Title Sequence Research - order of titles

Before begining the post production stage, We had to do some research into that actual titles that appear in title sequences. This will enable us to edit in text that looks realistic in its positioning and time spent on the screen. I looked at a wide range of films to discover how I should incorporate typography into my thriller opening sequence.


I firstly looked at social realist thrillers which are similar to mine. I came across the movie 'Kidulthood'. This is a low budget urban drama set in west London following a 15-year-old and his struggle to stay on the right side of the law. being a low concept British independent film, Kidulthood stars no famous actors therefore they do not choose to boast it in their titles. They simply list the production companies behind the film, Hanway films, Stealth films, cypher films in association with TMC films.



the film logos of Hanway films, Stealth films and Cypher films are unaccompanied by music, however when the basic titles appear as shown on the right, The films music begins and we start to feel the anticipation of what we are about to see. Using titles can be a good way to build suspense, before we see anything a film can establish a tense mood through simply slow moving titles and music. I may choose to place some tiles before the action begins on a plain black screen and some during however I am not yet sure.

Kidulthood reveals its title before the visuals appear. The title is quite basic using an interesting font, fading in and out, with no graphics other than a simple forward tracking motion. The title holds for 4 seconds. This gives enough time for the viewer to read it 3 times. The text appears in time with the music and almost immediately after the title disappears the action begins. This is a rather uncreative way of revealing the title. however it displays all of the required information then allows the audience to focus fully on the film.

I also did lots of research on films produced or distributed by studio Canal. Their logo/ident always appears before the film. This is an interesting trademark, that is also very iconic. I will not be using this as it is a breech of copyright, and my film is not actually produced by studio canal. I may choose to make up a production company, and simply list their name in the titles that appear during or before the sequence.

Alan Hitcock's film Vertigo, stars famous actors, therefore Hitchock takes advantage of this and boasts it in his title sequence. He emphasis this by clearly listing his name in the centre of the screen accompanied by a big lift in the music. As my film is not likely to star big actors it is not necessary for us to do this and list the name of our actors or director.

Account of Shoot Day

On the morning of the shoot we were faced with very overcast weather. By the time we arrived at the location it was raining. Although i initially intended for bright sunlight I was very pleased with this outcome as it would create pathetic fallacy. It also looked very cinematic as my two actors Harry and Gabe wrestled on the wet ground, with waters splashing and dripping down their faces. The weather created some exciting moments for example after the first hit to the head, delivered by harry, the rain suddenly increased, rain was pouring down as harry stood still looking down at gabe, realising the severity of what he has just done.

We searched the woods looking for a clearing where we could film the flashback scene. We eventually found a nice spot where nothing could be seen except trees in the background. There was also a variety of sharp, leafless trees surrounding the two creating a menacing image, giving subtle implications of the dangerous forthcoming events.
For the shoot we brought along a semi professional camera (sony NX-5) which has great stabilisation meaning I was able to film almost everything in handheld. We brought along a tripod however I wanted to create a sense of disorder and chaos therefore I didn't use it.
Before we began I briefed my actors, informing them of what i wanted them to say and do in the scene. I didn't think it was necessary to write a script because the dialogue would not be heard in the final film, it will be masked by music. I also knew that my actors were very good at improvising therefore I told them the situation they were in, and what they needed to do in each shot, and they created a dialogue based on that; which worked perfectly.
The first challenge we faced was the issue of trying to make a hit look realistic on camera. I envisioned a shot where Gabe walked away from harry in close up, shouting and mocking him, then out of nowhere harry would strike gabe across the back of the head, knocking gabe to the floor, out of the frame and revealing harry holding the rock. We rehearsed this movement a few times, until it became fluent and safe. We then captured it on camera about 3 times, until we thought we had it perfect. I then shot the same thing from a different angle just incase we needed something to cut to in the edit. I captured the flashback in sections, this made it easier to film and easier for the actors. I filmed almost everything from further away with a slight zoom. The effect of this creates a increased sense of action and chaos, it also looks better in my opinion.