Discrete Title Sequences

A discrete title sequence is a separately edited sequences that are apart from the film. Its almost like a separate film on its own. It is like a mini film before the film, it helps to get the audience into the mood of the film. It also gives the audience a hint of what there could expect to come up and there could be hints about the genre. An example of a discrete title sequence is 'Se7en'.

The title sequence of 'Se7en' shows the audience the obsessive behaviour of the character. It gives a horrible sense to the audience, but it is intriguing. It establishes the mood of the film and the personality of the main character in a thrilling way. Also we know from the content used that the genre is Crime.

 

Order of Title Sequence

• Line Cinema Presents ( Production Company)
• An Arnold Kopelsan Production
• A Film by David Fincher ( Director)
• Brad Pitt (Actor)
• Morgan Freeman (Actress)
• SE7EN (Title)
• Actor list
• Casting
• Music
• Costume Design
• Editor
• Production Designer
• Director of Photography
• Co-producer
• Co-executive
• Executive Producer
• writer
• SE7EN (Title)
• Producer
• Director

 

Ideas about a Title Sequence

 

I have made some ideas about a Crime genre title sequence and I have put down what I will use such as the props, location , camera movement / angles / shots and sounds.

 

Creating my own idea for my title sequence 

My own idea for my title sequence will have an action based genre and contain the very conventions you would expect from a title sequence with a genre of action. It would contain very fast and dynamic camera cuts constantly changing every few seconds to decrease tedium and keep the audience engaged,  When creating my action based title sequence i will make sure to keep the credits very small and most likely i the corner to keep the audience focused on whats actually happening on the screen.  i will also have loads of fast pace zooming in shots and various different fades to add effect to the title sequence. Also the type of music i will have in my title sequence needs to be up beat, fast tempo and somehow compliment the title sequence. For example as an idea if the music has a fast beat i will make sure to have many different camera shots at the same time that as the beat drops for example to give the title sequence a lot more meaning and make it much more worth while for the audience.

The main colour them of my title sequence will most likely be primary or bright based colours to attract the audiences eye at first glance, for example blue,red or yellow will be very beneficial and make my title sequence much more better. Also it is said that watching something is much more entertaining and enjoyable then just seeing pure images so i will try to have some clips in my title sequence to add affect. For example while the title credits are coming up (very small) this will leave a lot of space for perhaps someone jumping from car to car or an explosion to take place.

Individual outline for a title sequence

Some of the initial ideas I have had are

The genre i have been thinking of is a thriller.

As the objects of thriller are very particular, I think the main object involved in the title sequence i have initially thought is a bomb. Although throughout the whole story many of the objects would be many weapons of war (Guns, Bullets, Swords, Knifes etc..)

As it is a thriller, the location should be a busy stereotypical place.An example of this is oxford street or a busy building/street in a well populated city (for instance London/Paris/New York). But, as the outline of the storyline is to be set in two very different places, it will be set in an overcrowded city street and a poor village in a lower class country.

An outline for the main storyline is the story and the life of a suicide bomber (childhood problems, basically a sympathy story and how he got into terrorism by mistake) and the building up of his final mission.

The opening scene would be him setting up the bomb in an overcrowded place, preparing for his/her final terrorism mission, and as soon as he is about to set the bomb off, the shot will change completely and revert to his story leading up to the moment he sets the bomb off. In terms of sound, the opening sequence would include lots of digetic sound, such as many people talking and shuffling (as it's a crowded street) and some non-digetic sound such as car horns, police sirens and a car radio. 

Editing Process

 

Premier Pro Timeline

 

 Premier Pro bin with all the footage

 

After effects timeline

 

After Effects

Collateral remake

Analysing the title sequence of my favourite film

Analysis of Reservoir Dogs

Camera

Firstly, the use of the camera or varied. At the start, the camera uses a long shot of all the characters walking. The next 6 or so shots, are close ups of each character suggesting what type of person each character is. They then use a wide shot of all the character except this time form the backs of all the characters.

Mise-en-scene

The location is Downton LA, while  the set is still Los Angeles. The use of costume is spread throughout most of the characters. the majority of the characters are wearing tuxedos and sunglasses, whereas the other two characters are wearing something different (one wearing a tracksuit and a chain necklace and another wearing a casual tie and jeans). The props used in the title sequence are varied. for instance in the opening shot the first thing seen is a pale blue car. When shown close ups of each character each character has a prop for their own. For instance Harvey Keitel has sunglasses and a tooth pick, Michael Madsen has a cigarette, Chris Penn has a golden chain, Steve Bruscemi has sunglasses, and Eddie Bunker has a cigar. The whole title sequence is sun lit.

Editing

The editing in this title sequence is interesting, this includes footage which has been slowed down to show the walk of each character. The special effects used are Transitioning the title's onto the footage. The transition from the start is a black screen, straight to footage. This transition is also evident in the opening but at the end, transitioning the footage back to a black screen.

Sound

The sound in the Reservoir dogs is fairly frequent throughout the opening. This involves being introduced to the film by a rhythmic bass playing, then followed by more non-digetic music to create a song.

In the beginning of the sequence, the key plot is introduced. Introducing all of the characters, letting the audience almost know what kind of people they are. The image created of these characters are mafia gangsters, or wealthy criminals. This helps set up the genre, and the plot (they will be involved in some criminal doing) This is introduced by the props of each character. The order of which the storyline is introduced is by the introduction of each new character. All the main characters are introduced one after another during the title sequence. They are introduced by quick close ups on each individual character, giving the audience a sense of what the character is like up close and personal. During the opening sequence, The gangsters (wealthy criminals) are represented stereotypically. This is shown by the majority of them wearing tuxedo's, the sunglasses (stereotypical of criminals as you cannot see their eyes)  and the heavy use of smoking (another stereotypical image of criminals)

8) Analysis of a discrete title sequence (RESEARCH)

a discrete title sequence is a sequence that could be considered a little film in and of itself, these are these are often used in thrillers/crime films as it acts as a precursor of how the rest of the film will be presented. usually only a limited amount of information is given to the audience in a discrete title sequence which is why they are effective for thrillers/crime films as they are typically suspenseful and they encourage the audience try to piece together the entire story bit by bit. Discrete title sequences are typically heavily edited to interest the audience and sometimes animated, this allows the director to get across a wide range of elements pertaining to the film in a short space of time. the opening to catch me if you can is a good example of a discrete title sequence, as it is an animated sequence that gives little bits of detail about the plot and introduces key elements whilst still being able to stand alone separate from the rest of the film.
the order of the titles are:

• film studio and production
• film director
• lead actors
• film title
• other actors/actresses
• then lesser jobs like casting and music, editor, costume designer etc.

Akiiki Kelly

The importance of Sound in Film

 

what is sound?

Aural element / what we hear

 

What is soundscape?

All the different elements of sound (non-diegetic / diegetic)

 

What is sound design?

plan for the sounds that are going to be used.

 

 

The unity of Image and Sound - sound is 50%

 

Screening 1 - without sound

 

Sound we think there could be:

-cars

-traffic

-speech (dialogue)

-train

-upbeat music

-footsteps

-echo

 

Without the sound of a film we feel bored, distracted, confused and loss in interest. Sound is a key convention of a film without it we look for other things that interests and we are put of the film as it doesn't interest us.

 

Screening 2 - with sound

 

With sound we automatically feel drawn into the film as there is a lot happening. We feel engaged, curious. Also our mood is set, character cues / information is given and genre signifiers. Sound makes the film watchable and it allows the audience to concentrate more.

 

Sound makes the footage more entertaining and it engages the audience. With the sound the mood is changed of the audience as without sound its boring and with sound its entertaining.

 

 

 

Identifying Genres

 

 

Crime / Gangster

 

The genetic signifiers of a Crime / Gangster genre film is it has a dark source of light and there is usually only on bulb in the middle shining down. The shot types used are mainly mid shot which only shows the persons upper body. The props used are guns, money, alcohol and the actors are mainly in suits. It is easy to identify the genre as we can tell from the setting and the props used.

 

 

Western

 

The genetic signifiers of a Western genre film is it dark and it has no bright lighting. The costumes are old fashion. the location is usually corrupted and its is a empty site. There is usually no vehicles ad there are horses instead. The shot types used are mainly long shot which has the location dominating most of the image. The props used are usually old fashion things and the buildings are made out of wood and its in a silent small town. It is easy to identify the genre as we can tell from the location and the clothing and also the image colours its is usually brown, black and white.
 

 

 

 

 

Action

 

The genetic signifiers of a Action genre film is it has a bright lighting. The shot types used are mainly a mixture of different types of shots such as long shot, mid shot and close up and there are lots of crane movement and there is a use of high and low angle shots. There are usually cars, tanks and helicopters. It is usually taken outside and there is a blue sky and the actors are blacked out. It is easy to identify the genre as we can tell from the music used and there is scenes where the mans jumps out of the car. we can tell from scenarios like this.

 

 

 

Location of where we filmed

 

 

 

 



 

Pictures of Group 39 filming

 

 

 

Sequence 3 - MICRO ANALYSIS

Camera (shot distances/angles/movements/framing)

Editing (cuts/speeds/special effects/transitions/)

Mise-en-scene (location/setting/costume/makeup/props/performance & lighting)

Sound (musical score, sound effects, wild sound, foley sound) 

Man of Steel

From the very beginning of the title sequence we are introduced to a very slow,anticipated type of music as 'columbia pictures' appears on the screen at a mid range shot. This is the first bit of writing we see which signifies its importance and tells us the audience who is behind this great film. That then fades out and we are then introduced to the producers,associations,the creators and so on. Notice how the writing is very small and is in the bottom left corner which forces you to focus on whats happening in the middle of the screen. A voice then appears in a sound that makes us think he is out of space with the language such as 'UFO' and 'do you copy'. The camera then quickly zooms out at a point of view shot and it shows what we were just viewing on a YouTube screen. 

The music then becomes more louder and tense as we are introduced to different voice overs of people describing this 'man of steel' in a respected fashion. The camera then pans to all of the trophies and achievements this person has achieved. The camera rotates in a slow motion to allow the audience to see every single achievement and trophy to signify his greatness and hard work. he is described as 'a marble. 'amazing' 'untouchable' and many other encouraging phrases.

This makes us as the audience feel curious and excited to find out more about this superhero. After many fast transitions the camera focuses on the giant iconic red S at a close up shot which then gradually zooms out showing this iconic figure being Superman. 

The music then comes to an emphatic build up before the ending of the title sequence to give it a memorable ending. 

MACRO ANALYSIS

key plot ideas:

Order of the story line:

what characters are introduced:

what social groups are introduced and how are they represented:

The main plot ideas of Man Of Steel is that a young boy learns he has extraordinary powers that are not from this earth. As a young man he journeys to find out where he and his amazing powers have come from. He learns he must save the world from annihilation as it was his destiny but faces tons of troubles on the way. In the title sequence we are just introduced to Superman which indicates he is of importance to the movie.

Sequence 2 - MICRO ANALYSIS

Camera (shot distances/angles/movements/framing)

Editing (cuts/speeds/special effects/transitions/)

Mise-en-scene (location/setting/costume/makeup/props/performance & lighting)

Sound (musical score, sound effects, wild sound, foley sound) 

The Simpsons

From the beginning of the title sequence we are introduced to the iconic voice saying “the Simpsons” in a slow memorable voice while the title fades through clowds to introduce the show.  This is the first bit of writing we see which signifies its importance and resembles its reputation. From then the camera cuts at a fast speed and gives an establishing view of Springfield from a birds eye view.  The camera pans around at a quick speed before zooming into our first central character.

After we get a feel of the area we are then introduced to our first character of the show being Bart Simpson who is in what seem detention writing lines.  An interesting thing that the Simpson’s title sequences does very well  is change the writing we see on the board every time to keep the audience engaged and have them looking forward to watching the show every time. The colour theme of the Simpson’s consists of many bright colours and almost builds a sort of story by the use of misc en scene.  We have many different things happening at one time from Bart trying to escape detention, to Homer escaping work, and Marge trying to get home before everyone else. This is reinforced due to the fact the music is becoming much tenser and seems to be getting a lot faster which adds an overall effect. As Homer is rapidly driving home we are introduced to a foley type of sound of the car skidding and the powerful engine sound to emphasise that he is in a rush. We are then introduced to a transition where Marge’s car runs into Homer at a point of view shot which finds the whole family on the sofa together. The use of humour in the title sequence gives the audience an expectation of what to expect in the show. Lastly we are introduced to the credits of the show through the Simpson’s TV, this is reinforced through the type of font and style of writing that the credits appear on, it makes it more realistic that they are on an actual TV.  This creates irony it its self-due to the fact the Simpsons are watching the people who created them. Overall I feel the Simpsons have one of the very best title sequence’s due to the humour used, the fact it creates a story in its self and the use of creativity and originality is perfectly performed through the use of sound effects and camera shots.

MACRO ANALYSIS

Key plot ideas:

Order of the story line:

what characters are introduced:

What social groups are introduced and how are they represented:

In the title sequence we are introduced to the main characters of the Simpsons which Is Marge, Homer, Bart and Lisa, the whole family of the whole Simpsons. The fact that we get a sense of the plot from the title sequence gives us the audience an idea that there is going to be many different type of problems and different story lines throughout the show. We get a sense of two different types of social groups in the show which seperates adults from children being Marge and Homer and Bart and Lisa.

15) why is sound so important in film (RESEARCH)

George Lukas (director of star wars) argues that sound is 50%, meaning that without a sound a film would only be half as good. I believe that this is an accurate assessment as sound is often used to establish the genre, create an atmosphere and to give the audience clues about the plot and characters. sound also makes the film more enjoyable to watch, without the sound the viewer could be bored and disengaged. besides just enhancing the viewer's experience, sound more importantly soundtracks can be used to further promote a film franchise as through repeated use of the soundtrack it will become synonymous with that film e.g the star wars theme. Akiiki Kelly

Why is sound so important to film?

Sound is said to be "50% of a movie", it is used to establish and set tone and atmosphere which helps gives the audiences clues to the plot or genre. Sound in film is also used to create realism within the viewer and help extend that "suspended belief".  Sound techniques are often used to convey a certain mood of the film and manipulates the audiences reaction. This mainly applies to horror and thriller films which both seek to represent fear. Most horror films use the classic screaming sound when something jumps out from the screen to attempt to scare you.  This is a worthy moment which makes a horror movie a success.

Foley sounds are often used to glorify or engage the audience more into a film. It is not the actual sound that has been used in the production. Most sound effects such as punches, gunshots etc are recreated and later added in by sound editorial.

Prelim of film evaluation 

Making a prelim film helped me become more familiar with the different stages of making a film. I now know that it is essential to have some sort of storyboard or plan of shot list before going out to film as it became harder to film. The prelim video was also beneficial as it allowed me to experiment with different locations,various shot types, editing techniques and to see what worked well and what didn't when it came to presenting. Overall i feel my prelim video was quite successful, although we ailed to keep the 180 degrees rule we realized this when viewing are film and were able to re do it and go back on our errors. It was kept short,simple and very coherent and are use of different camera shots made are the dialogue used successful and effective.

Skills: One of the skills i feel i was best at when making my prelim video was being able to identify the best locations to shoot our video and make it as realistic as possible. However i can improve my filming by taking into consideration the positioning of the camera when filming, for example when we finished our film some of the criticism we received was that we left a lot of empty space above the head. So perhaps in the future we could bring the camera down or film in a different location.

Aspects: The aspects of our completed film that worked the best was the use of music to add effect and realism to our piece. The music also enhanced the film and made the shot types more interesting to watch. However one aspect we could improve on in the near future is to make clear which character is the main one because at the beginning of the film when our main character got onto the bus it was very difficult to identify who it was. To improve there should have been a close of of the central character at the start to indicate to the audience who he is, and of his importance.

Changes/Importance of planning: The main change i would make if i was to make my prelim video again is to take more time and consideration into my storyboard,making it more detailed will result in a better overall film as we will be more prepared and aware. This would also decrease the time spent filming as everyone would know what there doing and allow more time on editing and making the film a lot better then what it was.

BFI statistics

1 Which 3 genres where most successful at the UK box office?
Action, Animation, Comedy

2Which 3 genres were least popular or successful at the UK box office?
Fantasy, Sci fi, War

3 Which film genre had the most films released in 2013-14
Comedy

4How many films in this genre where made in 2013-14
153

5 How many animated films where made ?
33

6 How many action films where made?
47

7 What does this information tell you about film production and film audiences?
The more films released, the more successful the genre.

Audiences

1 Which age group made up the largest proportion of cinema admissions in the UK (who went to the cinema most)?
15-24

2 Which comedy film was most successful with this age group ?
the hangover part 3

3 Which film was most popular with over 50s?
Quartet, and comedy

4 Which genres where most popular with men?
Thriller, action

5 Which genres where most popular with women?
Documentary, music

6 UK films appealed to which audience type?

7 Which 3 films where most popular with the 7-14 age group?

8 Which 3 films most popular with 35-44 age group were frozen, the Croods and Jack and the giant slayer. Why might this be?

9 Which 3 films most popular with the 25-34 age group?

10 Which films where most popular with middle class audiences ?

11 What differences are there and what conclusions can you make about which films they prefer?

Micro and Micro Analysis of "ATTACK"

Micro and Micro Analysis of "TOUCH OF EVIL"

Why is sound so important in film ?

Firstly, sound is the Oral element of the film (what we can hear)

Sound in film is extremely important. For example sound is used in film to establish tone, atmosphere and to help give the audience clues about the plot,  characters or to identify the Genre about the film. It has also been used to help something called 'suspended belief' to create realism for the viewer and heighten their experience of the film.
George Lukas has previously said that sound is 50%  of the film, alternatively saying that without the sound the film would be half as good.

Sound techniques are often used to convey a certain mood of the film and manipulates the audiences reaction. This is particularly true in thrillers and horror films, which both seek to create a sense of fear. Most horror films rely on the jump scare technique to invoke that all important scream- worthy moment that makes a horror movie a success.

The sound effects you hear in any given scene are often not the sounds that where recored in production. Most sound effects, such as car horns, footsteps, and gunshots are recreated and added in later by sound editorial.  This makes the sound much more realistic an gives the audience a sense of realism.

Story board of Collateral opening Scene

Shot list of Collateral

2) analysis of prelim film