Horror Opening Sequences

For my main task, I have decided to use the horror genre. I have been researching horror opening sequences to get some sort of idea on how to do mine. I have watched many sequences, however I have focused on three main ones.

1. The Conjuring- James Wan

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/the-conjuring/

The opening sequence of The Conjuring links very well with the horror genre. The soundtrack is very slow paced and quite creepy, which links to the several newspaper articles you can see. This all helps reinforce the fact that it is based on a true story. The editor and directors names are drawn into the articles, making them seem for involved in the film. Many of the articles have family pictures, mainly with children, giving the opening sequence have an innocent touchm creating an even more creepier, scary sense. 

2. The Cabin in the Woods- Drew Goddard

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/the-cabin-in-the-woods/

The opening sequence of The Cabin in the Woods is a lot less 'creepy' than that of The Conjuring, however the Cabin in the Wooods is more on the ditrubing side with the images of sacrafice. These images give it a more historical feel, adding to the realistics. As the titles finish, it goes into what seems to be a normal teenage life, this adds tension as you don't know what is going to happen to the starting characters.

3. Evil Dead- Fede Alvares
http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/evil-dead/

The opening sequence of Evil Dead is very similar to The Cabin in the Woods as it has similar images of blood and torture. The soundtrack is very well linked to the 'evil' theme as it sounds like maybe a Gospel Choir, which shows the satanic vs God theme. Overall this opening sequence relates well to genre. The titles are all in block font and red which links to the dark, bloody theme.

Product Research

For my Main Task product research, I have been researching opening sequences of films and have compared three different sequences. I have found some similarities and differences between all three:

1. Dinner For Schmucks- by Jay Roach

• The font used for the titles is very 'inoccent' looking, matching the soft soundtrack by The Beatles and the 'innocent' mice, However, this adds a twist as the mice are real, stuffed mice, which does not seem 'sweet and innocent' but instead fairly weird. 
• Even though the soundtrack is soft, the lyrics talk about a lonely man with 'his head in the clouds', which links to what we can see, a man arranging stuffed mice and ironing tiny clothes for them. This gives us a little bit more insight into the character , and he may be lonely or a bit of an outsider. 
• The producers names are seen atthe end of the sequence, in bigger font than the actors. These names are all spread out across the screen, same as the actors, however, at the very end, the directors name is in bigger letters in the middle of the shot. 
• The font is very narrow and in a white colour, which links to the 'sweet and innocent' feel, but also not shouty about the names. 

A link to this opening sequence can be seen here:

2.  Catch Me If You Can- by Stephen Spielberg 

• The titles were linked into the opening sequence, seeming as if it was part of it. This draws the audience into seeing the names. This differs from Dinner for Schmucks as it is very shouty.
• The soundtrack flows well with the font speed and the short animation clip we see. The music is very mysterious, as is the animation.
• The animation has a story line, which you assume to be the story line of the film, differing to Dinner for Schmucks again as that does not give you a massive insight into the films storyline. 
• The director and producers of the film are seen at the start of the seuqnece rather than the end. Stephen Spielberg's name is seen three times; start, middle and end to be shouty The actors names are only a little bit smaller, still eye catching. 

A link to this opening sequence can be seen here:

3. Coraline- by Henry Selick

• The actors names are seen at the start, before the animations start, which differs from the two above sequences. The animators and producers names are the same size font as the actors, and they are not very shouty like Catch Me If You Can's font. 
• The music is a by The Children's Choir of Nice, accompanied by Orchestra which gives the whole sequence a 'creepy' sence, linking to the animation of the doll being torn apart and turned inside out. 
• Henry Selick's name is the last name on the screen, similar to all three opening.

A link to this opening sequence can be seen here:

Main Task- The Brief

The Main Task

The Brief-

"Film the opening sequence of a new fiction film, including 

titles, and soundtracks to last approximately two minutes"

As you can see, I have highlighted 5 main points in this brief, to show the most important aspects I will need to focus on during my task. Leading up to my pre-production, I will be thoroughly researching these aspects to understand them, gather ideas and compare film opening sequences. I will start off my research by looking at 'titles' within opening sequences which further posts will show.