Production Plan

Title Credits Research

ORDER OF OPENING CREDITS

Production Company presents

"Title"

Lead Cast

Supporting Cast

Casting Director

Music Composer

Costume Designer

Associate Producers

Editors

Production Designer

Director of Photography

Producer

Writers

Director

Though we have decided not to use every title listed above (our title sequence would not be long enough to list all titles but we plan to include the titles in bold), it is important that we know the order of them so that the authentic of our title sequence is enhanced. Our chosen Production Company is Hammer Films as they specialise in films the same genre as our own: horror.

Hammer Film

Title Sequence Progress

We have now finished creating our dolls house. It took us five lessons to construct and paint however we anticipated this and set time to shoot everything for our actual sequence during the December holiday so that our January school time will be dedicated only to editing.

We have researched appropriate soundtracks for our title sequence and, as a group, have narrowed it down to four possible tracks that we feel could work to create an eerie atmosphere during our sequence.

We are still to decide on typography but we have all agreed that it should be red in order to fit in with the horror genre.

The Importance of Typography

Se7en Typography Analysis

The font used in the Se7en opening sequence appears shaky and as if it has been handwritten. The style in which the cast/crew's names are written in is mismatched in comparison to other words on screen, creating a disorientated atmosphere and possible foreshadowing contrasting personalities in the film. The shaky manner of the text suggests unstableness but this contrasts with the shots of obvious organization demonstrated through mise-en-scene. Once on screen, the writing sometimes flashes which again could disorientate the audience and the colour of the font is white which carries connotations of purity and innocence. The colour of the font creates a contrast between the shots we see of needles and a man's eyes being crossed out in a threatening manner.

Lord of War Typography Analysis

The font used in the Lord of War opening sequence is also white, which contrasts with the shots we see of guns being made and used, as it suggests purity and innocence. The typography resembles that of a military font, which links with the title of "Lord of War". This suggests violence and conflict and also resembles soviet Russia type writing, which could foreshadow an important place in the film.

It is important to analyse typography so that when we decide the font for our title sequence, we are aware of everything it could suggest and the mood it creates when paired with our chosen footage.

Title Sequence Progress

So far, I feel as if we are on the right track in regards to creating our opening sequence. We have our film idea established and resolved the issues that came up in the form of feedback from the class once we presented it together as a pitch. Initially, we struggled with coming up with a horror film plot that was original and entertaining and were worried that we would not have an idea in time for the class pitch however once we agreed on an idea of a haunted orphanage, we found it relatively easy to develop and successfully finished our pitch in time.

We also struggled with points to include in the audience profile- we had a brief outline but were not sure how to develop on it- however once we were given feedback, we understood the amount of detail that needed to be included and have started work on developing it.

After brainstorming, we have agreed on certain visual and sound elements that we think will be affective and will make up our opening sequence. We are now in the process storyboarding our sequence and getting the props we need.

Blog Feedback

Overall, I am happy with my feedback. I felt as if we struggled with creating the audience profile, especially regarding the detail, so agree with the comments that it needed developing and possibly reconstructing. We have since changed our ideas of a house burning to a shots of a destroyed dolls house, as we too realized it would be difficult to film. Regarding the fight scene, I agree with the comments given however we thought that we had been instructed to take the background sound out. I plan to add in the points that I was lacking in some of my class notes but am generally very happy with the comments given from my teacher in response to my analysis', research, homework and blog in general.

Audience Profile

We decided the demographics of our audience profile in our group but in order to help us gain the psychographics information, we conducted a small survey like activity among our target audiences in which we inquired about their hobbies and interests. 

Class Notes: Opening Sequence Ideas

Possible sound elements of our title sequence:

• Children singing nursery rhymes
• Children laughing
• Low (in pitch), menacing music

Possible visual elements of our title sequence:

• Full moon
• Shadows
• Dark forest (leaves, trees etc)
• Old looking font, possibly red in colour?
• Tracking shot of a still, calm stream that suddenly turns to blood
• Close up of bare, bloody feet or hands
• Quick cuts towards the end of the sequence
• Old pictures burning (A picture of an old house in particular, reveals an actual doll's house burning)

Fight Sequence with Foley Sound

For our fight sequence, after establishing a brief outline of the sequence,  we spent one day filming all the footage we needed. We then went through our clips and sorted which ones we would use and where and then edited them together. After we finished working on the visuals of the sequence, we focused on the audio. We removed all the background sound in our clips and made a list of all the foley sound we would need - punches, slaps, footsteps - and then recorded these sounds by breaking different vegetables (e.g breaking of celery mimics the breaking of bones). After uploading these to a computer and importing them into Final Cut Pro, we picked out the noises that had the most affect and incorporated them into our sequence to enhance the sound of the fight.

Through this task, I learnt how to adjust the sound of clips in Final Cut Pro and also more about foley sound. By working with foley sound, we discovered that simple sounds like carrots breaking (which you wouldn't associate with an action sequence) can be used affectively and realistically in something like a fight sequence to create more of an effect on the audience. The task also showed us how often foley sound is used and how easily it can be created. 

Class Notes: Title Sequences & Genre

TITLE SEQUENCES

A title sequence is the method by which cinematic films or television present their title, key production and cast members, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound. It also shows you who creates/directs the film.

Setting
Themes (or tones present)
Iconography (genre)
Narrative
Characters
Style

Codes and conventions:

• Details of cast and crew
• The film's title (type font)
• An introduction to character or character type
• Indication of place
• Information regarding mood, tone, theme tune, genre
• Patterns and types of editing that will be echoed in remainder of film
• Mise-en-scene and cinematography that will be echoed/elaborated upon

GENRE (HORROR)

Codes and conventions of horror:

• Secluded location 
• Final girl character (the female left over to confront the killer and survive)
• Weapons, death, gore
• Antagonist
• Young/teenage cast

Class Notes: Audience

All media texts are made with an audience in mind, i.e the group of people who will recieve it and make some sense out of it. 

Different audiences can understand a media message but can have different responses to it. Some people believe and accept the message whilst others reject it using knowledge from their own experience or can use processes of logic or other rationales to criticize what is being said.

Target audience - the group of people you want to attract

Stuart Hall - believed active audience was very important

Encoding - when the text is produced by an institution and is embedded with that institution's own values and ideologies

Decoding - the moment of reception or consumption by the audiences

Cultivation theory -

While one media text has little affect, years of violence will make you less sensitive and years of watching women being mistreated in soaps will make you less bothered. This is difficult to prove as there is no way to measure exactly how much affect media have.

Two-step flow mode - 

• Opinion leaders
• Likely to discuss media with others and, if we respect their opinion, we will most likely be affected by it
• Mass audience

Uses and gratifications - 

• Own personal needs
• Active audience
• Diversion - a form of escapism/release
• Personal relationship - companionship via television personalities and characters and sociability through discussion about television with other people
• Personal identity - being able to relate to a character/storyline
• Surveillance - a regular supply as information about what's going on in the world
• Entertainment - sometime we may just consume media for enjoyment

Hypodermic Needle theory -

• Developed in 1920s
• The first theory to explain how mass audiences might react to mass media
• Information passes on unmediated 
• The audience is passive, accepts everything

Reception analysis -

• Concentrates on how an audience arrive at a media text
• Based on the idea that no text has one meaning
• The audience help to create the meaning
• All decode the texts that we encounter in individual ways due to upbringing, the mood, the place we are in etc
• 1970s, 80s and 90s
• Near impossible to measure as it focuses upon individual

"Romeo and Juliet" Opening

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/william-shakespeares-romeo-juliet/ 

The sequence opens with a monologue that is read in the form of a news report, which immediately alerts the audience that the film is set in a modern time period, unlike the original story of Romeo and Juliet. The slow place of the monologue builds up tension as the camera slowly zooms towards the TV screen.

We then see bold white text that reads “IN FAIR VERONA”, immediately setting the location for the audience. The strong choir element of the non-diegetic music gives the scene an overwhelming celestial type atmosphere/tone whilst the sudden crash of the drums connotes power and strength.

Through an establishing shot, we can see skyscrapers that indicate a highly populated city set-up and the positioning of the Capulet and Montague towers (they reside next to each other and are similar heights) show that the two families are in close competition and openly against each other. It is also clear that Verona is a religious place from the tall statue we see of a religious figure; the height, positioning and close up shot of this statue not only emphasises on the importance and power of religion here but also suggests that it is the heart of the city.  However, the establishing shot allows us to see that the Montague and Capulet towers are taller and wider than the statue which could suggest that these two families are more powerful than the presence of religion or that, as it resides in between the two towers, it is the only thing stopping them from completely clashing. It is also distinct that Verona is an industrialised and busy place because of the amount of worn buildings and cars visible. 

The establishing shot sets up a contrast to the clips of violence, fire and police we see afterwards. The footage is filmed in a shaky manner that disorients the audience and makes them feel as if they are in one of the police helicopters on screen, watching Verona from above. The violin strings in the soundtrack creates a determined and tension filled atmosphere as it gradually builds up to the powerful choir chorus again.

The fire that appears on screen during the newspaper clippings montage not only connotes destruction and anarchy that cannot be controlled but, once we see it close to the quarrelling families’ surnames, could foreshadow the tarnishing of their reputations. The newspaper articles help us understand the scale of this clash and how well known it is whilst the dark lighting of the riot clips portray Verona as miserable and gloomy, something that is further hinted to by the worn out and stern expressions of the parents in both families.

The names of the magazines we see (‘prophet’ and ‘bullet’) could be used to foreshadow the themes of religion, violence and death; the word ‘bullet’ links in with the fast paced editing between shots of the city and words taken from the monologue that builds up tension and could foreshadow the speed in which the feud between the two families escalates. One newspaper title labelled “Montague vs Capulet” suggests that the media in Verona purposely publicise the clash and oppose the two families against each other. Two other newspaper headlines also stand out; “ancient grudge” puts emphasis on how long this withstanding quarrel has gone on, in fact the word “grudge” suggests it will never go away whilst “new mutiny” reveals that the clash has not always been this violent and it would appear that the younger generation have taken it upon themselves to make it this way.

When the line “take their life” appears on screen and we hear it spoken in the voice over, the t is written as a cross which again suggests heavy faith in Verona but also connotes sacrifice and could be referring to the film's narrative and foreshadowing Romeo and Juliet’s tragic fate. suggest that the families are wealthy and have a high status whilst the images of guns imply danger and violence and contrast hugely with the angelic shots of a chapel and a choir that connote innocence.

From all these clips, the audience learn that whilst religion is a huge element of Verona and it is home to places of worship and wealthy families with high reputations, Verona is not as respectable as some of the establishing shot would have us believe but in reality home to damaging, destructive and violent events along with a long standing aggressive issue between the families living there.

Richard Morrison

Pitch Evaluation

From our feedback, our target audience (12-25) and time of release (October- Halloween) that we picked as a group worked well for our film. Our director chosen (James Watkins) was also listed as an element that worked in our pitch as he has experience in horror films that focus on the more traditional element of horror stories. We looked at our director's previous films success and budgets, ones that were similar in plot and cast to our film, and came up with a rough budget for our film which was also listed as something that worked in one feedback sheet. The common rating for our film was "it definitely has potential" and our research was also said to be developed well.

However, we found from our feedback that our title, which was something that we struggled with as a group to decide on, is too generic and not original enough so we changed it to "Abandoned" and the age of our characters was also something the class were not sure on. They felt, as the film was set in an orphanage, the children needed to be younger (their presence would also have a scarier effect on the audience) but our cast also had to be more well known however we didn't feel as if our budget could afford more than one recognizable star.

Overall, I am happy with our feedback and think our pitch went well as we were given points to develop on and they recognized what went well.

Pitch, Presentation + Feedback

Saul Bass

The Art of Film Title

The following article discusses the impact of opening sequences.

www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/10/04/the-art-of-the-film-title-throughout-cinema-history/

“Words and lettering played an enormous role in films of the silent era. Film titles made their appearance in the earliest silent films, along with letter cards (or inter-titles), which provided context. These cards were the responsibility of the lettering artist, who collaborated with the scriptwriter and director to create narrative continuity so that audiences could follow what they were seeing.” This extract emphasis the importance of typography in films, by linking it back to silent films where it was relied on heavily due to the absence of dialogue. Without text, the audiences might find it difficult to keep up with what was going on and it helps them to keep the plot flowing in their head clearly. It also touches upon how the letter cards were so important there is an entire job dedicated to it and important people such as the director have an involvement in the text because, without it, the plot of their film or just interest in the film could be lost.

“The main title from the American release of “The Cabinet of Dr. Calligari” (1920) is much less expressive than the title from the influential original German film.” This sentence shows that the style of the text is changed to fit in with the time and place of release.

“Other important early filmmakers such as Emil Cohl and Winsor McCay were accomplished draftsmen who dedicated years of their lives to discovering the dramatic potential and practical techniques of animation. The focus was more on character development and story visualization than on title animation per se. So, while we see innumerable novelties in main titles and inter-titles during this period, the big innovations of title animation and motion typography don’t really emerge until well after the Second World War.” This point touches upon the introduction of animated title sequences. The sequences created by filmmakers listed began to incorporate a narrative element into title sequences so making it link in the characters or plot of the film, rather than just the physical appearance of the titles. However, the differences in focus were not really noticed until after this time period.

“During the 1920s and ‘30s, European cinema was deeply influenced by modernism, and aspects of this visual sensibility were brought to the US by filmmakers who were fleeing the Nazis. Meanwhile, the studio systems operating in Europe and Hollywood also delighted in creating titles that featured vernacular graphic novelties. As much as possible, they liked to convey the tone of a movie through the “dressage” of its main title. Thus, the blackletter fonts in the opening credits were used to evoke horror, ribbons and flowery lettery suggested love, and typography that would have been used on “Wanted” posters connoted a western flick.” This brings up the introduction of certain iconography we now heavily associate with certain types of films. Film makers began to use text to suggests the on-going tone of the film which is important as text is used to do that every day now- we all associate certain texts and colours with horror films or love films.

The article mentions how, during the 1960s, people who created title designers for famous directors whom relied heavily on text were very successful and well known – (“Directors like Otto Preminger, Alfred Hitchcock, Blake Edwards and Stanley Donen embraced these innovators and gave the reign to surprise audiences/”By the mid-1960s the top title designers were celebrities in their own right”)

“The imagery behind the credits received a lot more attention. Still, the interplay of typography and images was by no means ignored.” During the 1950s, text wasn’t the only thing relied upon in a title sequences but also the pictures too.  It was during this period that pictures and texts began to work together. However, text was still important as it started to be used as a logo, and therefore a selling point, for films. “Saul Bass often approached the lettering of a main title as he would a logo, making it function are the core element in a full-marketing campaign.”

Minimal things on screen were also popular at points (“Ridley Scott’s Alien” and “Le Dernier Metro” directed by Francois Truffaut”).

"The Shining" Title Sequence

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/the-shining/ 

                                                                                      

The opening sequence of The Shining starts with an establishing shot of the landscape to show the scale and dominating element of nature of the location. We notice that the atmosphere here is so far very calm and still, and could even look peaceful. After the camera shows us the lake, we then see  a bird's eye shot of a wide road with a small car traveling along it which demonstrates the striking difference of size of the vehicle when it is compared to the huge scale of the location; it is almost insignificant amongst the towering trees and vast, dark lake we can see. The music paired with these shots is made up of a low and lingering organ sound that gives an ominous, eerie atmosphere that indicates the psychological horror genre. As the camera tracks the car, we can tell that it is of some significance but in each shot it always take up a minor fraction of the screen, portraying it as easily lost in this place.

The opening sequence consists of different angled long shots and some crane shots of the car traveling in different stages on the road that keep the genre of the film vague but we get a sense of isolation as there is currently no other human life present, just a sweeping landscape of nature. The on edge music hints that there is something not quite right with this place as the notes are low and menacing; a symbol like instrument later on resembles a hissing sound, which suggests something antagonistic and animalistic goes on here and could be foreshadowing events that occur in the film. The tracking shot of the yellow car makes the audience feel as if they are stalking whoever are inside and we notice that the car, though it is tiny in comparison to every else, has a brighter colour than any of the trees, rocks or mountains we have seen.

The typography for this opening sequence is completely out of place; it does not hint to the fact that this film is a horror film at all but this could work in favour of the genre to unnerve the audience because it is so contrapuntal. The contrast between the menacing music/ and the bright font used is immediately noticeable and suggests that something in this place is not right- there is something strange going on and this makes the audience on edge.

The colour of the font is not associated with horror films but gives cold and unnatural connotations (especially when compared to the landscape); this could be foreshadowing something to do with life here or a hinting to a character trait of somebody in the film. The opening credits are presented in a rolling motion and go down to up which, as the camera pans we have seen go left to right, disorients the audience and fits in with the ongoing idea that things here do not match. The down to up motion could also represents the car's physical journey up the mountain and away from civilization.

Narrative enigmas are already created for the audience- they have been introduced into this car yet do not whose in it nor do they know where exactly the film sets place, just that something isn't completely right here. The genre of the film is mostly constructed through the music; the low sounds create a creepy, haunting tone for the film and it is only when the shots of the deserted location are paired with this that they hint to a horror film- because of the organ sounds, the natural setting does not seem peaceful and serene but isolated and strange. Because of these two elements, it is clear that the horror film will be focusing more on the psychological side of things and using that to create an affect or provoke a response rather than the usual iconography that we associate with horror films such as blood and the usual setting of night. 

As the scene goes on, the bird eye view shots show us cars that appear to have been abandoned and the one car we see moving is driving in the other direction completely away from the scenery, suggesting that there is something dangerous with the location and a reason as to why there are no people here. The pace of the sequence is relatively slow- it isn't rushed which hints that the audience are supposed to take in the scale of the location and again could be used to unnerve them. There are not a huge amounts of cuts in the sequence which adds to this idea that the car is being directly followed through the maze of trees and as the further it gets towards its destination, instruments in the music begin to take on a higher pitch. This builds up tension and the instrument, at points, sounds like somebody is screaming, supporting the horror genre and danger theme. The text at this point gives details of cast and crew.

The last shot on screening in this opening sequence is the lingering shot of the hotel. It appears to be in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by water and mountains, and looks old and worn which is key in horror film iconography.  We can infer that this is the destination of the car as it is the last shot. The music reaches its peak here and the low organ sounds continue with a screeching and moaning like instrument at the loudest it has ever been which suggests that there is something really wrong with this house, that it's haunted, eerie, dangerous and it will not bode well for the people in the car we assume were heading here.

"Zombieland" Title Sequence

The sequence opens with a strong rock beat, connoting rebellion and disruption. This is paired with a low angle slow motion shot of a man being thrown off a staircase in a prison- we can tell it is a prison from the barbed wire in the background and the man in the bright orange jumpsuit-  suggesting that the film carries a theme of violence and could involve some form of anarchy or disrespect for the law. This shot also shows the film is from Hollywood and presumably set in America, as we see the production company's title ("Columbia Pictures") in a bold red font that  resembles blood, which hints to the horror genre though so far the violence suggests an action genre.

The next shot, however, establishes the film as a horror due to the heavy presence of gore. We see a woman in flowery, pink and girly clothes with a drink in hand- a seemingly ordinary action- with a scared facial expression being chased by a blood-covered zombie like person which gives the audience the idea that normality is being rudely disrupted by crazed "humans".

The cardboard sign that reads "the end is near" in the wide shot seen on the left gives the film an apocalyptic feel and, paired with the shot of zombie like people, suggests that a zombie apocalypse is vital to the film's plot. We also see the first name of an actor starring in it and the font used disappears off screen by burning away, conveying destruction.

Another wide shot of three men and a burning car again continues the theme of anarchy and chaos as we see several notes of money launched into the air carelessly and a bloody person clashing with a riot shield, showing that this disaster is widespread and affecting all classes of people. These shots continue the idea that the narrative involves a zombie outbreak that destroys normality in this populated community (the amount of people, buildings and cars in shots show the amount of people present/affected during this).

The still offers a juxtaposition as we see a bride and groom, which we would associate with happiness and love, covered in blood and the bride is physically attacking her partner with a crazed look on her face.

The title of the film confirms the zombie apocalypse narrative and continues the characterization of victims and zombies along with the theme of violence/destruction as we see a man smashing glass to get away from a zombie woman.

Overall, the montage shows different characters who are carrying out usual actions and being attacked by fearsome zombies which establishes the horror genre and apocalyptic tone.

Film Pitch

Continuity Sequence

For the filming and story boarding of this sequence, we were put into groups rather than choosing them but edited our own cuts separately. I found that, as a group, we worked well as we all understood the task and worked together to come up with an appropriate idea that we could film. We decided on the plot of the sequence together after brainstorming and found it easy to incorporate match on action, shot reverse shot into our continuity sequence though it took me  a while to understand the 180 degree rule.  

Our final piece was slightly different from the original storyboard as we realized a certain shot (the one in which a piece of fabric tied around Daisy's mouth is pulled off by Rebecca) was not practical so, after attempts at the shot, we changed it to Rebecca standing behind Daisy and untying it. We struggled with the amount of time we had to film but once we realized we were slightly behind the other groups, we picked up the pace and successfully finished our sequence in time. 

We used both a steady cam and a flip camera with a tripod for this sequence and also choose the right props/costumes. I feel as if we made decisions together as a group sufficiently and overall worked well.

When it came to editing, we realized that some of our shots were not continuous and the way in which Rebecca came in from did not match the rest of the sequence and so we had to re shoot. We worked together to convert the clips so that we could export them correctly and viewed each other's clips after we finished. I found the editing relatively straight forward and I learnt how the adjust the volume of the audio.

In conclusion, once my group and I decided on what we were doing and got the hang of it, we worked well together; our only issue was timing but we did manage to complete it in time in the end.