1 ratio. The Y is constructed from three equal-weight strokes.

**The Wordmark:** "yusi" in lowercase Space Grotesk Medium, tracking 0.08em. Lowercase signals approachability without sacrificing authority.

**Full Logo:** Mark + Wordmark, horizontal layout. Mark left, wordmark right. Minimum clearspace equal to mark height on all sides.

**Color variants:**
- On dark: Saffron (#C8872A) mark + wordmark
- On light: Night (#0D1824) mark + wordmark
- Single color: Always either full saffron or full night
- Reversed/white: For saffron backgrounds only

**Scale minimums:**
- Mark alone: 24px minimum
- Full logo: 80px minimum width

### Logo Usage Rules

✅ Use full logo (mark + wordmark) on all primary brand touchpoints
✅ Use mark alone for favicons, app icons, small contexts
✅ Maintain minimum clearspace
✅ Use approved color variants only

❌ Never stretch or distort
❌ Never use saffron mark on cream background (low contrast)
❌ Never add drop shadows or effects
❌ Never place on complex photographic backgrounds without a solid panel
❌ Never change lettercase of wordmark

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## Brand Identity vs. CULTSCALE

YUSI is a CULTSCALE portfolio company but has a fully independent brand identity.

| | CULTSCALE | YUSI |
|---|---|---|
| **Audience** | Filmmakers, investors, distributors | Students, teachers, school administrators, governments |
| **Tone** | Strategic, analytical, bold | Warm, educational, trustworthy |
| **Primary color** | Gold #B78A3C (cinema luxury) | Saffron #C8872A (warmth, learning) |
| **Typography case** | ALL CAPS (authority) | lowercase (approachability) |
| **Default bg** | Milky Black #121212 | Warm Cream #FAF7F0 |
| **Voice** | Infrastructure, intelligence | Stories, learning, discovery |

**When to connect them:** In investor materials and partnership contexts only. In school-facing materials, YUSI stands alone.

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## Photography & Imagery

### Subject Guidelines

**Primary subjects:**
- Students in active, engaged discussion (not passive viewing)
- Teachers facilitating group reflection
- Classrooms with warm, natural light
- Film stills from the YUSI library (used educationally with permission)

**Avoid:**
- Stock photography of happy generic students
- Technology-forward imagery (laptops, tablets as primary subjects)
- Any framing that reduces students to a single region or culture
- Passive screen consumption (students staring at screens)

### Photographic Style

**Light:** Warm, golden. Cinema-influenced with light and shadow play.
**Composition:** Human-centered. Faces, expressions, hands.
**Color grading:** Warm, not sterile. Slight amber warmth in shadows.
**Cultural diversity:** Show students and classrooms from around the world. No single region should dominate.

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## Arabic Identity

YUSI is a bilingual brand by design. Arabic is not a translation but a co-equal original language.

**Design principles for Arabic:**
- All user interfaces are designed for RTL (right-to-left) from the start
- Arabic typography uses IBM Plex Arabic at the same scale as Latin
- Arabic tagline: **شاهد أبعد** (See further.) displayed at parallel weight to English
- Arabic name: **يوسي** displayed at equal size in bilingual contexts

**Language policy:**
- Government documents: match the country's primary language
- School materials: match the school's language of instruction
- Website: bilingual toggle (default: language detected from browser/region)
- Social media: language appropriate to audience and platform

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## Domain & Digital Identity

**Primary domain:** yusiapp.com
**Redirect domains:** yusi.app, www.yusiapp.com, www.yusi.app (all 302 → yusiapp.com)
**Social handles:** @yusiapp (all platforms)

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## Brand Architecture

YUSI is a standalone brand under the CULTSCALE portfolio. In materials where the CULTSCALE connection is relevant:

*"yusi is developed by CULTSCALE, the infrastructure layer for independent cinema."*

In all school, government, and student-facing materials: YUSI stands alone.

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## The Brand Promise

We promise that every film in the YUSI library has been:
1. Reviewed by an educator for curriculum relevance
2. Reviewed for age-appropriateness across cultural contexts
3. Paired with a teacher guide that includes learning objectives, discussion questions, and assessment suggestions
4. Rights-cleared for educational use in the target territory

**This promise is the brand.** It is what makes us different from every general streaming platform. It is what justifies the institutional price. It is what Aya Al Blouchi's name stands behind.

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*YUSI Brand Guidelines Version 2.0. Update this document when new brand decisions are made. Never update without confirming with the founding team.*