Title Research: "The Notebook"

 In the movie, The Notebook, there were 10 titles in the opening sequence of it. During the opening sequence I noticed that the most common images used were characters that are going to be in the film; these images carried a sense about the movie, kind of like giving the basis of the film. For example, the characters appear as ink blots on paper to symbolize the film being about a notebook of someone, this reinforced some background as well as fits the theme of the movie being a literal notebook. The outset used in the opening sequence creates mystery about the film by introducing it with soft music as well as the way the background is. The background seems to be a page with light writing in it indicating it being a notebook of some sort, but it does not answer who's notebook or its significance. Some strategies used to ensure that the film appeals to the target audiences are the slower transitions as well as placement of the characters. In the opening sequence the titles are written in normal print to capture the viewer as it being a person handwriting the titles in. Also, the transitions in the film play a large factor as they are slow fade outs of characters as well as titles that are replaced slowly. The images that come in also captivate the viewer as they are ink dots of characters to show it's being written in or made by a pen. The slow fade outs of the film are what really tie it together as it will present that the film will be more relaxed and not as tense as other thrillers. This goes for the angles as well being that the camera is held steady as POV in the beginning to show hands on the side holding a notebook, once the camera zooms into the pages the camera is held steady to make it clear that the notebook pages are the main focus.

Title Research: "Split"

How many titles are displayed during the opening sequences to the film?

There were 23 titles displayed in the opening sequence which included the starring actors, production company, casting agent, the editor, and more.

What images are prioritized in the opening sequence?
The opening sequence contained quick clips and images of the kidnapping situation that that takes place throughout the movie. The clips are scattered and quick as to not reveal too much about the film but still create a suspenseful introduction.

What connotations do the images carry?

The images create a feeling of suspense and fear through the fast unexpected cuts and the terrified expression on the young girls face. The images in the sequence also set the mood for the film by depicting a frightening kidnapping situation, which will clearly contain a lot of thrill and terror.

How is genre reinforced through symbolic and technical codes from the outset?

The genre is reinforced by through the symbolism of the frightening images. The images symbolize a situation that is supposed to seem intense and thrilling. These qualities match and reinforce the Thriller genre. Additionally, technical codes like the splitting of the screen into flashing boxes help portray the thriller genre as well.

How does the film establish an enigma from the outset?
The tiles and strange building briefly shown every few seconds establishes an enigma. It confuses but engages the reader as to what the images could mean and why they are significant. Additionally, the images of the girl also establish an an enigma since the audience would be confused as to why she is screaming.

What strategies are used to ensure the film appeals to its target audience?

For this specific movie, I would say the target audience would be someone looking to enjoy an intense thriller, and could most likely endure violent or frightening scenes. So, the film appeals to this type of viewer by maintaining elements of the genre and insuring the film appears to be thrilling and frightening from the start. The title sequence conveys these moods by quickly cutting from the fast appearing titles to disturbing clips of the victim being kidnapped while also including intense but eerie music.

How has technology been used effectively? You want to consider camera angles, transitions, and editing techniques?
Technology has been used effectively through the use of color, and simple, but purposeful effects that align with the common elements of a Thriller. The use of color is seen by the absence of it, when I say this I mean how the film maintains a black and white color scheme that clearly depicts not only the seriousness of the film but also the intensity of a physiological thriller. Additionally, the effects used in the title sequence appear to be minimal but this only adds to the mood that is tying to be achieved. The effects are the flashing back from each title and the random but fast-moving appearances of phrases across the screen that almost indicate a theme of horror.

Title Research: "Seven"

For this project my group and I researched the opening titles of movies. I chose to do the movie se7en which is the same genre we chose of thriller. During the opening sequence 27 titles are displayed. They included the directors, producers, actors, and etc. from the movie. Throughout the 2 minutes of the opening scene there are many images shown to represent what the movie will be about. It mostly incorporates slides that can be interpreted as setting up or hiding a murder. The images make the movie seem very mysterious and frightening as it does not show the face of anyone but includes hair, razor blades, and pictures of potential victims. The images carry a very threatening, secretive connotation. As the images play out, it reveals more about the murders and persuades the audience to want to keep on watching.
Throughout the opening the theme of thriller is heavily carried out. The use of mysterious pictures, notebooks, and forensics helps to portray the thriller theme. As well as the pictures, the text titles help the genre to be carried out. The font and the effect of the glitch on the titles carry the theme even further as it makes the movie seem suspenseful and spooky. Enigma, which is an object or person that is mysterious, puzzling, or hard to understand is represented through the opening title sequence. The opening purposely includes objects that are interesting but confusing so that it leads the audience to keep watching. This was presented by crossing out a child's face and writing notes in a book. It doesn't fully show you the what he writes but you know it is important because of the continuous videos they show of it.
Strategies that I noticed are used to appeal to certain audiences are the ability to make the scene look very secretive and show that something horrible is about to happen. Technology has been used very effectively whether it pertains to the camera angels pr the editing techniques. By the images being all close ups it portrays that the movie is going to be a suspenseful movie because they won't tell you important details, like who the killer is which makes it very mysterious and appealing to the audience. The editing techniques depicted, also allow the audience to feel thrilled and scared by the transitions of the titles and the effects used, such as the glitch effect.

Title Research: www.artofthetitle.com

Since we have started our final task, we began with finding our genre as well as researching it for our final task; now we began researching the titles of movies in our genre. After researching websites, we found the website artofthetitle.com. In this website, it has an overwhelming amount of movies as well as series, however, this website focuses on the titles of movies. For example, you are able to click on a movie such as "Venom" and see the opening 10 minutes to see the titles that pop up and pertain to that movie, the same thing with the final 10 minutes of the movie. For our purposes we will be focusing on the movies that have titles within the first 10 minutes as it is more relevant to our final task project. Also, we will be researching movies and movies only as our final task is the first 2 minutes to a movie. On the website you can search the designers as well as studios involved in the title sequence that would pertain to your movie for further research in your film. Finally, on the website you are able to directly search the movie you would like to see the opening or closing. This allows for a more direct search for specific kinds of movies that someone may have previously thought of.

Title Research: www.watchthetitles.com

One of the websites that my group is using for title research is watchthetitles.com. This is a website that is used specifically for studying the art of title making. It has over 200 title sequences and interviews for researchers to choose from. Not only does it provide us with example opening sequences to show the titles, it also gives an explanation of why they were chosen. This website was launched in 2006. Making it the world's very first web page that is dedicated to title design. The website opens up to a slideshow of potential films you can research. Underneath this, is a choice of interviews you can use as research. Once you get past the interviews, it brings you to the six different research categories. These categories consist of: feature film, TV shows, Event titles, student projects, video games, and French Fridays. At the top of the screen is where you can find the words "Title Sequence", clicking on this brings you to the many opening sequences that my group will be able to use for our title research. This website offers TV shows, student films, and movies of a variety of genres, making it the perfect website for my group to use. Some of the films that you can research on this website are the Pink Panther, The Dreamers, Splice, Sky Fighters, etc. After clicking on the film you choose, it will show you their open sequence, insider information, information about the film, and it will allow you to leave a comment. After researching this website my group feels more confident about of title research process. We will now pick a film(s) off this website and use them for our research.

Genre Research: “BirdBox”

Bird box

1. Common clamps: 

a. Costumes: Ragged, dirty, and distressed clothingand blindfolds. 

b. Lighting: Dark and dim lighting, creating suspense. 

c. Acting: The acting with the victims (sane characters) was always in fear, always ready for survival mode to kick in. While the insane characters were as happy as ever, and they wanted to share that happiness with the others.  

d. Makeup: The makeup and hair in this movie is used to make the characters look dirty and distressed.They also use makeup to apply blood, gashes, cuts, bruises, paler skin, gun shot wounds, etc. 

e. Props: The props used, resemble survival equipment. This is to help the characters play their parts as “potential survivors” of the end of the world. 

f. Setting: The setting changes from inside to outside. When the scene is outdoors it is more intense because the characters are at more of a risk. However, when the scene is indoors it is more suspenseful, in trying to determine what will happen next, or information, giving the audience a second to process what just happened. 

2. Common Cam: 

a. Angles:

b. Movements: A common camera movement was a tracking shot. This was used to keep up with the characters while they were running or trying to navigate while blindfolded. 

c. Shots: There were a lot of point of view shots, this let the audience experience what the characters were experiencing. Another shot that stood out was sort of a trunk shot it was from under the boat as the characters flipped it over. A shot that was used a lot during scenes on the river, were birds eye view shots. These shots showed the boat and the path they have taken along with the emptiness and loneliness around the characters. 

3. Common Sound:

a. A common type of sound was diegetic sound. This was the sound of the wind, bushes rustling, a character falling, the water rushing in the river. 

4. Common Editing:

a. Wjsvc 

5. Elements of Thriller: 

a. The movie fell under this genre, because of its phycological standpoint. The movie is about the survival of facing these creatures that take your greatest fear and deepest sadness and make you commit suicide. They get inside your head and if you open your eyes outside then you can see them.  

b. The movie also used suspense by showing what the ending was and then flashing back and forth from the end to the beginning. 

c. This also creates excitement by allowing the audience to create an explanation for the ending before it is shown. 

6. Elements I liked:

a. I liked all of these elements because I think they truly made the movie a must watch. They have your feelings running from excited to sad to relieved to scared and back to sad.  

7. Elements I disliked: 

a. I did not dislike any of the elements in the movie, I actually feel that the movie did its job, in leaving the audience wanting more to the story.

Genre Research: "Taken 2"

Common CLAMPS-  Costumes used in Taken 2 are used to represent real people/groups in the world. For example, the antagonist group is dressed as regular men as well as the protagonist in Taken 2 because in thrillers you want it to be like real life. As for the lighting in the film, it was the same as real life as they used natural light in some scenes and lights for others. An example would be as the protagonist is captured the lighting is more dim and sinister to build on the suspense of him already being captured. The makeup used in the movie is limited to show bruises, cuts, and injuries of the protagonist's journey to find the mother/ ex-wife. Makeup was used to the damages after a fight so mostly common bruises would be on the face and cute on the chest/arm. The props in Taken 2 were all used in a sense of violence as there were guns, knives, and other objects used in combat. The setting of Taken 2 is in Istanbul, Turkey as it is the main place for the vacation. The significance of this setting pertains to the storyline of a group who originates from there.

Common CAMS

Angles-  The angles used in a thriller are high angles/birds-eye view, eye level, and a dutch angle. These are all used because they create a dramatic and suspenseful effect. In Taken 2, the most obvious camera angle was the dutch and high angles. For example, during most chasing scenes, the camera is at a higher angle to capture the full essence of one character being right behind the other one. Also during the more serious scenes of the film, the camera tilts toward a dutch angle to maintain the build-up of suspense.

Movements- The most common camera movements used in thrillers are tracking shots, zoom shots, and pan or tilts. These are used to help develop the story and keep the viewer engaged and make the movie feel suspenseful. In Taken 2, the camera is often tracking the protagonist as he runs throughout the city looking for the mother who was kidnapped. Also, during Taken 2 zooming in was a large part of the film's technique of building up suspense. For example, as the protagonist would talk on the phone with the antagonist, the camera zoomed in to a close up which further developed the suspense in the film.

Shots- Common shots in thrillers usually are Point of View shots, close-up shots, and long shots. The reason being is that these shots develop a more intense scene. An example would be the close-ups used in Taken 2. Each time the protagonist goes on the phone with the antagonist, a close up is applied to strengthen the intensity of the scenes.

Common Sound- In thriller movies,  common sounds are sounds that can be either very loud and intense or purposeful specific sounds in order to draw in the audience. In Taken 2, I noticed that a majority of the film was accompanied by loud action music with upbeat noises. The diegetic sound used in Taken 2 was common noises such as a car honking to represent the genre's theme of real-life events. This completes the movies spot as a thriller film as it maintains the genre's high-intensity events

Common editing- The editing in thrillers is usually fast, rapid changes from scene to scene. Examples of edits used are jump cuts, flashbacks, action changes. Any kind of edits that move the story along while maintaining suspense is used in thrillers. In Taken 2, an example of these edits is in the middle of the movie as the protagonist moves through a city and the angles and shots change rapidly due to the editing styles implemented.

Elements of Genre- The elements of Taken 2 closely fit with the Thriller Genre. Thriller Genre films usually contain victims falling prey to someone else's plan or scheme. Additionally, thrillers should be told from the point of view of the victim or protagonist. In taken two, the story is a sequel to a daughter being kidnapped by a foreign group and the father of the victim racing to find her. The description of the movie shows every common element in a thriller as it is shown from the protagonist's point of view. Also, thrillers are meant to cause extreme amounts of suspense and in Taken 2, viewers are overwhelmed with suspense as they wait for the story to play out.

What Elements do I like- The Elements of the thriller genre that I enjoy are how the story revolves around a person. For example, in Taken 2 the storyline revolves around the ex-wife/mother and her journey of being kidnapped. It keeps the story in line and organized as well as keeps the viewer engaged throughout.

What Elements I dislike- One of the elements of thrillers that I personally dislike is that sometimes the suspense can be too much at times to the point where the viewer is puzzled a little bit. For example, in Taken 2, the beginning of the film is confusing as to who the white-haired man is (the antagonist). This being because of the amount of suspense surrounding the character.