Music Research.

Finding music was a hard task within our title sequence. We had to find a piece that fitted in perfectly and that we all thought was just right! We decided to start looking for music, as our music couldn't be copyrighted we chose to look on audio.lgfl website which had a wide variety of music selections.


Here are some of the music choices we originally considered:
Click to have a listen.
Track One - Cold city.

Track Two - In Memoriam.

Track Three - Hell's Harp.

Codes and Conventions of a Title Sequence

- Cast and crew name and positions etc.

- Introduction to the main character.

-ISuggestion of timespace

-Suggestion of setting

-Setting of the mood and tone

-Introduction to signature theme tune 

-Information about Genre 

-Keeping the viewer intrigued

-Certain things that are repeated specifically. 

- Mise-en-Scene and cinematoraphy that will be echoed or elaborated upon later in the film.

Film Productions Institutions.

Productions institution finished.

This is a powerpoint I made with information about all of the well-known Film Production Institutions that we looked at and the final one we decided to keep to put in our title sequence.

Analysis of contemporary titles vs. older titles.

As part of my research, I have been asked to compare and contrast a contemporary film title sequence with an older one. I have chosen Jaw: The Revenge and Zombie land as there is great contrast between the two title sequences as they both have similar elements but are quite different.


Jaws: The revenge. (1987)



This is the first title sequence that I decided to analyse. The film was released in 1987. I think just by looking at the title sequence you can tell it's quite an old film as the quality of the film isn't that great. The title sequence seems to be foreshadowing the events that are going to happen in the film as the movement is very slow and almost mysterious as you don't really know who or what it is, the camera seems to be in point of view. From the title sequence I gather that the camera is meant to be in view of a shark. Also, the movement of the camera is very well done because it gives the audience the feeling of being in the setting.


Zombieland (2009)


This is the title sequence for Zombieland released in 2009, which I think greatly contrasts with Jaws: The Revenge. It shows how time has changed with the graphics looking much better. The 3-D titles give a good effect on the titles. The blood splats, gun, hand prints and cross hairs all foreshadow and hint the audience to what may happen in the film. The graphics in the title sequence give the 'wow' factor to the overall title sequence which entices the audience to watch the rest of the movie.The actual titles of the director etc. are really cleverly done as they make the 3-D effect even better by moving around with the 'blood' they are positioned on, the music also adds to the effect as it is fast paced so it makes it more intense and interesting.




 The two title sequences I have looked at have certain elements that are different however, they have the same elements that all title sequences should include: setting the tone and mood for the rest of the film and foreshadowing the action for the film which both title sequences do in their own way.

Research on Horror and Action Genre.

This video is called the Alphabet of horror. It explains some of the elements of a typical horror whilst going through the alphabet.

Title Sequences and what they should include.

Title sequences:

-Other than trailers and marketing elements, they are the first images the audience sees when the lights go down, title sequences outline what the film maker's intentions were when creating the film.

-Saul Bass 'Making a main-title was like making a poster, you're condensing the event into one concept'

  

- The sequence takes responsibility of displaying the movies title, studio brand identity, the name of the director and establishing the heirarchy of actors.

- A title sequence establishes the mood and visual character of the film.

-A successful title sequence should draw a viewer into the movie and provide an introdution so that when someone goes back to the film, they can have an 'ah!' moment as they realise the proleptic value of the sequence.

-It sets the tone, providing the mood, foreshadowing the action.

-The sequence should get you hooked and excited to watch the film.

Mise-en-scene Seven Title sequence.

 Analysing Seven Title Sequence - Mise-en-Scene:

First impressions are very important - that is why title sequences are highly considered when being created. You want a title sequence to be interesting, and to keep the audience interested as that is, nearly always, the first thing that the audience sees when watching a movie. This eery and very awkward-feeling title sequence has achieved its purpose in the sense that it leaves the audience with many questions in their head about the background information for this movie, this title sequence is very intricate and most shots are clear and close-up which leave the audience so questionable. We see the camera following what the character is doing but we can't figure out what they are doing as it is all close up. However, the shots are very clear and precise like the character seems to be acting with a very precise manner. We see a series of instruments that the character is using to create their work like negatives, old books and needles as terh character seems to be sewing pages together to create a book. Also, the character seems to be cutting out particular words, like 'homosexual', out of articles and carefully removing them with tweezers. You get the feeling of awkwardness and uncomfortableness when watching it as you know the character is doing unusual things like crossing out the faces of people and being very precise in their work. There are shots of photos being developed and photos of people which we are lead to guess that could be possible victims of the character, props like negatives and tape also add to the overall effect which keeps the audience guessing as to whaat and who this character is. Also, what you can see of the character isn't very pleasant as all the shots are very close up which create a mysterious sugggestion about who the character may be, and the hands of the character are dirty and bandaged up which may give some suggestion into what the person does as they seem very precise yet unknown in what they actually do as not much is given away within the title sequence. The colour seems desaturated throughout the se7en title sequence which the audience may interpret as some sort of foreshadowing related to what may happen later on in the movie. All these aspects of the Mise-en-Scene add to the intense feeling of the title sequence.

Research on Title sequence designer: Saul Bass.

Saul Bass

.

This is our presentation on the well-known title sequence designer Saul Bass. We included a variety of clips of some of the title sequences he made. We have researched a lot about Saul Bass and some of his famous pieces of work and then we analysed some of his title sequence.


 We had a slide that talks about basic information about Saul Bass like where he was born etc.We included a few clips of some of his greatest work like Psycho(1960), West side story (1961), The Man with the Golden Arm (1955).


Psycho.  (1960).
The titles for psycho were created by Saul Bass, he used a lot of different lines - vertical and horizontal. This, I think, keeps the viewer intrigued and it is a clever way to incorporate the casts names and all the information included at the start. Also, you can see that Bass has thought about the sequence a lot as the lines moving across the screen  are in sync with the tone of music.


West side story. (1961).
Bass uses his trademark of lines in this opening sequence which is uncovered as the outline of Manhattan which is revealed at the end of the title sequence. Throughout the title sequence the screen is filled with an aray of bright colours and the colours change to set the mood and changes with the tone of music. The image fades into a birds eye view of the coastline of Manhattan.
The simplicity of the title sequence highlights the greater meaning which is what Saul Bass does so well.


The Man with the Golden Arm. ( 1955).
Bass' titles have a reoccurring theme with his lines theme. The man with the golden arm has a great use of vertical and horizontal lines, also the white lines on the black background are a great contrast and have a great impact to keep the audience interested. The titles are very interesting as the lines enter the screen at awkward angles and with a sharp motion.


Vertigo (1958).
Vertigo is a slightly different title sequence to Bass' usual 'lined' theme. It is quite a mysterious title sequence because the music is very tense and gives a sense of foreshadowing for what is to come in the movie and all the shots within the titles are close-ups or extreme close-ups so it doesn't give away a lot for what is going to happen in the movie but, once again, gives a sense of foreshadowing - this is why the music works well with the cinematography. Also, the shots of the woman show her looking quite weary and anxious which work well and fit in well with the rest of the sequence. The actual titles are big and bold over the top of the film and towards the end there is a spiralling shape which may suggest confusion in the movie.
 

Looking at Title Sequences.

Why does this appeal to you???
I chose Waterloo Road as a title sequence to look at as I think it is quite good because before the actual title sequence they preview what happened in the previous week's episode. I think this is a good technique to get the viewer interested as if they have misssed an episode there is a short clip to get you up-to-date with the series and I also think it is a good title sequence because it shows you the main characters (which are all teachers) and the setting, clips from the series that show it's based in a school. However the main thing that i think is missing from the opening title sequence is the names of the actors. Apart from that I think it is a good title sequence.


What colour is the text? Why?
Well as i have mentioned the title sequence doesn't include any text apart from the title, However the title is white but it is clever because it has been made up of students at desks, i think it it is quite clever how they have made the text out of the school desks, it links in well with the show, it hints about what it is about.


Does it fit in with the overall look of the sequence?
Yes, I think it does fit in quite well with the overall sequence because the sequence is all shots of the teacher characters in the show and the title that comes up at the end is a zoomed out version of all the students throwing paper aeroplanes etc. so i think this also indicates to the types of characters in the show.