Week 1 - "The Art of the Title"

Hello my name is Julia Toczyska!

At the beginning of this lecture, our new lecturer James asked us to look up a poster of a recent movie or a tv series we've seen! I've decided to look up 'Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story' as I've been watching it literally last night... (I really recommend it I don't remember the last time I felt this disturbed.. in a good way of course). The poster itself appears quite cold, literally as it uses a cold toned blue lighting in a intimidating mode of address, having both of the main characters staring directly into the camera. It is a simple yet effective poster with sans serif text and a clear message. This poster screams "I am not what you'd expect".

Title Sequences

For this module we are asked to create our very own title sequence. But first, what actually are title sequences? Well, a title sequence (also called an opening sequence or an intro) is the method by which films or tv programs present their title, key production and cast members, utilising moving conceptual visuals and sound. It typically involves text of the opening credits and helps to establish the subtext, setting and the tone of the narrative. It may consist of animation, music, still images and moving graphics. It is almost always created by motion graphic artists.

What is Visual Thinking

During our lecture, James introduced us to visual thinking and its effectiveness.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZikhQ5w5Ck

Task for this week - Research

This week we were asked by James to look through the 'Art of the Title' website and find two title sequences that inspire us. One title must be an old title sequence (pre-digital era) and the other must be a contemporary one (digital era).

Arcane (2021)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpXNDmtaULw

For my research of the contemporary title sequences, I chose to look at one of my favourite shows - Arcane by Christian Linke and Alex Yee. Arcane is an adult animated series, featuring steampunk and action-adventure themes.

It's title sequence follows a simple yet effective narrative, featuring statues of what we can assume are the main cast of characters. The statues simply shatter into pieces to the rhythm of the song. The song itself can tell us a lot about the themes of the show. Enemy by Imagine Dragons, not only has this almost tragic sound to it, it's lyrics are also quite telling of the show. Partnering with Imagine Dragons, a band that is quite well known for its style, was an amazing strategy to get the show out there - I mean there is a reason why this song blew up so much on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram back when it released - it is quite captivating and catchy to say the least.

But coming back to the visuals, the sequence utilises a range of dynamic transitions in order to exaggerate the action elements of the series, which I believe works fantastic together with it's steampunk aesthetic. I always found the title sequence to convey themes of empowerment and betrayal, through it's use of extreme camera angles and dynamic use of lighting (typically using a low source of light, creating dramatic shadows). It creates a sense of agency and importance around the main cast of characters.

Another great example of how Arcane's title sequence creates meaning is its use of symbolisms through out the sequence to foreshadow the events of the show and set the tone for the series as a whole. The most prominent example of this is the way Arcane uses colour, for example in one of the scenes the young sisters are shown in angelic light as they are held in the hands of their father, but said light fades as the camera pans out to show the villain of the series, replacing the light of hope and perhaps even innocence with moody purple lighting with a tint of red coming out of the villains eye. This foreshadows the idea that the villain is to blame for the destruction of the equilibrium set at the beginning of the show.

Another great example of how the title sequence to Arcane conveys meaning is thorough its use of binary opposition. A French anthropologist, Levi Strauss argues that the way we view and understand the world is through opposition. This technique is commonly used in media products in order to create and convey meaning.

In this instance, Arcane uses binary opposition to set the conflict between the two sisters. The title sequence tells you that there is conflict between them even before the prologue to set the scene for the overall series as well as foreshadow it. What particularly caught my eye in the screenshot provided above, is the use of, once again, colour. Blue and red are often used in opposition to one another, most commonly to differentiate the good and evil. What I find amazing in this instance though, is the fact that the so called good character in the series is represented with that evil colour red, but that is done on purpose! The series revolves around all types of conflict, but the conflict between sisters is one of the most important one. Despite being a villainous character, Arcane chose to represent Jinx/Powder with the colour blue that symbolises purity and good - and I believe this was done on purpose to make Jinx sympathetic to the audience. Jinx deeply believes that her sister is evil for abandoning her, even though that is not the case at all. And that is exactly why we see Vi (her sister) associated with the villainous colour red. I really enjoy how Arcane persuades us with its themes not only through its spoken narrative, but also with its visual narrative. Another way in which Arcane uses techniques to persuade audiences to sympathise with Jinx is through their use of camera. The camera pans from behind jinx, instantly placing audiences in her point of view.

When it comes to the technical side, I believe the title sequence was made in blender and perhaps later animated in another software in post production, for example After Effects. A lot of hard work went into this series, and the title sequence represents that in more ways than one.

Star Trek (1966)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdjL8WXjlGI

For pre-digital era, I chose to look at Star Trek, an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with its 1960s television series.

What struck me the most about this title sequence is its poor audio quality, it brought back almost a feeling of nostalgia to me. The first half of the sequence follows a simple narrative, it creates a sense of suspense with it's captivating and dramatic soundtrack and simple narration. The narrator does a great job at setting the scene for the series, in theme it reminds me of a childhood bed time story which I found extremely immersive and calming.

In terms of visuals, the title sequence doesn't go overboard with anything flashy, not that it wasn't possible considering the time at which it was made, but I believe this was done on purpose not to give away too many details about the series - just enough to set the scene. I find it intriguing though how the title sequence chose not to introduce any characters what so ever, but rather focus entirely on the setting.

The choice of lexis itself can tell a lot about media products. In this instance the overly minimalistic and sharp choice of a font creates a sense of futurism for the series. Additionally, the colour blue is often associated with futurism and even with feelings of security and calmness - maybe that is why I felt so at ease watching it! In contrast to Arcane I have mentioned above, Star Trek is extremely bold with its text. For example whilst looking at the title sequence to Arcane, I was completely blown away by the visuals that it was hard for me to actually acknowledge the written text on the screen. I believe due to the limitations at the time at which Star Trek was made, they couldn't exactly create those extreme visuals and potentially that is why they focused so much on text. Additionally, the conventions at the time were completely different to the ones of nowadays. Thinking back to media pieces of the early 70s, title sequences where quite text heavy back then (for example the iconic early Star Wars movies). It's festinating to see how much the industry standards have changed over time.

But moving on to the most fascinating part of this title sequence, the way in which it was actually made. Watching it for the first time I have instantly noticed the lighting casted upon the star ship. It really does feel like the took a miniature ship and moved in around against a green screen. I couldn't exactly find any information online about how it was actually made, but going off of my suspicions, I believe it was filmed using a prop against a green screen and later edited in post production to add the background, text, and music/narration. Overall, Star Treks title sequence is an icon of its time.