In this project we were given
a brief to create a title sequence. In order to do this I decided to look in to
different title sequences from different genres to see how their title
sequences were created so I can understand the element of a title sequence
better and to get influenced.
Title sequence research
Snatch
The title sequence for this
movie is definitely one of my favourite title sequences ever created because it
tells us the name of all the characters in the movie whilst also giving us a
quick inside on their role by what each character is doing in the video. Another great element about this video is the
fact that it seamlessly jumps from one characters intro to another characters
intro making the characters all look like they are together which creates a
faster pace in the clip and makes it more interesting and engaging.
Music/Sound:
The music in the background also
goes very well with the video behind it because it is engaging and upbeat
making the video feel more lively.
Typography:
The way the typography is
used and shown in this clip is very smart. This is because, when it wants to
tell us the name of the actors it does a close up on the actors face and
freezes the time for a second whilst the music is still playing in the
background and uses bold white writing to grab our attention more on the name
at the time its frozen on the face. From
what I found on Film Riots tutorial on how to do this effect this effect is
called the freeze frame title card. What I love about this is the fact that when
it shows the typography and suddenly zooms in and freezes time it docent even
feel like the time is frozen and the video is even more of engaging and also
gives it a better aesthetic look.
Fight Club
Personally I feel like this
title sequence is very boring and it is not that engaging in my own personal
opinion. I feel like you don’t get much of an inside to the movie whilst
watching it. I also feel that when watching the title sequence it looks more
like it is going to be a sci-fi genre movie when actually the movie is just
action. What I really like about the title sequence is though, is at how at the
end it goes straight in to the movie without having to start a new shot which
gives the movie a better aesthetic feel and makes it also flow smoother and
better.
Music/Sound:
In terms of the music for
this title sequence I feel like they could of used something else as I feel the
music is overpowering the video clip in the background and that the music has a
much faster pace than the video clip itself.
Typography:
On the other hand I feel that
the font used for the writing in the video goes well with the overall aesthetic
of the video. I also like how the colour
of the blue type matches the blue background in the video. The typography
instantly comes in to the centre of the shot whilst the video is playing giving
it a stronger impact on the viewer whilst the viewer is looking at it. Also
since the type is in the middle of the screen it automatically grabs your attention
when it comes up. The effect the type uses when it fades out, which is it
basically turning in to a bluish smoke when it fades out is clear that it has
been thought through because it goes with the general aesthetic of the video
clip.
Skyfall
http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/skyfall/
When the title sequence starts we see Bond getting shot and
sinking towards the bottom of the riverbed. Even though Bond did get shot and
is sinking we get this sense of calmness to the clip due to the music being
played in the background, which is from the singer Adele. Not only do I think
her voice fits with the title sequence but her song relates to the movie as
well which makes the title sequence more dramatic and adds more power to the
visual theme in Skyfall.
We then see different things in the sea, which relate to
Bond and make us the viewer feel like we are in his own thoughts and memories.
In the clip we see things such as daggers, guns and graveyards which give of a
sense of mystery and action which tells the audience that the genre is going to
be action due to the objects in the different landscapes. When the chorus of
the song comes on, we then suddenly see a house and the mood and everything
around it turn red giving it a sense of danger and mystery. The title sequence
is around 4 minutes long, which is very long but works very well and is
engaging the whole time. The title sequence uses a Z-oriented digital camera
and helps the sequence flow through really well. The typography used in the
clip is very subtle and does not overpower the clip at any point to make it a
distraction to the clip whilst watching it. The Typography is all in white,
which gives of a simplistic feel but also a sense of hope and goodness, which
could suggest that Bond will always be there no matter what. Which works very well
with the visual theme in Skyfall.
Overall I really like this title sequence and it has
influenced me a lot to maybe try create something like this but due to the time
we were given and the fact that I would need a lot of help for it because I’m
just a undergraduate student I wouldn’t know exactly how to do it and I would not
have enough time to figure it all out and actually do it.
Music/Sound:
Typography:
Juno
The title sequence starts of
with Juno walking on a sidewalk and then when she walks past a tree everything
turns in to a cartoony effect. The effect looks like it has been created using
stop motion and looks to be very amateur. This could suggest that the movie
will be a comedy or family film genre, which could be appropriate for children
also, the music in the background also sounds a bit like a children rhyme,
which could also suggest that the animation film could be suitable for children. The animation also has a sense of being very
normal and goes well with the music making it feel like the movie will be about
issues that people are going through in todays day. The camera angles are very
simplistic also, which go with the general theme of the animation. The
typography used in the video is probably one of my favourite parts of this
entire title sequence, because of the way it works with the overall aesthetic
of the video. The typography is very childish like and seems to be drawn by
hand, which in my opinion works very well with the overall aesthetic.
I personally do not think the
title sequence is very engaging and fun and does not attract me to do anything
like it.
Dawn of the Dead
As soon as the title sequence
starts we can instantly tell that the genre of the movie is going to be horror.
This is due to the clip starting of with a black background and the typography
being in red with an effect of it turning in to blood. Not only that but the
sound effects in the background all suggest horror because you hear the sound
of a girl screaming and what seems to sound like blood getting wiped or
something very creepy.
What this title sequence does
is that it jumps from one clip to another making you want to know what’s
happening. The typography is shown in different parts of the title sequence but
separate to the video clip. So you see it on its own in a black background and
red colour which lets you concentrate on the credits. The title sequence
includes sound effects which I really think help show what the genre is
instantly. On the other hand I feel they could of used better music to make the
title sequence more scary and engaging. Whilst with the music they are playing
I just feel like it could even be a comedy.
Snake eyes
I really like this title
sequence because whilst all the credits are happening you get a clear idea of
what type of movie you are watching by the way the main character is playing
his role and the way his attitude is. Another thing I really like about the clip
is that it all looks as if it is one shot but there are 8 well hidden cuts
which make the title sequence flow though very well and make it very engaging
for the viewer to watch. In terms of music/sound the sound you can hear from
the video is just the environment the characters are in. In my opinion to do
something like that whilst showing credits is something extremely hard to do
because it can easily get boring but due to video being very engaging it works
well. The typography used in the video is white with a thin black stroke which
is very simplistic but works well with the overall aesthetic of the video
because it does not really distract you from the video but is still eye
catching due to its size and bulkiness and use of all capital letters which
create a strong impact.
Mission Impossible (1996)
As soon as watching the title
sequence the first thing which grabs your attention is the music in the
background because of its fast pace and it’s mysterious feel. As soon as the
title sequence you see different scenes from the movie flash on and off. The
typography has also been used in a very well way because it is always moving
when the music is playing and docent seem to stay still which keeps the viewer
engaged at all times. Until the end of the music where the Impossible stays
still and docent shake or move. We then see the start of the movie where the
credits are fading in and out of the scene subtly as the clip is much more
relaxed at this point. The typography is also white which helps it stand out
and can suggest hope which would make sense with the overall theme of the
movie, and the font is futuristic. I really like the way the title sequence
keeps you engaged as soon as it starts by the music it plays all a sudden which
shows me the importance of how the music in a title sequence can change
everything about the title sequence. I also like the way the different scenes
flash on and off the screen when the clip starts because it makes you want to
know what it exactly going on. The clip also introduces the characters in a
smart way by introducing them on a video, which the man is watching on the
plane.
Captain America The Winter Solider
This title sequence uses a
cartoon feel but its aesthetics are very pleasing. The music, which is being
played in the background, is also very dramatic and intense which grabs the
viewer’s attention. The title sequence really puts focus on the credits due to
not much going on in the actual animation. The typography is in a simple and
organised format and the names are in bold compared to their roles, which is
normally listed above them but not all the time. The colour of the type changes
from black and white depending on what background it is on to bee more clear
and stand out more. In the animation there is not much going on but there are
some of the characters in the movie being shown and some general landscapes or
things we might see in the movie.
The Incredible Hulk
When the title sequence
starts you see the Marvel logo comes up with its intro and then you suddenly
hear the music, which is sounds very dramatic and scary. The credits in the
title sequence are all in green, which relates to the Hulk since he is green
to. On the other hand the one word, which is not in green, is the actual Hulk
title that comes up, which might be to show the importance of the actual word
the ‘Hulk’. The type also has its own special effect with a green sort of
optical flare going around it and it leaving the screen by coming towards the
viewer engaging the viewer more. In the title sequence we see the set up for
the story, which immediately engages us to want to know exactly what is going
on. Generally when watching title sequences I am not always clear about what is
going to happen in a film or what it is going to be about but in this I get a
very clear idea of what the movie is about. The only down side is to do this is
that sometimes you can give to much information but I feel that in this
particular title sequence it works very well because you still don’t know
exactly what is going on because you see in different shots people trying to
find him and everything is not so clear as you want it to be which makes you
even more engaged to watch the entire movie. I really like this element, which
the Hulk title uses because in my opinion grabbing the viewers attention is the
most important part and it grabbed my attention, which is why I am attracted to
it.
Genre I have decided to pick
The genre I have chosen to do is Action because I feel like
that is what I watch all the time and that is what I am attracted to. In terms of me looking at different title
sequences in my research I also felt that I was influenced a lot by the action
movie title sequences. I have to say my main influence is from the title
sequence of the movie Snatch. This is because it introduces all the characters
and lets me know what each one does whilst still keeping me engaged. Its
simplicity and the use of the way it shows its credits is another big element,
which I like.
Research in to typography for my chosen genre
When decided what font to have for my own title sequence I decided to look at different action movie posters to see what type of font they would normally go for.
KICK-ASS
Picture from:
https://narock22.wordpress.com/2010/06/17/manana-estrena-kick-ass/kick-ass-poster-latinoamrerica/
As you can see in this poster the typography seems to have a very bulky feel, which creates an impact on the viewer when they look at it. The bulky feel also makes the text feel more loud and lively which gives that action genre feel. The title of the text is also in a metalish colour making it more aesthetically pleasing.
DIE HARD
Picture from:
http://www.cine-apocalypse.com/2014/04/my-personal-top-52-action-movies-part-5.html
The red colour in the title of the movie 'DIE HARD' immediately grabs your attention because of its energy, danger and excitement which the colour gives of. As you can see again the title is in a very bulky font to make it more engaging and have more power within the title. When looking at how the name of the actor 'BRUCE WILLIS' it feels very different to the title as there is spacing between each letter unlike the title of the film which is very close together. On the other hand the text still uses a bulky font but not at the extent of the title due to the hierarchy of text within the poster.
Picture from:
http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/File:Captain-america-2-poster-us-full.jpg
Unlike the two posters we have seen already the title in this poster is thin but also has a thin stroke around in a dessert like colour which makes the title feel more 3D and stand out more whilst looking good. The text does seem to be 3D though due to the shadows behind and beneath the letters. This has been done in very subtle way which makes the title feel more aesthetically pleasing and at the same time engaging. If you look at the other part of the title of the movie which is, 'THE WINTER SOLDIER' part it uses a different font with a very army like feel which relates to the movie and makes me wonder what type of text could relate to my movie.
Picture from:
http://www.everyeye.it/cinema/notizia/the-expendables-poster-in-bianco-e-nero_80789
The typography in this poster is very army like and has a sort of grunge texture to it making it feel more alive and realistic and goes very well with the army theme in the movie. But seems to be to war like which is a theme, I don't think I will be doing in my own title sequence.
Picture from:
http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3635459584/tt1899353?ref_=tt_ov_i
The text on this poster grabs your attention immediately due to its large size and very bulky feel the colour of the text also goes with the background of the poster making the poster flow better. The places the text is located such as on the wall or the building and at the bottom of the poster, where it is not the centre of attention makes the poster more engaging. This makes me think about how I could place my text in my title sequence to make it more aesthetically pleasing and appealing to the audience.
After looking at different types of typography in different title sequences and in posters I have decided the type of font which I will be using is going to be bulky and simple and will probably use the font Impact but this all depends on how it will look with the title sequence when I am editing my video. I feel like this will go with my tittle sequence very well and will appeal and engage the audience which looks at it. I will place the credits in the title sequence in a subtle but yet effective way but will try and make the title the centre of attention when it comes on.
The narrative that I want to create for my movie is about a man called, Johnny who tries to steal wallets for a living but is not good at doing so. One day he tries to steal a wallet from a man called Khaled and ends up fighting him and loosing the fight and does not end up keeping his wallet. Johnny is a strong person who would normally be able to fight someone and win but is extremely shocked that Khaled was able to defeat him. Johnny decides to try and make Khaled work with him and does this by annoying him all the time telling him to do so and telling him that he would be a lot richer than what he is right now. After a lot of time, hassle and persuasion Khaled decides to give it a go and see what happens. When Khaled steals his wallet he finds that in the wallet he took, it had the same amount of cash that he would earn a month. Khaled than gets very happy and excited and deicides to join Johnny with his wallet grabbing. After a while Khaled and Johnny are the best of friends and have earned a lot of money and live a good lifestyle with a nice house and car.
All this changes when Khaled and Johnny decide to grab a wallet of a person who is a undercover policeman. When they try to steal the wallet of the undercover policeman the policeman's badge falls down with his wallet and the undercover police chases Johnny and Khaled as fast as he can. Johnny gets caught and arrested and Khaled gets away. Khaled is terrified and goes back home hoping that Johnny will be alright and docent say anything about him to the policeman. What he does not know is that Johnny goes and tells the policeman everything. Khaled finds this out because the police come to his house one day and he escapes and the police find all the stolen wallets from all the different people in a bedroom in the house. Khaled then tries to leave the country but as he is trying to do so he ends up getting caught by the same policeman he tried to grab the wallet from, in a huge chase scene. Khaled was then sent to prison and that is the conclusion of the story.
Creating the title sequence
The title sequence of the movie is going to be the very beginning of the movie of when Johnny tries to steal Khaled's wallet and then Khaled has a fight with Johnny and Khaled beats him and Johnny is on the floor not being able to move and mumbling to show he is in pain and still alive whilst Khaled is walking away calmly with his wallet back with him. After the title sequence of the movie, the movie will go in to Johnny waking up in a hospital and will go on from there in to the narrative of the movie.
Since I am an undergraduate student it is not possible for me to go and hire professional actors to be my actors for my title sequence. Our tutor did ask us what our dream actors would be if we got to pick them for our movie which is why I have to pick
Mark Wahlberg for Khaled and Tom cruise for Johnny as I feel they both of them have the ability to to play action films really well.
Picture from:
http://parade.com/239659/erinhill/mark-wahlberg-on-family-faith-and-the-importance-of-legos/
Picture from:
http://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%98%D7%95%D7%9D_%D7%A7%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%96
Which is why I called 2 friends and asked them to be my actors for my title sequence and they agreed. I decided to text them with a brief introduction in their roles, a time and date and location and also told them what to wear for the day we film. They were also given a storyboard to know what was happening and how they were getting filmed etc . I wanted the location of the title sequence to be on a main road which went of in to a side street once the action happened.
The location I picked is below which starts of on Pitt's Head Mews and ends in Market Mews:
Screenshot from Google maps
My first actors real name is called John Panteli
He was to play the role of Johnny and was asked to wear a tracksuit with a Hood and trainers.
My second actors real name is called Khalid Taha
He was to play the role of Khaled and was asked to wear a simple suit, he wouldn't mind getting dirty as he would be in a fight scene which would involve moving around on the ground.
When we started filming I had a clear vision of what and how I was going to do my title sequence due to my storyboard I had created, which is below.
As you can see the storyboard does not include any images because I am not a great drawer and the drawings that I would have placed would have been to complicated to draw due to the close ups of the fight scene.
As you can see the way I wanted to film my title sequence was going to be with a lot of close ups and the camera shaking and moving with the characters to give it more of a realistic and engaging feel. The reasons the shots are so so short were because I wanted to use as many different angles as possible t give more of a aesthetically pleasing feel and look. I was influenced to do this by manny action scenes but mostly from film riots short film called, 'LOSSES'.
As you can see in the fighting scene in this video the camera shakes and moves during the action to make it more realistic and engaging which was something I liked a lot and was influenced me to do this was my cinematography as well.
Before we actually started filming we had a couple rehearsals so my actors were comfortable with what they were doing. Even though we had a couple rehearsals before we started filming the actors would laugh or mess up what they were doing when we actually started filming. Which is why I had so much to edit out. As you can see below these are some of the bloopers from the day we were filming. There is at least 20 minutes of bloopers of shots we took over and over again but these are just a few shots from the many that we had to do again.
I do not know why the blooper video is not playing smoothly but you can still see the bloopers which happened in the video.
After filming the title sequence it was time to edit.
I put my footage on imovie because my camera would not work with aftereffects and edited the shots together on imovie and then placed them in to aftereffects.
Since I wanted to have a similar title sequence effect that Snatch had when the name of the characters came up I decided to look in to how it can be done. The video below is a tutorial from film riot which shows how to create the stylised credits and film title.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0vnu6qbn7U
After looking at the tutorial I realised that there was a simpler method of getting it done with a similar effect because the way they were showing the effect it seemed complicated and I got lost at times.
What I did was go to point in which I wanted the effect to happen on after effects.
I then saved that frame on photoshop
And then added threshold to the layer.
As you can see I did the same thing for the other character.
I then saved them as a jpeg and placed them in after effects.
I then went back on photoshop and added the names to them with the font Impact because I felt it was very engaging and loud and looked also looked very aesthetically pleasing whilst being simple.
Before I added Impact I tried it with many different fonts such as these.
The image below is with the type impact which I picked.
I then saved this as a jpeg and put it in after effects as well but a little after the first jpeg so the names appear suddenly after.
For the title of the movie I decided to put it at the end of the title sequence. When doing this I made the video go dimmer as it was finishing by changing the opacity at the right time and the used a cool preset effect from after effects to make my title show up. The effect makes the letters come towards the screen whilst the letters are going in to the word. It is hard to explain but will be there to watch in the title sequence.
I decided to name my movie, 'LETS CATCH A WALLET' and put it in the same Impact font leaving it simple yet loud keeping it engaging for the audience. The reason there is no apostrophe in the word 'LETS' because it keeps it colloquial.
After editing all my video and putting everything together like the credits and the title and the effects it was time to play with the music for the video.
The music I decided to pick was called POW by Lethal Bizzle. I decided to pick this song because my title sequence had a very energetic feel and I wanted this to also show through the music. After testing the video with several different types of music I thought were energetic I realised that the song I had chosen by Lethal Bizzle worked the best. This was due to its high energy within the song and the fact it made the video feel more lively. Which is something I wanted to happen.
The final title sequence and the Directors cut version will both be on a usb handed in but I also put the final title sequence on youtube and can be found at the link below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYofDj2MTOs
Evaluation
When first starting this project I was very excited about it
and had many ideas and found it difficult to pick a genre and a narrative
because I had loads of ideas and didn’t know which idea to pick. After
researching and watching many different title sequences I realised that I
wanted to do action because I found it very interesting and was a genre in
movies that I do watch and I am interested in which I then thought would also
be a good challenge for me to do as well due to my large interest. After
creating my narrative I went out to film and found it very difficult to film
due to my actors being my friends which was a problem because they kept
laughing and messing up different shots. This resulted in me taking countless
on going shots to get the best result possible. Luckily due to the vast amount
of shots I had, I was very happy with the results, because I had many different
shots to pick from, which meant I did not have any shots which anything went
wrong with my actors or with me and the camera.
One element, which I am very proud of, was the
cinematography in my title sequence. I felt like all the different angles I had
decided to do, was all worth it in the end because once they were all put
together correctly the shots flowed through very smoothly which made it very
engaging and appealing to watch. Then came the editing of my title sequence
which I think went really well because thanks to old projects I already knew
how to edit videos on after effects. The main influence I had during this
project was definitely title sequences from movies that Guy Ritchie has directed
for example Snatch. The effect of the stylised character names which come up to
introduce a character was really interesting and eye catching to me and made me
try and create something similar. In terms of the music I was really happy with
the song I found as I felt it made my title sequence more lively and engaging
to watch because of the upbeat feeling the song had.
If I had more time and could improve my title sequence even
more I would be very likely to research more in to creating titles in after
effects because I would change the effect on the title that comes at the end of
the title sequence. As I feel it was a bit basic and could have been done
better. Overall I think it was a success and went really well.
Mohammad Reza Jafari-Fini
