Conventions of an Opening Sequence

Scott Pilgrim Vs The World

Forrest Gump

Credit to Callie Edwards for making this opening sequence analysis.

What I have Learnt 

Whilst researching these film titles I have found out how editing, mise en scene and camera angles are used to create a better opening sequence and keep the audience interested in the film. The research also helped me gain ideas for my opening sequence and things that I could do to make my opening sequence stand out and/or convey certain subtle themes to suggest further developments in the film.

Producers and Distributers

Producers and Distributers

Learning Comment

From the research into film producers and distributors I now know some possible film companies that would be able to produce and distribute my film and what type of film producer I would need for my film, which would be and independent film producer because my film is not a large scale film and would not need alot of budget to do fancy effects such as explosions or CGI

Director Case Study

Greg Mottola Director Case Study

What I have learnt

From studying Greg Mottola I have learnt that I can use the same actors in a multiple of films to give the audience an idea about what the films are going to be like for example adventure land and superbad used the same can with a few additions to tell the audience the genre of the film because they might know other films that the actors have been in. I also learnt from watching some of his films ways of adding comedy aspects especially in coming of age films and things that I could possibly add to my own opening to make it better or at least more humorous of effective from the audiences point of view. I really like the use of comedy in his films because he makes it subtle and puts it in alot of the conversations which I would like to do for my film opening.

Below are a few clips of films that Greg Mottola has directed and some interviews about these films

History Of Coming Of Age Films

What I have learnt

From this task I have learnt the differences between the older coming of age films and the newer coming of age films. I have also learnt that in the older films, the main characters were in larger groups than in smaller ones and they were focused on the affects to the whole group whereas in the more modern films there were only a few characters and they are a lot more focused on singular characters feelings. I have also found out that the more modern coming of age films tend to focus on bigger topics like pregnancy and alcohol whereas the older coming of age films were more focused on school dramas and problems when u have just finished high school.

Famous Opening Scenes

Superbad

Typography
There is a full screen show of Sony Pictures Entertainment Company which then transfers into Columbia Pictures at the beginning of the film. This is then followed by the following typography throughout the opening:

• Columbia Pictures presents
• An APATOW Company Production
• SUPERBAD
• Jonah Hill
• Michael Cera
• Seth Rogen
• Bill Hader
• Kevin Corrigan
• Joe Lo Truglio
• Martha MacIsaac
• Emma Stone
• And introducing Christopher Mintz-Plasse
• Casting by Allison Jones
• Costume designer Debra McGuire
• Co-producer Dara Weintraub
• Music supervision by Jonathan Karp
• Music by Lyle Workman
• Edited by William Kerr
• Production designer Chruis Spellman
• Director of photography Russ Alsobrook, AC
• Executive producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg
• Produced by Judd Apatow and Shauna Robertson
• Written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg
• Directed by Gres Mottola

This ordering of names shows me that ideally I should put all of the production companies first in my openings as they are the most important thing that needs to be seen by the audience first and then I should start listing off the main actors in the film followed by the co-stars that are also in the film. I should then name the people who did specific roles for the film such as casting and costume designing. The most important people and information to do with the film should go at the end so who it is written by and the directors name should be the last thing the audience see before the film starts.
The typography that they use is constantly moving around the screen and changes accordingly to the opposite colour of the background to make it easier for the audience to read. The font is a standard easy to read font that has been placed in all capitals so that you can read it better. The moving font helps to keep the audiences attention on everything that is happening on screen.

Camera

There are bright colours in the background that are constantly changing. Contrasting colours show the 2 main characters silhouettes dancing to the music in a retro style. The silhouettes don't actually show the protagonists faces so the audience doesn't actually see the characters until the film starts which makes it even more intriguing. There are multiple copies of the characters doing the same thing overlapping each other in different colours, this makes the opening credits more interesting for the audience. They way that the characters are dancing also suggests that they might not care what other people think about them.
There is one constant camera angle which is a wide shot of the cast on a green screen that has been animated in edit afterwards with block colours to get the audiences attention.

Sound

There is non-diegetic sounds throughout the whole of this opening scene. The music that plays in the background is a old dancing song which suggests that it is a more childish film which also suggests that the target audience for this film is probably teenagers or young adults and that the film genre would be a comedy of sorts.

View

This opening is fun because of its use of music and animation, it also gets the audience into the right mind-set and gives them some hints for what the film might be like overall.

Saw 1

Typography

Before the film starts the first thing you see and hear are the main production companies who have big animated picture and there titles are big and bold to make the audience remember them.
The first production company that you see is LGF which appears after a boom of thunder brings forward their logo. this grabs the attention of the audience and suggests that this is a dark movie.
The second main production company that you see with an animated logo is Twisted Pictures whose logo is their company name being surrounded by barbed wire which then gets tightened by a pin and unravelled to leave scratch marks on the words Twisted Pictures.
The order of typography for this film goes:

• Twisted Pictures presents
• A Burg/Koules/Hoffman production
• A film by James Wan
• Saw

After the main animated companies the other important details are shown on a black screen and are written in light blue writing to contrast to the black screen which could also mean that the film is going to be ad because of the colour scheme. The text appears in the centre of the screen so that it is easier to read and the font they have used is very basic yet easy to understand.
This opening shows me that I don't always have to show all of the characters in the film however I still need to show the production companies and the name of the film.

Camera

These are the sequence of events that happen during the opening scene:
Sound of water, black screen
close up shots of falling torch - low lighting making us feel like the character, also suggests that the torch was their hope as we follow it down the plughole.
See one of the protagonists straight away.
Very low lighting - camera following the character as he moves.
Only lighting to show his facial expressions - emphasises his fear
Blurred camera movements from the characters perspective - as if we were in the same situation, allows us to see what they see.
Sounds get louder as they reveal the room to show the body - spinning the camera to show all the angles.
Close ups of certain items that they might need.
The set makes the audience question things i.e. Why are they chained? Where are they? etc.

Sounds

The music only appears in the parts they want to emphasis otherwise it is silent with only the diegetic sounds such as the chains when they move.
Sound affects suggest horror because of the lightning strikes at the beginning.

View

I think that this opening goes into the film too quickly, I would prefer it more if it didn't just suddenly start the film without giving us any information, however, saying this because we go into the film with no prior knowledge the audience sort of feel like the characters in the film because they have no idea why they are there either.

 

Exit through the gift shop

Typography

All of the text appears in bold white writing and the names were all placed a the bottom of the screen so that they didn't obstruct the videos. This is the order the typography appeared in:

• Paranoid Pictures
• A Banksy Film - bigger than the others and in the centre of the screen
• Produced by Jamie D'Cruz
• Editors Chris King and Tom Fulford
• Sound Jim Carey
• Music Geof Barrow
• Narrated by Rhys Ifans
• Assistant editor Belle Borgeaud
• Executive producers Holly Cushing, Zam Baring and James Gay-Rees
• Exit Through The Gift Shop - the word exit is written in red whilst everything else is written in white.

Camera

In the centre of the screen there are a variety of clips and films of people doing graffiti, preparing spray cans and being chased by the police. It is all on top of a black background so people don't get distracted and so that they can see the films better. It also shows lots of different art styles as well as how people actually do graffiti and street art. The use of lots of videos as an opening is really interesting and it keeps the audience interested in the film and keeps them focused on the screen so that they don't miss anything.

Sound

There is non diegetic sound throughout the opening. 1 song plays throughout the opening its quite peaceful and it talks about people accepting others dreams which relates to the videos of people doing graffiti.

View

I really like this opening because it has a unique style by showing lots of videos and it also engages with the audience by showing them a bit of background knowledge for street art and graffiti.

Anchorman

Typography

These are the names and production companies that are shown during the opening sequence:

• DreamWorks Pictures Presents
• An APATOW Production
• Will Ferrell
• Anchorman - The Legend of Ron Burgundy
• Christina Applegate
• Paul Rudd
• Steve Carell
• David Koechner
• Chris Parnell
• Kathryn Hahn
• Fred Armisen
• and Fred Willlard
• Casting by Juel Bestrop, CSA
• Jeanne McGarthy, CSA
• and Blythe Cappello
• Co-producer David Householter
• Music by Alex Warman
• Costume designer Debra McGuire
• Editor Brent White
• Production designer Clayton R. Hartley
• Director of photography Thomas Ackerman, ASC
• Executive producers Shauna Robertson and David O Russell
• Produced by Judd Apatow
• Written by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay
• Directed by Adam McKay

The text was bold and white with a blue trim, all of it was underlined and was moving to different areas of the screen to keep peoples attention and to avoid getting in the way of the camera.

Camera

Opens with a view from a helicopter of the setting (San Diego), flying over some water and landing on a street - camera moving around the helicopter to get a wide range of shots.
Close up shots of different aspects of the protagonists clothing before finally showing an over the shoulder view of him, becoming clear so we can see the protagonist in the mirror.
Then it shows pre-recording shots of the protagonist doing silly things before air and showing the audience what his character is like.
1 main picture with 3 smaller pictures fading in to emphasise different points. Changing sides to keep the audiences attention. Lots of wide shots of the protagonist from different angles.
Then goes to full screen picture as it shows the production crew counting down till air time. Wide shots zooming in on the people and then transferring back to the protagonist.
Cuts to the opening for the show which shows the characters in a wide shot followed by a dolly shot of them walking.
After the advert it cuts back to protagonist starting the film.

Sound

Throughout the majority of the opening there is a narrator who has a speech. its funny and witty and suggests that the film is for teenagers and young adults. It also describes the background to the film and connects with the viewer so that they understand what is happening. It also gives you a hint at what the protagonist is going to be like.

• "There was a time, a time before cable, where the local anchor-man reigned supreme. When people believed everything they heard on TV. This was an age where only men were allowed to read the news, and in San Diego, one anchor-man was more man than the rest. His name was Ron Burgundy. He was like a God wandering around mere mortals. He had a voice that could make a wolverine purr, and suits so fine, they made Sinatra look like a hobo. In other words, Ron Burgundy was the balls."

The second bit of speech comes near the end of the opening summing up what was happening.

• "When the clock struck 6, it meant one thing for Ron Burgundy's team. Go Time"

The rest of the sound is non diegetic. The music was very soft at the beginning building up as the opening goes on. Glorious music bringing in the protagonist. Then it changes to light hearted dancing music - cheery, goes with the character.

View

I really enjoyed this opening because of its humour and because it is something that everyone can get into and go along with, it perfectly describes the background to the film and introduces the  protagonist very well.

 

Blood Diamond

Typography

In this opening there are no credits for people before the title appears there are only production companies and they are:

• Warner Bros. Pictures Presents
• In Association With Virtual Studios
• A spring Creek/ Bedford Falls Production
• In Association with Initial Entertainment Group
• Blood Diamond

The text is a medium font in yellow positioned on the lower half of the screen to not obstruct the film. Title put in black in the centre of the screen.

Camera

Diegetic sound from wide shots of the desert sunrise followed by another wide shot of an animal in a lake. - shows setting, nice bright lighting from sunrise, transition from low key to high key lighting as sun rises, suggesting happiness
changes to a wide shot of a fishing village harbour -  very dark greys and blue, sunrise hasn't reached there yet.
Change to wide shot of village in silhouettes with sunrise in sky behind.
Close up shot of a possible protagonist, however their face was still hidden by silhouettes with a close up of his son - saying goodbye.
Lense flare on camera as it pans up on the sea.
Goes to shot of men going out on fishing boats
Close up of one protagonist doing work, multiple camera angles f him on his boat with the sunrise behind him.
Close up of him going off screen with focus on sunrise.
Zoom in on the ocean or title.

Sound

Non diegetic sound of peaceful music - makes everything nice and happy. Goes with the shots of the sunrise. Everything makes the movie sound like it is going to be peaceful.

View

This opening is very peaceful and shows how to use lighting to emphasise certain things and to change the mood of and opening. I like the fact that it is so peaceful in the beginning so you can really appreciate the location that they set the film in.

Submarine

Typography

This is the typography for the beginning of the film:

• Film 4 - own sound tack
• UK Film Council
• Film 4 and the UK Film council present
• In association with the Wales Creative IP Fund and the Film Agency Wales
• In association with Optimum Releasing and Protagonist Pictures
• In association with Red Hour Films
• A Warp Film Production
• Submarine

The Text appears on a blue screen in thick bold white writing so it is easier to read - cuts between the blue screen and film, gives audience time to read it.

Camera

Pan of protagonists bedroom tells the audience that he is a teenager - you can see the area through the window, cliff faces in the background with a beach and sa.
Continues with a high to low pan of his room ending up at the protagonist sitting in the corner of the room in low key lighting even though there are lamps switched on in the background - suggests his character is dark or sad to some degree.
Close up on his face -  low angle shot to extreme close up.
Changes to a view of the area - wide shot
View of mountains in sunrise - wide shot
Followed by a view of boggy water in a wide shot.
Show of sunrise over the mountain with the sea.
Lots of views of sunrise from different locations
Beach front - sea for title, diegetic sounds
Goes to over the shoulder view of protagonist staring at the sea followed by a close up over the shoulder view.

Sound

Protagonist narrating himself:
"Most people think of themselves as individuals. That there is no one on the planet like them. This thought motivates them to get out of bed, eat food and walk around like nothings wrong. My name is Oliver Tate."
Quite a deep and dark thing to say, makes the audience feel sympathetic for him, shows a side to the character and suggests its a sad film. Giving an overview of what he thinks the world is like whilst introducing himself.
Non diegetic sounds of the sea - suggests we are near water. Then added to by seagulls.
Non diegetic sounds get quieter so he can narrate.
When he stops narrating sound of a few ticks which sound every camera angle change or movement.
Peaceful music in the background makes the shots more peaceful.

View

I didn't really like this opening because it doesn't really tell me much about the film, there are some aspects that I like for example changing from the scene to the information of a separate background so that we can read it but the rest of the opening is pretty dull.

Hot Fuzz

Typography

There are no mention of actors or production crew in the opening credits ony companies and they are:

• Universal pictures Presents
• In association with Studio Canal
• A Working Title Production
• In association with big talk productions

Writing in bold white in lower half of the screen so that it is easier to read and so we can see the protagonist approaching.

Camera

Wide shot slowly zooming in on the protagonist when he reaches front of room, close up transitioning into extreme close up on his badge.
Low angle moving shot of walking feet, then switches to a low angle shot of his upper body before transitioning into a pan with an extreme close up on shoulder badge before returning to normal shot.
Rotating shot around protagonist goes into extreme close up of face.
Spin on camera to transition to a moving man of protagonist running before changing to an over the shoulder shot of the force moving into a close up on his face again.
Change in distance of close up to keep audience interested.
Wide moving shot with hand held movement to immerse the audience.
Various changes between close ups and extreme close ups.
Close up on exam paper before and extreme close up of him finishing it.
Pull back shot of him receiving his prise giving.
Cuts between different shots to transition to a low angle close up of him going up the stairs.
Wide shot of him talking to people, close up of him teaching people followed by an over the shoulder shot to show convicts.
Cuts between close ups and tracking shots of car and bike.
Wide close ups with slow zoom for each activity, pull out shot to show starting line before cutting to swish pan as he finishes running.
Transition to tracking shot through building followed by close up of him and unit.
Subjective camera as he runs towards the door before close up of him shooting.
tacking shot back through office.
Close ups of awards on wall before transition to tracking shot followed by a close up tracking shot of face.
Close up of handcuffs multiply layered over each other to suggest a lot of people.
Back to tracking shot through office, goes into over the shoulder shot of him walking up to the door zooming at jumps to create close up effect before extreme close up of hand knocking on door.
Transition to small pull-out shot of his hand to the scene of him getting stabbed.


Sound

Introduction telling the audience about the protagonist, makes it seem like everything has gone perfect for him in the narration:
"Police constable Nicholas Angle. Born and schooled, London. Graduated Canterbury University in 1993 with a double first in politics and sociology. Attended Henden College of Police Training. Displayed great aptitude in field exercises, notable urban pacification and riot control. Academically excelled in theoretical coursework and final year examinations. Received the baton of honour. Graduated with distinction into the metropolitan police service. Quickly established an effectiveness and popularity within the community. Proceeded to improve skill base with courses in advanced driving and advanced cycling. Became heavily involved in extra vocational activities. To this day holds the net record for the 100m dash. In 2001 began active duty with the renowned SO19 armed response unit. Received a bravery award for efforts in the resolution of operation crackdown. In the last 12 months has received 9 special commendations. Achieved the highest arrest rate for any officer in the met and sustained three injuries in the line of duty, most recently in December when wounded by a man dressed as Father Christmas."
Diegetic sound of opening doors and footsteps then goes into narration with lively background music - cheery and fast paced, describes character.

View

I really enjoy this opening because it shows me how lots of different shots and angles can be used to transition to different areas instead of having to fade out and fade in again so that the audience doesn't get confused.

My Neighbour Totoro

Typography

This is what appears in the form of typography for this opening:

• Tokuma Publishing Presents
• My Neighbour Totoro
• Executive producer Yasuyoshi Tokuma
• Production planning supervisors Tatsumi Yamashita and Hideo Ogata
• Production designer Yoshishara Sato
• Art director Kazuo Otsuka
• Music Jo Hisaishi
• Original art Tsukasa Tanni, Shinji Otsuka, Masako Shinohara, Masaaki Endo, Toshio Kawaguchi, Makoto Tanaka, Yoshinori Kanada, Katsuya Kondo, Makiko Futaki, Hiroomi Yamakawa and Hideko Tagawa
• Background Hajime Matsuoka, Toshiro Nozaki, Kiyomi Ota, Masaki Yoshizaki, Yoji Takeshige and Kiyoko Sugawara
• Finishing Michiyo Yasuda
• Editing Takeshi Seyama
• Shooting Hisao Shirai
• Animation check Yasuko Tachiki and Hitomi Tateno
• Colour design Nobuko Mizuta
• Finish check Masae Motohashi
• Recording director Shigeharm Shiba
• Effects Kazutoshi Sato
• Modulation Shuji Inoue
• Production chief Eiko Tanaka
• Assistant Director Tetsuya Endo
• Production coordinators Hirokatsu Kihara and Toshiyuki Kawabata
• Producer Toru Hara
• Original story, script, directed by Hayao Miyazaki

The typography is written in bold white font to make it easy to read, all of the writing appears in the centre of the screen for easy viewing.

Camera

There are no camera angles because everything on screen is drawn and animated. It starts by fading in from a blue screen using a transition of little characters, it then goes to a scroll on a brown background so you can see the writing.
Occasionally it cuts back to the blue screen to show the name of the animation.
Its a very childish drawing style because everything is dancing and moving around happily which suggests that it is meant of more younger children.
Fades out into a black screen at the end before starting the film.

Sound

The sound is very light and happy which suggests the genre is a happy film aimed towards children.
Non diegetic sound of a song in the background, quite loud because there is no dialect in the beginning.  

View

I think this is a really good animated opening sequence because it tells the audience the names of everyone who worked on the anime, I also think that its very child friendly with the way that it is drawn but I think that adults would also enjoy this film as well because of the artwork that is in it.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Typography

These are the things that appear at the beginning of the film:
(Centre of screen)

• Paramount Pictures Presents
• A John Hughes film
• Matthew Broderick in
• Ferris Bueller's Day Off

(Bottom right hand side of screen)

• Staring Alan Ruck
• Mia Sara

(Bottom left hand side of screen)

• Jeffrey Jones
• Jennifer Grey

(Bottom  middle of screen)

• Co-staring Cindy Picket,  Lyman Ward and Edie McClurg

(Bottom left of screen)

• Music score by Ira Newborn
• Casting by Janet Hirshenson and Jane Jenkins
• Costume designer  Marilyn Vance
• Edited by Paul Hirsch
• Production designer John Wicorso
• Director of photography Tak Fujmoto
• Executive producer Michael Chinich
• Produced by John Hughes and Tom Jacobson
• Written and directed by John Hughes

Typography written in a bright blue curvy font - suggests childish and playful. Subtly moves to different parts of the screen to not disrupt the flow of the movie.
Everything in lower case apart from company names and the main actors names - so that the audience knows that they are important, also makes it more childlike.

Camera

Black screen fades into a wide shot of a modest house that the audience assumes belongs to Ferris Bueller's Family, quite an expensive looking house, suggests that the family is quite well off.
Extreme close up of protagonists face
Low angle close up of his parents
Close up of protagonist in bed
Back to low angle close up of his parents
Change back to close up of protagonist which then transitions to a wide shot of the protagonists room.
Back to a close up of the protagonists face which changes to a low angle close up of parents and then changes back to a close up of the protagonist in bed.
High angle shot of feet.
Close up of woman's waist
Followed by a close up of the girls face
Close up of mothers face which then changes back to the protagonist which changes back to his sister ten back to himself.
Blurred vision wide shot of sister which gets clearer shows subjective camera which then goes back to a close up of protagonist.
Quick changes between low angle shot of sister and close up of protagonist.
Changes to a low angle close up of parents then moving back to close up of sister.
over the shoulder shot of mother followed by a wide shot as sister leaves the room then the camera turns back to the low angle shot of parents.
Close up of protagonist followed by low angle shot of parents, changes between these shots a few times before going back to a wide shot of his room.
Back to close up of protagonist then back to a wide shot of his room before a pan of him getting up.

Sound

Non-diegetic sound throughout the entire opening, starting with a radio broadcast which tells the audience where the film is set (Chicago).
We can hear the parents talking about how ill the protagonist is.
Diegetic sounds of the animals outside the window whilst the characters are talking.
Near the end of the opening some soft and sweet music starts to come in and build up as his parents leave the room, suggests calmness.

View

For an old film title, this opening is quite good and I think that it starts the film off really well because it tells the audience about the parents and the characters and their relationships with each other.

 

Zombieland

Typography

These are the things that appear on screen at the beginning of the film:
Rule #1 Cardio
Rule #2 Double Tap
Rule #3 Beware of Bathrooms
Rule #4 Seatbelts
Columbia Pictures resents
In association with Relativity Media
A Pariah production
Woody Harrelson
Jesse Eisenberg
Emma Stone
And Abigail Breslin
Zombieland
Casting by John Papsidera, CSA
Costume designer Magali Guidasci
Music by David Sardy
Edited by Peter Amundson and Alun Baumgarten, ACE
Production designer Maher Ahmad
Director of photography Michael Bonvillain, ASC
Executive producers Ezra Swerdlow, Paul Wernick, Rhett Reese and Ryan Kavanaugh
Produced by Gavin Polone
Written By Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick
Directed by Ruben Fleischer
The typography is written in a bold red font which interacts with the characters movements in the opening so if something hits the letters they move and fall down, it is written in all capitals to make it easier to read and it moves to keep the audiences attention.

Camera

Pull out officer turned upside down on fire showing the white house in chaos.
Subjective camera angle of a man being attacked by a zombie and being eaten alive.
Pull out of entire world in flames and chaos due to the zombie apocalypse.
Zoom in onto a football field with a tracking shot from different angles of a man running away from a zombie and then getting eaten alive.
Wide shots of various accidents throughout the opening with tracking shots to emphasise that everyone has to run away or they will be eaten.
Close ups used at points of death to show peoples emotions and used to do close ups of the zombies to show how terrifying they are.

Sound

There is narration over the entire opening scene with diegetic sounds from each scene to go underneath the narration, the narrator is the protagonist and he describes an overview of what is happening in the opening scene whilst also telling the audience how to survive the zombie apocalypse.

View

Overall i really like this opening because i enjoy all of the gore that they have put into it to make i more realistic and believable. I really also like the humour the narrator has when describing the chaos in the opening scene.

What I have learnt

From all of these opening I have learnt about different ways to transfer through to different shots and how the opening credits should be lead out and who should go where in the production order. I have also learnt the importance of sound throughout film openings and how light levels can give the audience certain hints at what characters are like as beings and how to change the mood of certain scenes with lighting as well.