Dexter Title Sequence

We watched the title sequence of Dexter which is an American television drama series that centers on Dexter Morgan, a forensic bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer.  Our task in the lesson was to create a storyboard of our own title sequence.  However in order to understand how much depth we have to show, i.e every shot that will take place, what will be seen in each shot etc, our teacher showed us this title sequence from Dexter.  Whilst watching this title sequence we had to count how many shots we see.  The majority of the class saw around 50-60 shots used in just a 1 minute and 42 second title sequence.  Counting these shots enabled us to understand how much depth we need to go into when making our own storyboards.   

We also discussed how this title sequence was created in an effective way.  Dexter Morgan is revealed only at the very end of the opening sequence, after a series of fragmented and disorienting close-ups.  The opening credits of Dexter suggest that very careful and clearly deadly precision is present in every aspect of the protagonist’s life. the blood-red colour used in the title 'Dexter' may or may not be actual blood; the title sequence inter cuts actual blood (the shaving shots) and flesh (the bacon for breakfast) with things which look like dripping blood and mangled flesh, but turn out to be ketchup and an orange.  The opening of Dexter presents the sinister side of everyday actions: shaving is disruptive and dangerous, preparing breakfast is bloodthirsty, a healthy appetite is somehow highly suspected. Yet critically, Dexter’s morning routine is not really  different from most people’s, he may be a serial killer, but he still puts his shoes on one at a time. The credit sequence foreshadows Dexter’s murderous side and yet provides a point of identification for the viewers through a focus on seemingly-everyday behaviour.

My Group's Film Concept and Feedback

In our lesson we were put into groups of four.  In our group, our task was to come up with an original film concept for our title sequence.  It was difficult to come up with a completely original idea and required lots of discussion.  We all decided to stick to the horror/thriller genre as we thought it would be more interesting to create a plot around.  

Group Concept

As a group we had arrived to a decision with our film concept.  Our film  concept was based around four girls getting ready to go to a party, however when they look outside the window they see a guy who is mysteriously watching them get ready.  The mysterious guy turns out to be a stalker to begins to kill the girls one by one.  We weren't to keen on the idea so we presented our idea to our Media teacher.

Feedback from our Media Teacher

Our Media teacher told us the idea was not very original and was similar to other movies such as  'Scream'.  He told us to try and change our concept so it is more different to other films that are out in the cinemas today.  We took on our teacher's feedback and as a group discussed other ideas we could use for our film concept.  However our teacher had told us to present our film concept to the class and see what they think.

Feedback from the class

We presented our film concept to our peers as asked them what we could improve on and if they would watch our film or not.  A majority said 'no' they would not watch our film, as they thought it was too similar to previous films in the cinemas.  We asked our peers what we could improve on in order for them to be encouraged to watch our film.  They suggested we should add a twist to the concept which would make the film more interesting to watch.  We took on our peers feedback and put more thought into our film concept.

Change in Film Concept

As our Media teacher and peers told us our film concept was too simular to previous films released in cinemas.  We have now changed our idea and have added a twist, however we have still stuck to the horror/thriller genre.  Our film concept is now based around two girls who are best friends.  One of the girls boyfriend has a friend who liked his girlfriend.  He is now plotting to kill the girl as she turned him down with the help of her best friend.

We first decided a boy should kill the girl, but we thought this was too predictable, so we twisted the film concept, to the girls bestfriend killing her.  We thought this would be a shock to the audience as it not something the audience will expect from the girls best friend.

How Will These Title Sequences Influence Your Title Sequence?

After watching the class present their chosen title sequence and their analysis points as to what makes it effective, me and my group had thought of some great ideas to use for our own title sequence.  After watching the SAW IV title sequence my group thought it would be a good idea to use simular tight shots to emphasise the horror/thriller genre of our title sequence.  This is because it would make our audience feel claustrophobic and want to see more than what is being shown.  We also decided that we will use dark, slow music, so the audience is kept on edge and so they can prepare for the unexpected.  We want to show good development of the main character like the Joker from the Dark Knight title sequence.  Most importantly we decided to include engimas and this will make our title sequence more effective.  

The Taking of Pelham 123 Title Sequence

The Taking of Pelham 123 (Director: Tony Scott)


A title sequence which I analysed was from the film The Taking of Pelham 123.  I thought it was an effective title sequence because of the range of shots used which conveyed the genre, and I liked the use of editting as it established the plot of the film well.






Plot

Medium shots are shown of the trains moving and arriving at the stations.  This establishes the plot of the film is going to be based in the train station.

Editting

In the opening you see the Columbia Pictures logo playing in a small section in the middle of the screen.  As it continues, the section slowly approaches to fill the screen. This imitates the movement of a train going through a dark tunnel, making it appear as of the audience is in a subway tunnel.  This may be suggesting the plot is based around a train as you hear sounds of a moving train and the screeching of the brakes.(Pelham 1 2 3) 

When the names of the cast are appearing, a black stripe moves across the names.  This mimics the movement of a train, also the background sound is of a moving train which denotates what the film may be based on.

 When the name of the film is shown, the numbers 1,2,3 appear as the lights of a moving train are seen in the background.  Denotating the storyline of the film is about a train called Pelham 1 2 3.


Camera

This close up shot of a MTA badge, conveys the film involves the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, hinting towards the character of MTA dispatcher Walter Garber (Denzel Washington )

You see a long shot of the building in America which automatically tells the audience that the film is set in New York city. The music after this shot changes to rock music as it is fast paced to match the speed of the writing as it appears on screen this also sets the pace for the opening of the film.

We then see a medium shot of the side view of John Travolta.  The focal point in this shot is the tattoo on his neck which reads “from my cold” around a gun, which suggests he may have a gun.  The meaning behind the tattoo is “I’ll give you my gun when you take it from my cold, dead hands”.  This means he won’t let go of his gun until he is dead.  Also people who have been to jail are normally associated with tattoo's.  This conveys he is a strong and powerful character and hints that he could be the bad guy in the film.

Music

The music suddenly changes to a more fast, intense and rapping music.  This may be suggesting the busyness and amount of population in New York city.  It could also suggesting the film is set in a rough area.  

Genre

We get the hint that the genre is action/crime/thriller.  This is connotated through the fast-pace music and the fast movement of transitions suggesting action.  We see a shot of John Travolta with the tattoo of the gun, symbolizing death/he is a criminal.  We also see a close up shot of a bag in someone's hand at the train station.  This suggests that there may be something suspicious (i.e.gun) in the bag.  These connotate the genre thriller/crime. 

Dark Knight Title Sequence

'Dark Knight' (Directed by: Christopher Nolan)


Part 1 of title sequence: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OYBEquZ_j0


Part 2 of title sequence: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-rkpgchJOA&feature=related




Two other students analysed the title sequence of Dark Knight as they thought it was an effective title sequence.

Badman Sign Fading


This image of the Batman logo fading tells the audience straight away that the film is based on Batman.  There is no title of the film shown however this fade of the Batman symbol is so well known internationally that the audience dont need to see the title of the film.  

Clown Masks

In the title sequence we see a bank robbery take place.  The robbers are all wearing clown masks which makes them look cunning and devious.  This may suggest that the robbers find the robbery a joke as clowns generally symbolized as funny.  It also suggests that the robbers want to hide their identity as they are robbing a Mafia Bank.

Genre

In the title sequence we see the robbers explode the window of a building and we also see them using guns, which conveys the genre of action.  The music used in the title sequence is deep and intense which establishes the genre of horror.

Dialogue

When the robbers enter the bank, the bank manager takes matters into his own hands by trying to kill the robbers with his gun.  "You don't know who you're messing with", "You don't steal from us or we will get you".  The bank manager says this as he is referring to the Mafia Bank, who the robbers are trying to steal from.  

Shots

A close up shot is used when one of the robbers takes off his clown mask to reveal that he is the Joker.  The close up shot emphasises the clown make-up on his face, which may suggest that he lives his life as a joke and takes nothing seriously.  This may also explain his signature quote "Why so serious?"

Character Information

In the title sequence we see the robbers killing one another.  

Then we see him shooting the other robber who opens the safe.

One of the robbers then tries to shoot another robber who was the Joker

However he doesnt succeed, as the Joker had already told one of the robbers to kill him with the bus

Then the Joker kills the robber who drove the bus in

The final robber left is the Joker.  The robbers killing each other one by one suggests the robbers are all greedy and want the money all for themselves.  As the Joker is the last robber alive, he may be the protagonist of the film. 

Enigmas Established

Whilst watching the title sequence some enigmas are established, such as: 'Why are the police so slow?', "Why did the bank manager not call the police, but take matters into his own hands', and most importantly "wheres Batman?'.

Snatch Title Sequence

'Snatch' (Directed by: Guy Ritchie)

Another title sequence which was analysed by a student in the class was from the film Snatch.  At the beginning of the film we see a tracking shot of the CCTV footage screens as the character are walking through the building.  It seems as if the security guards are keeping a look out on these people and their actions.  We see the people on the CCTV footage making their way throughou the building towards the office.  The CCTV footage gives us an insight as to what the film is about and what is going to happen as CCTV footage/monitoring is used in places such as shopping centres to keep an eye on things that could potentially happen.

In the opening sequence there is use of diegetic sound.  This is heard when the four characters are talking about a religious belief.  However, when the men enter the office and reveal their guns, non-diegetic music begins.  The music is very fast paced and up-beat which creates an effect of having an adrenaline rush on the viewers.  The music tries the mimic the action thats taking place - the four robbers behaving negetively towards the office staff.  This makes the audience emphasise with the fear and unease created by the disturbance of the robbery.  The title sequence also includes diegetic sounds of shouting and arguing.  When the robbery scene is over, we are introduced to the characters where we hear non-diegetic music playing.  This time the music is not as up-beat and fast but was quite 'rushing', which suggests the plot may be about fraud and corruption.  Through the use of mis-en-scene the characters look like sterotypical Jews.  This makes us as the audience assume they are religious believers and are good people.  However this assumption is completely changed when the robbery begins and underneath the 'costumes'  they have hidden guns to steal the diamonds and the 'stone'.  

SAW IV Title Sequence

'Saw IV' (Directed by: Darren Lynn Bousman)


All students in the class had to choose a title sequence which they thought was effective.  One of the title sequences analysed was from SAW IV.  This was definately an effective title sequence and it was longer than usual and lasted over 8 minutes.  Three major events took place through these 8 minutes - Jigsaw's autopsy, the tape found in his body and the Mausoleum trap.
The sequence opens with surgeons performing an autopsy on Jigsaw. The close ups used of the cuts being taken place on Jigsaw's skull and chest cavity and the amount of blood shown suggests the film is going to be very gory, it also tells us the genre of the film is thriller.  Eventually this leads to the beginning of the movie’s story: a mini-cassette tape is found inside the corpse which tells us that the plot of the film may be based around the killer being dead however the games are not over with. The music in the title sequence is a hard sounded beat of an underlying woodchime instrument, symbolizing horror and preparing the audience for the unexpected.  The title sequence creates enigmas such as - when we see the long shot of Jigsaw's body we question "who is he?" and "is he relevant to the plot?"

Jackie Brown Title Sequence

Jackie Brown - (Director: Quentin Tarantino 1997)

The main reason for a title sequence is:

1.) To set the genre

2.) To introduce the film to the audience 

3.) To set expectations

4.) To show credits as the audience may like to read them as they may like the directors (engaging the audience)

We were analysing a slightly different style of a title sequence.  This title sequence from the film Jackie Brown doesnt consist a range of shots.  The first 1 minute and 51 seconds is a tracking shot of a woman - this may suggest that she is Jackie Brown and is the protagonist of the film.  Having a long section of the title sequence consisting of one shot makes the audience less engaged because it is too long and there is nothing going on, making the title sequence monotonous.  The beginning of the title sequence doesn't explain much about the plot, I think the director may have done this to emphasise the titles more than what is going on in the title sequence.  

However the title sequence did establish information about the character, where the film may be set, and the plot.

From the scene we establish that the women seen is Jackie Brown and she is a flight attendant.  We see this through her costume and because she is seen in an airport.  As she arrives at the airport she begins checking peoples flight tickets and escorting them to their flight, whilst doing this she speaks to them in Spanish.  This suggests that Jackie Brown is an intelligent women as she is able to speak another language besides English.  

The title sequence suggests the film is set in America.  This is conveyed through the American accent that Jackie Brown has and also through the music which is heard in the background. 

The plot is established through the music used in the title sequence.  In the lyrics of the song we hear "about living on streets".  This suggests that Jackie Brown may struggle further in the movie.  The lyrics of the music suggest that she may have had a hard up bringing.  It also conveys that she may have been raised in a place of poverty.

The medium shot which showed the screens at the airport scanning peoples luggage establishes the plot, as it suggests Jackie Brown may become part of a crime. 

The Talented Mr.Ripley

We have now come to the stage where we are planning our own title sequence within our groups.  However to get some ideas we watched a longer title sequence from the film The Talented Mr Ripley and analysed it to see how it establishes an effective title sequence.  

In the title sequence a lot of information is established about Tom Ripley (the protagonist).  We know that he is a Manhattan lavatory attendant, who borrowed a Princeton jacket to play piano at a garden party. When the wealthy father of a recent Princeton grad chats Tom up, Tom pretends to know his son and is soon offered $1,000 to go to Italy to convince Dickie Greenleaf to return home.  This created some enigmas such as - Is Tom Ripley going to succeed in bringing Dickie Greenleaf home?, and also at the beginning of the title sequence we hear Tom Ripley saying: "I wish I could rub it all out, it all starting with borrowing a jacket" this created the enigma - Why does he want to start all over?

The dramatic music which was almost harmonious and death like established the genre of drama, which may suggest the film has lots of depth to it.  

The character that we are introduced from the beginning is Tom Ripley.  Our first impression of him is that he is a young, mature adult is is very ambitious.  He wants to get out of poverty, aspires to be rich and will take an opportunity passed to him.  We see him working as a lavatory attendant, which suggests that he has a working class background.  We get the impression that the character of Tom Ripley is very intelligent as later in the title sequence we see him watching people playing the piano where he works.  He then tries to teaches himself in the middle of the night from what he saw.  This conveys that Tom Ripley is unable to afford a professional pianist who can teach him, therefore he is trying to teach himself.  We also see him trying to teach himself to learn the Jazz musicians with his eyes blindfolded. This suggests that he is ambitious and eager to learn.  Tom Ripley is portrayed as a poor character.  This is established through his small, cheap apartment, with the ceiling crumbling and the walls unplastered.  His apartment is situated near a meat packing district which is a poor area to live.

Textual Analysis 

We see a close up shot of the clock when Tom Ripley is playing the piano where he works.  This close up was trying to emphasise that it is very late in the middle of the night.  This suggests that he may be shy and wants to hide from the rest as he may be afraid of what others say.  

We also see a long shot of Tom Ripley and his ceiling crumbling because the people living above him are fighting.  This conveys that he has poor living conditions as he is from a working class background.

A close up shot of the first class ticket for Tom Ripley to go Italy establishes that Mr Greenleaf is rich.  This links to the use of dialogue which the driver says to Tom Ripley: "I can tell the you Greenleaf name opens a lot of doors"  This tells us that Greenleaf is powerful and there is a chance that Tom Ripley will be successful.  

We see a close up shot of Tom Ripley with a blindfold on his eyes.  This tells us that he is clever and is trying to have something in common with Dickie Greenleaf.  

In terms of editing - transitions the screen looks like broken glass gradually revealing Tom Ripley's face.  Suggests that he is multi-faceted and creates an enigma - Maybe somethings not right?

Analysis of Title Sequences

We looked at two examples of title sequences.  The first was from the film 'Donnie Brasco' and the second tittle sequence was from the film 'Alien' 

Donnie Brasco (Director: Mike Newell, 1997)

Donnie Brasco is a very effective title sequence as it uses many elements that engage the audience and inform them about the plot.  As the audience we establish the location of where the film is set. Through the models of the cars the men are driving and the shots of lights which look like a Broadway setting, tell us the film is set in the 1920's in New York.  In the first few scenes, there is a cross cut between Donnie Brasco and another male character.  This tells the audience that there may be some sort of relationship between both characters.  We get the sense that there may be a strife between the two characters.  We get this impression as both characters are shown seperately.  There is a close up shown of the character with light to dark lighting going across his forehead, showing he is looking out at others from the inside.  This makes the audience arise an enigma - Why is this character hiding from everyone? Does he have something to hide?  We also see a close-up shot of a photograph of a gang of men.  In the picture we specifically see Donnie Brasco and others circling a person.  The focal point in the photograph is the man in the centre of the gang, which could suggest that Donnie Brasco may try to hurt this man.  We establish the genre of crime through the use of mis-en-scene, as we see a gang of men dressed as gangsters, suggesting they are criminals.


Alien (Director: Ridely Scott 1979)

Above is a video of the title sequence which we watched, we analysed the first 40 seconds. 

This title sequence of the film Alien which also uses some elements to establish a successful title sequence.  The way the title appears on the screen is very unusual and unique.  It begins as white block lines, then gradially starts to form into letters reading ALIEN.  This suggests that the film may have a contrast of nature and natural life.  The lighting throughout the title sequence is dark which creates a tense atmosphere and may suggest the film is set in space.  The music used in the title sequence is very high pitched which creates tension for the audience and also establishes the sci-fi genre of the film.

What makes an effective title sequence?

We began discussing to see what makes and effective tittle sequence for a film.  We thought that the most important points are:

1.) It should send information about the plot through clues and symbolism

2.) Establish enigma's for intellectual engagement

3.) Should set the genre.  This could be done through the style of music chosen.  For example a horror film may have high-pitch, discomforting music, whereas a comedy film may have upbeat, and high tempo music.  This establishes the audiences expectations. 

4.) Information about the time and place of where the film is set, as this will help the audience understand the context of the film.  

5.) Should show the name of the film and the opening credits