What is title sequence and what is the purpose?
A title sequence is the method by which films or television programs present their title and key production and cast members, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound (often a opening theme song with visual. ) (wikipedia) Title sequence is the introduction of whole film, helps to set a overall tone and atmosphere. It may consist of live action, animation, music, still images, and/or graphics.
Saul Bass
Saul Bass was an American graphic designer and Oscar-winning filmmaker, best known for his design of motion-picture title sequences, film posters, and corporate logos.
During his 40-year career, Bass worked for some of Hollywood's most prominent filmmakers, including Alfred Hitchcock, Otto Preminger, Billy Wilder, Stanley Kubrick and Martin Scorsese. Among his best known title sequences are the animated paper cut-out of a heroin addict's arm for Preminger's The Man with the Golden Arm, the credits racing up and down what eventually becomes a high-angle shot of a skyscraper in Hitchcock's North by Northwest, and the disjointed text that races together and apart in Psycho.(reference from wikipedia)
Saul Bass introduced the concept of title sequences that conveyed the essence of a movie and setting up tones and sending signals to audience of the following plot and scenes.This gives audiences an enigma code and intrigue their interest and catches their attention from the beginning by using the way of title sequencing.
Saul famously described the design process as “thinking made visible”, emphasising the conceptual nature of design rather than the contractual demands of movie stars and production studios
How TITLE SEQUENCE is different with film OPENING?
Title sequence is consist of opening credits. Opening credits are the names of the cast and crew, producers, studios, etc. that are displayed on-screen. These can be superimposed over an opening scene, over a black screen, or over a still background. When these opening credits are given a standalone "sequence," or a series of shots created specifically to present them, we call that a title sequence. A title sequence is a part of a TV show or movie’s intro that is dedicated to crediting the cast and crew.
However, a film opening is the exposition of the whole story of the film. This include a relative amount of plot from the beginning of a narrative. However, it does not present the credit of cast and crew and production company. Additionally, Title sequence is more like giving clue to the audience and setting up atmosphere, but film opening is just straightforward story-telling.
SE7EN --Title sequence analysis
The title sequence of seven consist of numbers of insert shots, which creates sense of both fragments and continuity, the hand plays a vital role in leading the audience to walk progressively into the psychological world of the antagonist.
When focusing on mise en scene of the title sequence, we can see the notebook fills with words and sentences, without any negative space. If we pay enough attention to the word on the notebook, we can see "greed" and "lust", this serves as semiotics. Which instantly associate with "seven deadly sins" and the title of the movie "seven" and set the tone of rather depressive and the genre of crime-thriller. This shows the antagonist obsession with belief and religion, furthermore his immersion in guilt. Audience is able to tell some of his personality just by watching the tile sequence, for example, he is organize and logic in his own way, and having persistency in the thing that he keens to do.
If we take closer look to the series of act that the man take, it is the preparation before commit crimes: cutting off the finger print, making meticulous plan, serves as action code. Further portraying his flawed personality of doing whatever he can to reach the large, even the requirement is hurt oneself.
The font of credit to cast and crew is in a handwritten style, not neat and crooked with the trace of vibration. The utilization of handwriting font conveys the inner mindset and state of the serial killer-- the words seem like it was written by the antagonist. It is transferring an emotion of inconsistency and a overall atmosphere of horror and the indirect establishment of character's portraiture. Audience therefore brings more empathy to the sequence and further intrigue by the interaction.
The overall color tome of the title sequence is desaturate with a dull tone. Mainly black and white, we can see the editor deliberately lowering down the saturation to create a sense of black and white-- represent the good and evil, also suggest the the antagonist intrinsic state is cold without color. Which means his bleak and emotionless inside. However, the color saturated red appears to contrast with the standardized black and white. Color red is the symbolism and connotation of blood and danger, heightend the dangerously of the character and his evil deeds on the next step.
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