Opening Credits
What are opening credits?
Opening credits are written information presented to the audience at the start of a film, the information is on who produced the film, who is starring and production details. The design of them depends on the genre and overall tone of the film. For example an action thriller would have faster moving text or simple block colours and an easily legible font.
Opening credits are written information presented to the audience at the start of a film, the information is on who produced the film, who is starring and production details. The design of them depends on the genre and overall tone of the film. For example an action thriller would have faster moving text or simple block colours and an easily legible font.
What is the purpose of opening credits?
The purpose of opening credits is to inform the audience of who was involved in the production of the film, Therefore it includes the most significant people such as the producers, directors and writers, as well as the main cast involved in the film. The rest of the production cast and minor cast will be in the ending credits.
The purpose of opening credits is to inform the audience of who was involved in the production of the film, Therefore it includes the most significant people such as the producers, directors and writers, as well as the main cast involved in the film. The rest of the production cast and minor cast will be in the ending credits.
What information do opening credits provide?
Opening credits provide information to the audience about the production in different ways. One way is through the name of the studio first such as Universal, followed by the production company such as Spyglass Entertainment. After this there is the producer, director, main cast, editor and story boarder. Another presentation of opening credits begins with the production company, then the title, main cast, music composer, editor, producer, writer and finally the director. The opening credits help the audience identify who is responsible for what role in the production of a film. Some fans may follow directors and watch films simply because they are made by them, directors such as Christopher Nolan and Martin Scorsese have followings like this.
How do opening credits make the audience feel?
The way opening credits make the audience feel varies between genre. An opening scene for a horror thriller for example, would be accompanied by a gloomy, slow, soundtrack. As well as font that would make the audience feel uneasy overall. In contrast to this, an animated film would be much more colourful and clearly show names and have an upbeat soundtrack with it. Thriller films generally have distorted font and sometimes have pictures or a video on during the opening credits for the audience to feel frightened, as well as get a feel of the film. This is to make the audience feel fearful and prepare them for the suspense and discomfort during the film.
Scene analysis
In the opening scene for Se7en (1995), it is extremely eerie throughout. The opening is accompanied by a slow, melancholy soundtrack. This is to make the audience feel extreme discomfort and nervous. As well as this there are flashes to the cast names in a gruesome font, making the audience feel uneasy as they are presented on their on in white, on a black screen. In between the presentation of the cast names, there are extreme close ups to a character's fingers, removing their fingerprints with a razor blade. This can suggest that the character is an antagonist and is intending to do wrong. This would scare the audience as this person is unseen but their intentions are clear from early on. The opening credits are therefore extremely effective in generating a reaction from the audience.
Conclusion
From my research I have concluded that I will present my production company first, followed by the director, producer and writer. After this will be the main cast and finally the title. I have chosen this order as I believe this will be the most effective and look the most professional. I also have concluded that my opening credits will be accompanied by an eerie soundtrack which I will create and it will be used effectively it will make the audience frightened while giving them a sense of what the film will be like. The opening credits will mostly be on a black screen written with a white font, taking inspiration from Se7en as it has very effective opening sequence, this will create suspense and confuse the audience as they will not know what to expect from the film, although it will create excitement as to what will come next.
From my research I have concluded that I will present my production company first, followed by the director, producer and writer. After this will be the main cast and finally the title. I have chosen this order as I believe this will be the most effective and look the most professional. I also have concluded that my opening credits will be accompanied by an eerie soundtrack which I will create and it will be used effectively it will make the audience frightened while giving them a sense of what the film will be like. The opening credits will mostly be on a black screen written with a white font, taking inspiration from Se7en as it has very effective opening sequence, this will create suspense and confuse the audience as they will not know what to expect from the film, although it will create excitement as to what will come next.
There is a proficient understanding of the purpose and information conveyed in opening credits. There is clear engagement with the audience's reaction to these, with proficient links back to how this research will be applied to their thriller opening. There is a limited range of film examples.
ReplyDelete- In your information section, list the two credit orders using bullet points to make them easier to read and identify.
- In the audience feelings section, include some screen shots from different genres to support your ideas.
- Always refer to the font as typography.
- In your scene analysis, make a note of the order of opening credits and discuss.