Title Sequence Ideas

In any film, the title sequence is very important. It doesn’t matter when the title sequence is shown, it sets the tone for the film and from it, the audience have connotations of what to expect from this particular film. For example, a romantic comedy film would usually have simple titles, with an easy to read font and light colours. They may have shots of summer or photographs in the background, to introduce a happy atmosphere. In a horror film though, the titles will be shown in a much different font, one that may look like it has been scrawled on a piece of paper. The colours will be dark, and if any images are being shown in the background, they will usually be of gruesome things.

This is the same in our film, we want to create a huge sense of dread and tension with our title sequence. Approximately two minutes of footage will be shown before our title sequence, and it will be very dark and gritty. We want our credits to carry a similar tone, and make the audience feel trapped and in anguish, as if they are part of the film themselves.

Whilst we have only had initial ideas for our title sequence, we think it should have a font that looks as if it has not been written by a mentally healthy person. If we used a font that was simple, it wouldn’t have the same effect and would not keep the tension rising. A title sequence that influenced us was from the film ‘Se7en’ (Dir. David Fincher, 1995). The title sequence at the time was revolutionary, as the words were flashed across the screen and were very hard to read. This gave the film an immediate dark and murky feel, an atmosphere that is carried on throughout. We thought this was an excellent title sequence and we want to emulate it with something similar.

We have also not decided yet whether our title sequence will have images being shown in the background as the words are shown on screen. This has proved effective in many films, such as ‘Memento’ (Dir. Christopher Nolan, 2000) and ‘Panic Room’ (Dir. David Fincher, 2002). These title sequences have proved effective as the world represented in the film is shown as the first shots, setting the scene and introducing the audience to where the film will be set. Using these shots among the credits also allow for advancement in the story, even though no words are usually spoken.

Another aspect we will have to focus on is the music that will be heard during our title sequence. This is another important feature as it tells the audience what the mood of the film is going to be like and what they should expect from it. This can be altered however, with the use of contrapuntal sound, which would send the audience in a different direction and make them wonder why the music is so different to what is being shown on screen and what they should expect from the rest of the film. Some title sequences that used music well that we took influences from were ‘Déjà Vu’ (Dir. Tony Scott, 2006) and ‘Inside Man’ (Dir. Spike Lee, 2006). ‘Déjà Vu’ was an especially heavy influence on us as it used music contrapuntally very well. The song ‘Don’t Worry Baby’ by The Beach Boys is played as a huge ship is blowing up. This use of music, at first, puts the audience into a calm mood, as it is a relaxing song, which makes them more shocked when the ship explodes. We thought this was a extremely well thought out opening and may use similar aspects in our thriller.




- Taylor Gladwin