Title Sequences inspirations

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/this-is-england/ This Is England's title sequence includes several clips of historic events, including Margaret Thatcher and war scenes. It's quite gritty and very British, making it clear that the film will be a basis of this. I was inspired by it as I liked the style, like the way it's grainy, the soundtrack and the use of the historic clips. The film itself has also inspired a narrative and the themes. I will do an anaylsis on this on a separate post.



Ill Manors 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdrSP7LE27M

I've done an analysis on this but what inspires me about it is it's use of iconography (drugs and phones) to show the negative representation of characters in the film.

Film Case Studies- This Is England

 Now that i've decided on the genre 'Drama' with themes of social realism, i'm now looking into films of the same genre and the same aspects. The first I've looked at is This Is England

Written and directed by Shane Meadows, This Is England is set in 1983, a time period where racism was high in some groups and there was a lot of patriorism due to the Falklands War. The story focuses on a young boy called Shaun, who gets involved with a group of skinheads. He hangs with them for a while and becomes a young skinhead himself until becoming involved with Combo, who is a racist. It ends with Combi brutally beating Milky(a mixed race boy) and Shaun realising 'standing up' for his country isn't what it seemed. What I liked about the film was how it depicts life in the 80s very accurately and how it honestly gives us an insight into strong views against immigration and Margaret Thatcher that existed then and still exist today. This Is England has inspired my genre and narrative for my film title sequence due to its social realism idea which I am interested in. The fact it depicts life in England in an emotional and empathetic way has also inspired me as I like the way it hits the audience.  

Film Case Studies- Fish Tank

Written and directed by Andre Arnold, Fish Tank is a British drama film set on a council estate in essex. The story focuses on Mia, whom lives with her mother and sister. She has a passion for dance but is living in an isolated environment. Later on, she pursues a sexual relationship with her mums boyfriend which ends in the realisation he has a family she wasn't aware of. In the end, she goes to Wales with a boy she met at a caravan site. 

The film is modern (2009) and so reflects current issues, which has inspired me to reflect current issues in my own film. There is a theme of social realism throughout the film, an idea i'd like too look into.

What I liked about the film was, similar to This Is England, how it depicts the reality of the way some people live and how, today, there are many people living in poverty.

This film has inspired me even more to look at social realism in my film and has me tinkling about how i can represent this in my title sequence. 

Title Sequence Analysis from my chosen genre- Ill Manors

Ill Manors Title Sequence Analysis

 The sequence begins with a close-up of a cigarette being lit, and then we see the face of a young man who proceeds to smoke the cigarette. The cigarette could be iconic of negative behaviour and bad habits, which is shown throughout the film with even more extreme drug taking, cigarettes can also be associated with leading too more serious drugs. We can then hear a diegetic sound of a woman  shouting on TV in which she is speaking of how parents influence children, which may hint too idea in the film, for example, the main characters may come from an unstable home which leads too problems later on in life. We can then see a young boy talking, and he talks of foster care, whilst the young boy smoking is still watching, which again links too what the woman was shouting about on the television about negative backgrounds and influence. Therefore, these first few scenes have set a context for the audience with the use of iconography and diegetic sound; the film will contain aspects of drugs and be based on people who have had an unstable upbringing. Also, people of several ethnicities are shown and so we know it will be set in a multi-cultural society.

We then hear the narrator, the voice of a famous British rapper Plan B, talking poetically whilst we can see the scene of the establishing shot. This shot is of an urban landscape which is sped up to show the movement of cars, lights and the sunset. This shot gives us more context and the kind of place where the film will take place. The urban buildings may represent run-down and poor areas, which also links to council estates where the lower class may live. The narrator uses sentences like ‘you’re in for a harrowing ride’, preparing the audience for a very real and gritty film which fits in well with the genre, a crime drama.

The soundtrack then starts and the title of the film appears. In the scene is an urban building in which time moves quickly and it becomes dark. The rest of the scenes in the title sequence are sped up. We can then see a man sorting a white powdered drug which we can assume is too sell. Again, we are being given the idea of the use and selling of illegal drugs. It then cuts to a man talking on the phone and then back to the other man who talks on the phone, showing a conversation between the two. Maybe they’re both working together and this is a main idea in the film. It then cuts to urban buildings and motorways, again setting the context and reinforcing the idea of negative background and run down areas. Then it cuts to someone’s home where drugs are being handled with again and people being threatened with guns, this shows the crime-filled lifestyle of the characters within the film. The lyrics of the soundtrack also fit well with the sequence ‘drugs rule everything around me’. It then continues with various scenes of urban buildings and the movement of criminal people until it cuts back to another drug house. This puts emphasis on the iconography of drugs in the film and how they become very significant to the characters’ lives. There is then scenes of many mobile phones and then close ups of these and the sim cards which can be associated with drug dealers and their wariness of being caught, this is also played on with the lyrics in the soundtrack ‘pay as you go so the feds don’t bug it’. There is then more scenes of mobile phones and brutal drug use, like the woman using a needle. The audience are then put in the position of the moving cars, as if they are being taken somewhere, maybe drug users are going to meet their dealers. The sequences ends with various people of all backgrounds picking up drugs, emphasising that drug use is a widespread problem, another key idea in the film.

Saul Bass 1920-1996

Saul bass 1920 1996 from jasminelecomber

A presentation from my research and analysis into Saul Bass and his work. I looked at Saul Bass as it's said his work has revolutionised the style of title sequences and it would be good for me to look at someone who has been so significant in the world of title sequences. What I've learnt from Saul Bass is that objects can be used as symbolic for key themes, simplicity can work well and credits should flow with the song.

Se7en Title Sequence Analysis

Se7en Title Sequence Analysis The whole title sequence has been cleverly put together too show aspects of the film and subtle hints towards the plot. The text used is jumpy and scratchy, together with the non-diegetic scratching sounds and the music in which the sound is similar to that of a heartbeat. At the beginning of the sequence we can see a close-up of a book, we may assume at this point that the person involved is intelligent and academic as this is what we would usually associate with literature. There is then a non-diegetic sound of an explosion or thunder; this creates a sinister tone, which connotes danger, and so, already in the first few seconds, it’s clear the film is going to be based around crime/thriller. The text used for the credits is written in a messy white font, against a black background; the font can represent many things like a messy plot, crime, or the rushed handwriting of a suspect. The use of white font against a black background helps the font stand out and it also moves suddenly creating an edgy and sudden atmosphere. This is how the text is throughout. At this point, the non-diegetic sound is repetitive but not very fast. There’s then a drawing of hands drawn with ink, this could signify the use of hands as murder or the interest into the human anatomy. There are then a few close-up shots of mechanisms, which cut very quickly. These objects and their screeching sounds add to the edgy atmosphere and the movement adds to this. The use of these objects may be a clue to the narrative and may link to something that happens in the film. Again, it’s creating an enigma for the audience. We can then see someone slicing their skin off their fingers; this indicates that they’re trying to remove their fingerprints in order to avoid being traced when committing a crime. This shows the character as quite intelligent as they are aware of how they can be caught and have looked to a solution. We can then see a teabag dipped in water then it cuts quickly to a drawing of a boy, then back to the tea being infused. This juxtaposition between the casual brewing of a tea and a graphic image of a boy gives us hints to the aspects of the film without giving away too much. The title of ‘Se7en’ then appears on the screen and suddenly jumps around, creating an edgy atmosphere and hinting too the edginess of the film itself. A book is then opened, and the character starts writing, this scene is then layered, signifying paranoia and creating jumpiness, again hinting towards aspects of the film. We can then see a close up of words, bringing us closer too what they were writing and then red a light where strips of negatives are being developed. Here, it seems as if they are collecting images of something or someone in order to plan some sort of crime or become familiar with whom they’re targeting. At this point things are piecing together and giving the audience more of a clearer picture too what the film is about and what the suspects motive is. In the next 86 seconds we can see the person crossing out words, and the scene continuously skips back to the book, everything is quick and sudden and isn’t a 100% clear and this is where the music becomes more quick. It appears that suspect in question is creating some sort of book or folder, as we can see images being stuck in and pages sewn together. There’s also images of people, who we can assume are the suspects victims, some of these images are quite graphic which may point towards a graphic murder instead of a simple one. The images are repetitive, emphasising the key idea of the film having multiple suspects. More images of people are shown along with a piece of hair, which may be long to a victim. Towards the end there are bible references, the word ‘GOD’ is cut out of a dollar note and the lyrics say ‘bring me closer to God’. This signifies that the suspect’s murders may have theological reasoning. An enigma has been created; leaving the audience wondering what kind of crime this person is going to admit, their motive and their process, as this has been hinted at throughout the sequence.

Zombieland Title Sequence Analysis

The sequence starts with an American flag and an announcement saying ‘I’d like to say this is America’, along with the American Anthem being played, the setting has been made clear, the USA. Then we can see a car on fire and many other disastrous aspects and so we can clearly see there’s been a disruption to the town. At this point, it’s clear the film will be filled with mayhem and disaster. The camera moves around with a shake, creating an edgy atmosphere, as the camera moves we can see more of the extent of damage, emphasising that the film will be consistent with this idea. The camera glitches and a zombie approaches, the camera is handheld and we are getting a POV shot. This amateur filming creates a realism too the film, even though zombies are fictional. The zombie then eats the cameraman, this is the first graphic scene we see and sets the tone of the film, as the audiences knows that scenes likes this will play throughout. The narrator then says ‘this is now the united states of zombie land’ which links with the title of the film and confirms that the Zombie problem is widespread. So, it’s already clear that there’s a zombie acopolypse. The globe is shown, again emphasising the widespread disaster. We are then given tips on how to survive a zombie apocalypse by the narrator. These tips are quite humorous, suggesting aspects of comedy throughout. The first is too be in shape, the second to ensure the zombie is killed, and the third is beware of bathrooms and the fourth to wear seatbelts. Even though they may make sense, the audience knows it’s part of the comedy genre too propose these rules and that they’re actually quite silly. Whilst the man is in the toilet, a zombie appears suddenly, which gives the audience a freight. Here, the audience get an idea that the film will be jumpy at some points. Commonly, title sequences don’t go into much depth like Zombieland however, we can see how this is important as it’s setting the tone and narrative clearly  without giving too much away. Aspects like gore and comedy are clear and emphasised through the first 3 minutes. The narrator then says ‘it’s gonna be a bumpy ride’ as if he is trying to prepare use for the film and we are going to feel a part of it. After this, there is 2 minutes of slow motion scenes of the zombies in action