Research Drama/Comedy Films
Art of Title
Art of the Title Research: The Man in the High Castle opening credits: The credits fade into the screen as the film shows black and white war imagery The first sounds are of a film projector starting, and the sequence presents a number of images with the flickering and uneven style of projected celluloid. But the most interesting, and most poetically resonant, choice made in this sequence is the use of Edelweiss, sung in heavily accented English by an almost whispering female voice. It s an American song, written by Jewish-American songwriters Rodgers and Hammerstein for The Sound of Music in 1959. That sort of play would no doubt appeal to Nazis, relaxing in occupied America. The camera moves over a map of North America as monuments have combat footage projected on and through them. Shows many different camera angles (close ups, extreme long shots, etc.) Maps of strategic war attacks/defenses are shown from WW2. Nationalistic structures are shown (White House/Mt. Rushmore)
Art of the Title Research: Example of opening credits from Gone Girl: Opening credits begin with a light high pitch noise Logos of affiliated companies are shown (21st Century Fox/Regency) Credits are shown in approximately half second intervals First male voice is heard, speaks about his wife in a violent way as credits continue to unroll. Leaves a sort of scary cliffhanger Image of the wife the narrator is speaking about is shown. (Characters are shown) Title appears and first scene begins
Art of the Title Research: Collection of The Conjuring opening credits Opening credits are unrevealed with black and white images of the past occupants of the haunted house. Static music in the background creating a sense of scariness. Pictures of characters fade in and out Newspaper articles are shown about a ghost killing several people in a night. Images of cemeteries are shown Modern day ghost hunting articles scary dolls with blood are shown Title is revealed and film begins.
Art of the Title Research: Example of the opening credits for Wall-E A match is lit and is pressed against a wall to illuminate it beginning with the credits Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman s song, Down to Earth indulges you with some incredibly thoughtful lyrics Future images of characters are shown cartoons are shown growing crops Music intensifies along with a scroll of casts are shown
Art of the Title Research: Conclusion Conclusion These movies provide me with an outlook on how my group s opening credits will come to look. The different uses of broad font compared to the smaller ones in others showed me how I can vary up from simple openings and create something special. David Fincher's (Gone Girl) simplicity in his opening makes me think I could go that route, but also couple it with the more active scenes of The Man in the High Castle as it really captivates the audience even before the real plot begins. Aspects like the images of American soil being invaded or the static noise provides a locus for the watchers to base their feelings towards the opening on rather than being too crazy early on. Using the aspects from Wall-E will express how we can use small blips of the plot within the opening sequence. These different films have pushed me to believe we should create the credit outline in a more intricate way, but still use some of the simple portions that Gone Girl brings into the cinema sphere. http://www.artofthetitle.com/search
Questionnaire Research
Questionnaires
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Analysis of Questionnaires From Emily s Questionnaires: The respondents all felt that the opening for a drama/comedy film should include something appealing that would catch your interest right away. The three respondents were all female and in the range of teenage years. Along with having a similar opinion with how an opening should go, two out of the three felt that there should be a strong and unique plot that develops the characters. The other respondent felt that the actors are what is important in drama/comedy films and that the opening should include cute scenes with the actors. The female respondents all felt that the opening scene should be interesting and introduce the types of characters that will be in the film, so that should be a focus in the opening of our film. From Danyelle s Questionnaires: The respondents all felt that the opening should include something funny to immediately grab the audience attention. Two out of the three respondents were male and, differing from the female s opinion, the males felt that a strong plot is what is essential for a drama/comedy. The two males range in age as one is a teenager and the other is an adult, so this supports that males, even over an age range, find that the plot should be well-thought out and along with jokes, where some should be appropriately used in the opening scene. The female respondent, who is in the teenager age range, feels that the actors are what make a drama/comedy film. These findings mean that an opening needs to consist of something funny that is well-thought out in reference to the plot and should be acted out with suitable actors.
Continued... From Philippe s Questionnaires: All of the respondents had differing opinions on what they would like to see in an opening scene of a drama/comedy and what they like about that genre of film. The male respondent, who is in the teenage age range, is most drawn to the plot of the film and that a good introduction to the plot should be the main objective for the opening of a drama/comedy film. The next respondent, who is an adult male, felt that what they like most about a drama/comedy film is the director of the movie. He believes that where the film is taking place is the vital part of the opening. The female respondent, who is in the adult age range, likes the actors in a drama/comedy more than the plot or the director. She responded that the description of the characters in the film is what should be shown in the opening of a drama/comedy film. This expresses that our opening sequence must have differing aspects that can appeal to universal groups, such as funny and cute scenes that keep everyone entertained. It will be impossible to appeal to the very specific details that everyone likes to see in movies individually. From Carly s Questionnaires: All the respondents were in the teenager and early adult age range. Two were female and the other was male and all three agreed that the opening for an drama/comedy film should be funny. One of the females felt that the actors are what is vital as to make the scene funny, the correct people who will make the opening sequence hilarious should be used. The other female felt that the plot is the most important and noticeable in a drama/comedy film, while the male respondent felt that both actors and the plot are equally important for the opening sequence. From these findings, the opening sequence should focus around implementing humor with a good plot and characters that can fit a funny role.
Continued... Complete Analysis: The information gathered from the questionnaires has provided mixed results. Females seem to be more fixated on interesting concepts and details for the opening that creates an interesting opening sequence. More of the males are focused on the introduction of the plot and how it can be made into a funny scene that connects to the plot of the movie. The age range for the movie mostly focuses on teenagers and young adults. This is because the plot of the film, like The Breakfast Club, is a coming-of-age plot where friends go on a road trip and discover who they are and grow as people. This is aimed to relate to teenagers and young adults who are still going and able to grow into smarter and more productive adults. This type of film can also relate to older adults as they reminisce when they were teenagers. With the findings, the opening for a film aimed at a younger generation would also work for older generations. An original and interesting plot for the opening was the only consistent information out of all the surveys, so with that mixed with a humorous introduction of characters, should be used to make the opening sequence work for a drama/comedy film.
Opening Scenes
Stuck in Love
Opening Sequence Analysis: Stuck in Love Stuck in Love s opening sequence follows the typical pattern, ending with Directed By. It is produced by Millennium Entertainment
The Breakfast Club
Opening Sequence Analysis: The Breakfast Club The Breakfast Club follows the typical pattern as well, ending with the director s name. However, after that, there is a David Bowie quote and then the movie begins.
Juno
Opening Sequence Analysis: Juno Juno follows the sequence pattern. Interesting opening since it starts out as a cartoon and when the credit ends it turns to real life.
Final Analysis of Opening Sequences All of these movies follow the correct pattern of a typical opening sequence. However, each of them has a different and unique approach. The Breakfast Club establishes more of the setting of the film. It also is by a more prominent director, so the director s name is shown near the beginning and repeated at the end. Stuck in Love has an interesting title sequence because the beginning words are also typed on the screen, as if the actor is writing them. Stuck in Love introduces many of the important characters. Juno is different because Ellen Page is walking through a cartoon world where the titles are shown in the animated landscape. This is very different and it only shows the main character, Juno.
Influences for the Movie Opening
We decided to do a drama/comedy film where four teenagers go on a road trip to find themselves and mature. This is inspired by the road trip in Paper Towns. However, we still want it to have a comedic, whimsical feel comparable to The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller s Day Off. For the opening sequence, we want to implement a split screen, like the one used in 500 Days of Summer. We want to begin by introducing each main character briefly and showing how their stories intertwine.
Mood Board