Types of Opening Sequences

As technology improves, opening sequences improve and become better. This can be seen by looking at the history of opening title sequences and seeing how they have improved from the 1920's to present day.

Titles superimposed on a blanks screen (1920's)

• Very simple ( White text on a black background) 
• Very cheap to produce
• Some low budget films still use this

Titles accompanied by still images (1930's-1955)

• Make it visually appealing
• Tend to be longer
• Musical score accompanies it

Titles accompanied by moving images (1955- Present Day) 

• Music accompanies symbolic images
• Meaning of images ambiguous until later on in the film
• Normally no dialogue 
• Moving titles often have music in background 
• Range from simple view of clouds to movement of camera

Titles built around animation and motion graphics (Late 1990's- Present Day)

• Animation Text was very popular
• Soundtrack had a distinct sound

Opening sequence titles have changed lots. However nowadays, anything goes and all of these techniques are still used. No doubt in the future as technology continues to improve, the film industry will introduce many new types of opening sequence techniques and it will change the way audiences engage with film.

Research into films of the same genre and how I will attract audiences

Some well known Crime/Drama films..

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)



The Dark Knight (2008)



Both of the above use very intense scenes to help attract the audiences. Although the Silence of the Lambs is slower paced, all the scenes are very tension building and lead the audience to believe something is going to happen. By building the tension up, it holds and engages the audience. This is a good way to ensure your audience are always aware and stay focused throughout. The Dark Knight approach to keeping and engaging audiences is very different. They use very intense fast paced scenes which include lots of cuts from scene to scene. This makes it harder to follow and therefore audiences have to pay attention. The high intensity also builds tension until the film reaches its climax.

Some generic conventions of Crime/Dramas are:

1. Usually set in well known locations (prolific, big inner city areas)
2. Dramatic music to build tension
3. Weapons (Guns, Knifes etc.)
4. Drugs
5. Blood
6. False Accusations
7. Murder

To ensure my film opening attracts my target audience I will ensure that the opening scene interests audiences by building tension and making them want to watch the rest of the film. I will also include as many as the typical generic conventions that you would expect to find in Crime/Dramas into my film opening.

Our Film Remake

We are doing a film remake in order to help us before filming our actual film opening. By producing a remake it allows us to practise and stick to a timeline that we have produced. The reason for this is that it is a good task that will allow us to practise with the cameras, and get a deeper understanding about what it takes to successfully produce an opening scene. It will help us as it will enhance our skills, whilst aiding us to create a piece so that we can get an idea of how long filming will take, helping us with time management for when we have to produce our film opening. Below is the video of our remake.

Why am I doing the remake of the opening titles?

I am doing the remake on Reservoir Dogs opening because it helps me understand exactly what it takes to film a good opening. Also I am doing it because it is good practise to get timings correct, sort out casting for the dance whilst enhancing my knowledge surrounding the camera and equipment. By doing this it should make me more knowledgeable before filming my own film opening.

Independent V Mainstream Film Openings

The main difference between mainstream and independent film companies is money. Mainstream film companies will put a lot more money into their film openings, because they can afford to. This in turn usually means they are better as more money, means they can afford better actors to star in the opening and throughout the film, up to date equipment and technology that enables the film opening to be produced.

 The Dark Knight




This film opening is produced by a mainstream company. Warner Brothers  a subsidiary of Time Warner which is the second largest media company in the world behind Walt Disney.  This means they have a lot of money to put into their films. This means the film openings are considerably better than small companies, such as the clip below which is made and funded by Film 4. By being a mainstream conglomerate, they can afford big names to star in their films, for example Christian Bale, Heath Ledger and Morgan Freeman. This in turn helps sell the film. Rated 12 A, they have lost some market, however the film is targeted at teenagers and adults. The budget for this film was $185,000,000.

East is East



This film is produced by Film 4. It is set in what looks like a dirty and dated street in London.  The shots used are very basic and this may reflect the lower budgets that this film company has got to produce their films with. Being an independent film company, it means they don't have the funding available to be able to afford the top of the range equipment and the money to be able to afford to film in prolific well known settings that can help attract audiences.

From the very beginning; in comparison to the clip above, you can see that the quality isn't as great. Also you can see that the setting isn't as prolific. The above film uses establishing shots showing the skyscrapers and enabling the audience to understand where the film is being shot. Then we see 3 masked men run into a bank and 2 on the top of the bank disabling alarms etc. This shows us that a lot of thought and money has went into the setting in comparison  to this film which is set in an old looking road in East London. A wider age range of characters can be seen in this clip opposed to the above clip. This may also be to do with funding and not being able to afford well known actors who can help entice audiences in via celebrity endorsements.

Overall from the clip, we can see that the mainstream film opening companies quality is a lot better, also the setting, characters and editing is a lot better. The main reason, they had a bigger budget, meaning they could afford to fund all of these things and afford to buy the best of quality things to help aid there film and make it look good.

Audience Profiles

Different audiences view different genre of film. This means that when making a film, it's important to know the demographic of people that will be interested in your film.

I did some research into the sort of films people liked, I took a strategic sample of 15 females and 15 males. I then asked them to then fill out the questionnaire that I made, of which you can see below:

My Questionnaire:

With the completed questionnaires back, I analysed the data, I then inputted it into graphs and tables and this lets me see the sort of people who would be interested in my film.

Results from Survey:

Out of the 30 people who answered my questionnaire, 25 people said that they had watched a Crime/Drama with only a small minority (5) having never watched one. This is good because shows to me that people would be interested in watching my film and therefore engaging with my film opening meaning I should have quite a wide target audience of which I can tailor my film opening to suit what they want from a Crime/Drama.

 

Out of the 25 people who had watched Crime/Dramas, the main age group was between 13-24. Therefore this is the age I should be targeting my film towards. This is the main take up of the market for Crime/Drama films. Closely following this is age 25- 36. Therefore I know that I need to aim my film for ages ranging from 13-36. This will be hard and I will need to refine it down to a more targeted age group because otherwise it's impossible to cater for such a wide range of audiences because things adults (aged 18+) would want to see in a Crime/Drama could not be incorporated in something that a younger audience, which I know from my results do watch Crime/Dramas, would want to see. Also I have to bear in mind film classifications and the sort of things I would be allowed to include and how this would affect where the film falls in terms of ratings and terms of what audiences could or couldn't watch the film.

From this, I can see that the majority of people who watch Crime/Dramas watch it with friends. This is probably because some of the main things we would expect to find in a Crime/Drama would be swearing, illegal activities and quite a lot of gore. Therefore, this probably isn't something you would sit down and watch with your family, as the results show! Quite a lot of people, based on the results, watch these sort of films on their own, being the genre it is, they are usually very full on, action packed and entertaining. This therefore meaning you can get away with watching it on your own because it is very intense and always has your attention so you wouldn't get bored.



Based on my random sample of 15 boys and 15 girls, Crime/Drama's were most popular with 8 people choosing this to be their favoured genre. This was closely followed by Comedies which received 7 votes. From this I can see that based on my results, people are very fond of Crime/Dramas which means as long as I create a good, stand out opening for my film, people should then engage with this, like the look of it and therefore want to see the actual film.



Out of the 30, originally 25 people had watched Crimes/Dramas and 5 had not. This graph shows that 25 people would be interested in a new Crime/Drama, 3 would not be interested, and 2 maybe. This is good because originally 5 people hadn't ever seen Crime/Dramas so now 2 are considering seeing one, meaning after answering this questionnaire they may go and watch one. This is beneficial because it means my target market would be expanding ever so slightly.


This sort of information is beneficial when aiding me to complete my piece because I know that people are interested in the genre my films in already, meaning people will want to see my film. Also it will help me because from my research I can see my main target audience, meaning I can specifically target a certain market. Also it helps me get an idea of the range of ages that people are from in terms of who watches this genre. This means that then I can see the type of things I may want to think about including in my film, and the sort of things I might want to not include, based on age and personal preferences of the majority of my target audience. 

My Chosen Genre

Our chosen genre is a Crime/ Drama. We decided to do this as in our questionnaire (see audience figures blog) it was one of the most popular genres that people enjoy watching. Also, we had an interest in this genre meaning we are more likely to produce a good opening scene.

Importance of Opening Titles

The opening title sequence is what gives the audience their first impressions of the film and therefore is very important. This then prepares the viewer for the rest of the film. They outline the film makers intentions and set up the audiences expectations. The main use is to draw the viewer in and help them engage with the film.

During the production of film openings, companies spend a lot of time and money to produce something unique that will stand out from the rest. This helps people get an understanding of the film and helps the audience understand the story from the outset. 

The order of which names appear in the opening sequence is also very important. Usually, they start with the big actors first, for example, James Bond in Casino Royale. It starts with Daniel Craig who plays 007, then ends with the lower, less prolific actors. However in some circumstances the biggest actors can be left till last and therefore the opening sequence builds up to there name. The directors name will always be the last name you see before going into the film. So opening titles are very important because they determine the hierarchy of actors and crew.

Opening occurs, then first actor introduced is Daniel Craig, the main actor who plays Bond.

 

Jelly Baby Activity

The photos above show me and my group during planning opening titles for a potential film opening. We did this task because it enabled us to see the type of things we need to consider before filming and also shows us the importance of good and accurate planning. By doing this it has helped us become aware of the sort of things we will have to plan before doing our actual final piece. Also it helps us to get an understanding into how we could possibly use this method of planning before creating our piece. This way, it makes it very easy to see the various different scenes that we need to film and exactly when they need to be edited together so that they are in the correct order to make it easy and mellifluous for the audience to follow and understand.

Generic Conventions- How are they shown in different genres of film openings?

Genre is a way of putting media texts into categories which share similar characteristics. Different film genres therefore use different generic conventions, which help the audience categorise what genre that particular film is in. Films of the same genres will therefore, usually, have similar generic conventions. For instance, one of the most popular generic conventions that we associate with a horror would be audio of screaming. This is also known as iconography.


Scream (1996)

 One of the films I looked at was Scream. The genre of this film is horror. At the very beginning we see a black screen, then red titles come up on the screen, this initial title comes up with the name of the film 'Scream'. It is red in colour which has connotations too blood and death, which are generic conventions of horror films. In the background we can hear audio of screaming sounds, and also we get the sound of a phone ringing. These aren't so conventional but all add to the effect of a horror film. From the off the film has low key lighting, this means that there are lots of shadows and the film looks very suspicious and scary from the off. We then hear the phone ring and the girl who is portrayed to be a 'dumb blonde' then answers the phone.

Answering the phone.

When she answers the phone we hear a creepy voice answer, again another stereotypical generic convention of horrors. At this point the camera is on a canted angle otherwise known as a Dutch tilt. This connotes unease and things not being quite right. This gives the audience a sense of tension and 'what's going to happen next, feeling. Next we hear audio of her being in the phone talking to the man, the conversation sounds awkward and she, at this point, has no real concerns and instead is quite intrigued as to who the man on the phone is. In the next two minutes we hear various different noises which are put in to build tension, these range from dogs barking to wind. When the man is on the phone, he start to worry the girl. He is also self referential of the genre by discussing the genre within. He repeatedly calls the woman back, whenever she answers, it appears as though she is in the shadows. This makes everything seem strange and worrying. At 2.18 a bombshell is dropped when the man on the phone says 'you never told me your name'. She replies saying 'Why'd you want to know my name?' He then replies saying 'because I want to know who I'm looking at'.

She turns the light on and looks outside after the man on the phone says 'because I want to know who I'm looking at'.

At this point, the whole situation becomes a lot more dramatic and we can see her emotions change completely. This is effectively portrayed by a zoom onto the face, which gives us a close up of the woman's face, allowing us to understand her emotions at this moment in time.  She is then very panicked by this and we see her pacing it around her house locking all of her doors. The use of expletives, body language and tone show us she is not only obviously very worries by now at every time the phone rings, but also annoyed that he keeps ringing her back. Her tone implies she is upset, her voice turns croaky and sounds as though getting words out is hard. Whenever something dramatic happens, non dietetic background noises are always introduced. This helps dramatize the situation and build tension. By doing this it gets the audience on the edge of their seats and makes them intently watch. Speech is used 'Who's there? Who's there?' This repetition enables the audience to understand exactly how worried and upset she is at this point. It also shows us the unease she is at with not knowing who it is ringing her door bell, especially after the phone conversation she just had. Self referential 'You should never say who's there, don't you watch scary movies? Its a death wish'. This sort of comment is backing up the idea of it being a horror film. This opening scene basically gives the audience a taster of exactly what's going to happen in the rest of the film. After the opening, the genre is very clear too.

Kidulthood (2006)

Kidulthood is a drama. As an audience we can immediately understand where the film is set because within the first 23 seconds, although the screen is black, we can hear lots of voices and shouting which is typical audio of a playground environment. Its a drama throughout, this is connoted by 27 seconds when we have a very regular setting of a playground. This shows us that there is going to be quite a complex storyline which means the audience will be glued to the screen. The genre goes hand in hand with the setting too. Low key naturalistic light connotes the drama genre too.

Naturalistic setting and lighting.

When moving images finally appear on the screen, we see kids in a playground. This allows us to understand that it is going to be a kids drama, to associate this we then get some background music which is known as 'grime'. This type of music is mainly associated or has been mainly stereotyped too be listen too by London gangs. We then see two girls, probably aged between 14-18. These girls have a very poor dialect and this lack of diction connotes underage stereotypes and race. These two girls are dressed very scruffy too. They have there top button undone, with their ties loosely strung around their necks. Big gold ear rings, chains and messy hairstyles can all be seen too. All of these are iconography and are things you expect to see in that particular genre.

Summing up the above. Top buttons undone, ties loose etc.
 

Also from what we can see of the girls and from the dialogue that we hear about the party one of the males of the school is having, we immediately stereotype them to be doing things such as underage drinking, underage sex and smoking. Woman are almost seen to be 'side-lined' as the opening scene continues. Males dominate the camera and appear to 'use' the girls only. Woman are not part of the action and this could also be seen to be stereotypical. Unsteady camera shots also help to add to the verisimilitude of the film. It adds to the real world, naturalistic feel that enhances the documentary drama, 'kitchen sink' dramas that Ken Loach is known for. 'Kitchen Sink' is a term associated with social realism. It came about during the 1950's. The idea is that it depicts the working class to be stuck in very tight and small areas. Therefore a school playground fits into this perfectly.

Stereotypical Kitchen Sink Drama.

Dead Mans Shoes (2004)

This film is a thriller/drama. At the very start, the screen is red. This immediately to an audience connotes pain, blood and hurt. We also have diegetic dialogue which says 'God will forgive them, I can't live with that'. This statement right at the beginning suggests to the audience that perhaps someone has committed a crime and this man can't let him get away with it. It could also suggest the man could have some sort of religious paths, meaning he knows that God will forgive people for their sins, but he can't let someone get away with something that easily. This phrase alone will get the audience thinking and engaging with the film and trying to work out what's going to happen next. Slow pace music can be heard in the background, this suggests a journey within a song, and that maybe the man goes on a journey. It also connotes sadness and death as the song and its lyrics are quite deep. Before the film has really started, we have a hear a whole track of music. This frames the opening and again adds to the 'journey' effect. Also because we see the two men walking throughout the opening, this signifies a journey too and the camera just follows them, using simple movements such as gentle pans from left to right following the protagonist. This all connotes time passing and is almost a story of the journey they endure. The camera throughout this part is handheld, it helps the scene feel realistic. The audience is watching this with an omnipotent viewpoint of the protagonist. The film has been set up North, I can see this from the stereotypical classic stone walls, hilly climate, narrow roads and wide expanses of open fields. The lighting is very naturalistic adding to the verisimilitude of it all. Its is quite a bright day which acts like high key lighting. This makes everything around very easy to identify. This film was directed by Shane Meadows.

Overview

Some directors of particular genres of films are known as auteurs. These are directors that are renowned for the type of film they produce, they usually also use similar generic conventions in all their films too. Generic conventions help different genres of film fit into there particular genres which allow audiences to understand and know what to roughly expect  before actually watching it.

Our Institutional Logo

This is our groups institutional logo.

Impacts of Certification on Film Openings

The British Board of Film Classifications  (BBFC) is responsible for classifying films with certain ages. The idea is to stop underage audiences from viewing things that could potentially harm them. By having classifications, it directly impacts on film companies because it means they have to be careful with what they include in film openings and films too. This means if they have to segment their market if they wish to include for instance graphic scenes which may not be suitable for younger audiences. 'Segmenting the market' or choosing your 'Target Market' can mean a loss of potential viewers however. Therefore, large film companies have to take this into consideration when making films as it basically in turn means a smaller amount of people can watch the film in cinemas and even buy the DVD, depending on the classification, meaning a smaller return, meaning total profits will be reduced.

Films are rated on three main things, these are:

• Scenes of a Sexual Nature
• Violence
• Coarse Language

Obviously, by having certain certifications it can really deplete a films potential audience as they aren't then allowed to go and see it if below the certain age. In turn, some films target specific audiences, if they know there film is going to be an 18 in order to still get a good return, for instance The Wolf of Wall Street, however others keep it fairly open by not targeting specific audiences which can result in a good return, or mean lots of people aren't attracted to it because it doesn't drawer anyone in.

The Wolf of Wall Street suffered due to the strong language used throughout, explicit sexual content and hard drug use, because of this the movie was banned from being screened in Kenya, Uganda and other surrounding areas. As you can see below, because of the films rating, it lost the chance to be shown in some places. This therefore causes the film to not make as much profit and also to let fans down who were highly anticipating the movie, until they found out it wasn't going to be shown at local cinemas which could cause feuds.

Therefore, before making a film it is important that we consider the implications of having certain certifications, and whether including certain things will reduce or increase the chance of selling a film, or whether you would be better off to have a wider target audience by reducing potentially harmful scenes.

An online article regarding the banning of the film in certain places.

Certification

Certification is an element of film distributing. It is not the same as censorship. Censorship is the practise of cutting or preventing access to materials. However, classification is restricting access to material on the grounds of age. Film classification is not only very important, but is also a legal obligation. This is because without having a classification and being checked by the British Board of Film Classification(BBFC), audiences could potentially view materials not relevant to them (based on age). Also it's because the audience needs to be protected from materials that may cause harm. Finally they must have classifications too fit in society. Therefore we must consider broader public opinion in mind with regard to language.

All films are classified by the BBFC which is a self regulatory body made up of film industry representatives. It was first set up In 1912 and is still used present day. Initially local councils were in charge of cinemas, this meant that although the BBFC gave films classifications, local councils could chose to disregard this and give it a different classification. This led to a lot of controversy in 1993 with the film Mrs Doubtfire because some councils gave it a PG rating, others gave it a 12. By 1984 a new law was passed, the 'Video Recording Act', meaning the BBFC now had full authority and the classifications they gave the film was used all round. 

As of 24th February 2014, new guidelines are being introduced. These new guidelines are being introduced because after the BBFC spoke to 10,000 member of the public, they felt changes could be made to help improve the film classification system further. The results from the BBFC were that 95% of parents with children under the age of 15 check the film classification before viewing. 89% believe film classifications to be important and that 92% of the 10,000 film viewers they spoke to, agreed with the film and video classifications of films they had recently watched. The changes the BBFC are putting into place are there due too public consultation, to ensure the protection of audiences and so that film production companies know what they can and can't put into a film, should they be targeting it at a specific audience.

This sort of information and research will help me when I start to produce my film titles and opening. This is because I need to consider my target audience. To do this, this sort of market research will be very important. I will also need to decide whether or not to chose my film certification before or after producing my piece, as this may have an influence on the sort of product I end up making. Before making my titles and opening, I will research into films in the same genre as the one I'll be creating, so that I can get an idea of the certification that they have been given.

 

Demographic Groups

These are the grades of social status. Peoples social grades are based upon occupation.

 

 

The Day After Tomorrow: Opening Sequence Timeline

This is the opening title sequence of The Day After Tomorrow. Similar to the previous timeline I made, by creating this one I can see trends and see whether there is anything in particular I should ensure to include when creating our opening title sequence.

 

 

Superbad: Opening Sequence Timeline

This is the timeline for the opening scene of Superbad. By creating a timeline it helps us get an idea of how opening sequences run and the sort of thing we should consider and incorporate into our opening sequence and the sort of things we should avoid too. Below you can find the original opening as well which I has to look at and use whilst creating the title sequence on paper.

 

 

Analysis of Student Film 3

Genre

Drama

Editing

Used effectively. Is continuous making it flow well. It is made too seem chronological meaning we see various events as they happened. Again, making it very easy to follow what's happening.

Sound

From 10 seconds onwards, a gentle backing track is introduced. This is played the whole way through until the end of the opening scene. This immediately sets the tone and makes the audience very mellow and their mood changes to fit with the piece they are watching. This would be an example of the Uses and Gratifications theory. Other than the backing track, no other sound is evident in the piece. They could maybe incorporate some other sound to help make it more interesting, however, the one piece of music throughout does work well.

Camera

An initial establishing shot to set the scene is used. This straight away allows the audience to understand where the film is going to be set. After this we have a transition to the next shot which is from on the beach of the sea. After this shot we see a long shot of two girls walking down stairs and onto the beach. The long shot, in comparison to the large wall behind them, open beach and sea makes them look quite insignificant and weak, even though they are the main focus point in the scene. A high angle shot is used to film the title. This is cleverly done and works very effectively. We also see over the shoulder shots used as the two girls walk away from the camera towards the sea. A mid shot is also used when the girls are throwing shells and stones into the sea. We also see a close up of the shells on the floor and of the girls hand as she picks one up. Overall there are various different shots used which make it interesting, however, I still feel as though some more shots could have been used as all the shots used were very basic as the camera itself rarely moved, instead the characters moved.

Mise

Set on a beach. In the majority of the shots we can see the beach and parts of the sea. We also get shots of the sea wall and an initial establishing shot in which sets the scene completely. The Mise is obviously selected for a purpose. It is quite overcast and this adds to the scenery making the audience more curious about what's happening. Clothing is causal, what you would probably expect people to wear to the beach. Everything looks in place and as you would expect it meaning the audience doesn't know what to expect or what could possibly happen later in the film meaning they want to watch more.

Titles

The use of titles is good. They change where they appear, as the first one is top left and is black, however we also see titles that appear bottom right, left and top right. The main titles has been very cleverly thought out as they have drew it out on the beach, the only negative about this is that it is quite hard to read. However, when it comes to being unique and creative this is excellent. Overall titles are used quite well and other than the main title, are very clear and easy to read.

Characters

There are two characters in the opening scene that we see. They are two girls who seem of a similar age. We see them running around a beach to start with, then we see them sitting down talking. The characters are very basic but it intrigues the audiences as we want to know more about them. By doing this it entices the audience to want to watch more and see the whole film. Also by using certain shots it helps show the characters emotions and portray to the audience there feelings.

Positives of Opening

• Titles are used well, very clear and easy to read.
• Very well thought out Mise en scene. This helps make it more interesting for the audience to watch and also helps set the mood and tone of the piece.
• Camera shots were very steady and professional looking, enhancing the piece.

Negatives of Opening

• Although camera shots were professional looking, some more advanced shots to show off skills would have been nice to see. Shots were very basic.
• Move the scene on a little, at the end it started to get boring, very repetitive.

Analysis of Student Film 2

Genre

Horror
Thriller

Editing

Continuous editing is used. This makes the whole piece seem very mellifluous and flowing. It makes it easy to follow and makes everything seem in chronological order. This means it keeps things clear for the audience so that they don't get confused and muddled up with what's happening.

Sound

From the very beginning we can hear sound affects that accompany the titles. This adds an extra dimension that draws the attention of the audience. Besides this, there is no other sound other than dialogue. Dialogue is used to build tension and intrigue the audience into wanting to see more. I think to improve their piece they could have included some music in as well which if used effectively would have helped build tension and made the audience engage more as they have to use more of their senses.

Camera

At times the camera is blurry. For example when they zoom in on the pot of pills, it is out of focus momentarily which makes it look poor quality. However it does then come back into focus. This makes it look quite unprofessional. Another slight negative is that I thought some of the shots needed to be extended. For example, one of the shots was on a bag of tea which on it had a title. However, the shot moved on so quickly that I found it hard to actually read the title itself. More positively speaking, I felt as though they had considered shot angles and tried to use a variety of different shots to help make their piece interesting. Also I liked the way it flowed and went from one shot to another.

Blurry, out of focus shot.

Mise en scene

Very cleverly thought out opening piece. It is set in someone's house. As it progresses we see one main character who is obviously very dependent on someone else who has left him and not contacted him recently. This therefore sends him to get very angry and depressed. We see him talking directly to the camera and letting his feelings known. We see items such as pills, empty alcohol bottles along with day to day items such as newspapers. The empty alcohol bottles and the shot where we see him taking pills connote to us that he may be depressed which all link together when we connect his actions with his words and thoughts. Fairly low key lighting throughout, again confirming the loneliness he is feeling and going hand in hand with depression and sadness. 

Titles

They are very creative, they use everyday objects as titles by including cast and crew names on these items. By incorporating it in this way it makes it look realistic, or verisimilitude. By enhancing this it makes the audience feel very natural and aware of everything in the shot because they now look out for these titles on the household objects.

An example of a title. This one being the main film title.

My only negativity about this is that some of the names of the cast and crew are very hard to identify as they move on from one to another very quickly. Also some of them are out of focus to begin with, however I have spoke about this above in camera.

Characters

In this piece there is only one character. We see him doing day to day activities, and then he talks directly to the camera. I think he plays the role well and effectively makes the audience want to watch more. By not giving much away to the audience, he makes the audience want to see more of the film because they want to find out what is going to happen next and what he is actually talking about.

Positives of opening

• Institutional Logo looks very professional
• The use of natural titles on household objects (creative, unfortunately needed a bit more care to make look professional)
• Very clear, simple storyline, easy to follow.
• Builds tension well, makes you want to see the rest.

The groups Institutional logo.

Negatives of opening

• Camera work could be improved (ensuring shots are framed correctly and in focus)
• Could do with revealing a little more to the audience. Not much, just some to help them understand what's going on.
• Could do with making it clearer what the film title is.
• Consider lighting, could do with being slightly lower key at times to work in harmony with the storyline and what we can see is happening in the moving images we can see.