In class we have been discussing on the different features an opening sequence must have in a film.
Today, I will be analysing the film This is England to show how a popular British Social Realism film was first presented to the audience.If you are interested in watching the particular clip I have analysed,click here.
A short summary - This is England has an opening sequence of 3 minutes and 35 seconds long, but my production is to be 2 minutes long.The opening sequence begins with the iconic 'Roland the Rat' to show the beginning of an archive of old tv show clips that represents the era.The use of different old clips illuminates the different aspects of British life and culture,this then hints to the audience that this film will be about what England was like in the 80's.It is an important convention for an opening sequence of a film to suggest what the film will be themed around.
A particular theme that is heavily focused on is politics, in particular , the time of Margret Thatcher.
This is denoted from the close ups of Thatcher herself and wide shots of political outbursts and protests at the time.
However, the music used is from a Jamaican origin,which emphasizes the variety of culture at the time and how Britain was becoming increasingly more multi-cultural along with the footage of British figures,contrasting the reggae music to the people who were predominately white in the clips.This means the theme of Race is represented through the opening sequence also because the film has in fact got a scene where a young black man is beaten because of his colour,which reflect the Jamaican music with the white people used in the old clips.
In my own production, I am thinking of doing this in a similar fashion with TV news clips to represent the modern day and also use lots of different shots to highlight the setting and how in London there is a wide range of ethnicity and origin.
-00.06 seconds
"FILMFOUR and UK FILM COUNCIL present"
The first title is used to display who produced and financially supported the making of this film so they audience are aware of who they are.This gives the opening sequence a good start because clarifying it is FILMFOUR presenting this ensures that the film will be good as they have a high success rate for films.
00.10 seconds
"In association with EM MEDIA and SCREEN YORKSHIRE"
This title is used to exhibit to the audience who the film commissioner/producer were associate with in the developing of the film.This is mostly just used to give them some credit.
00.16 seconds
"A WARP FILMS production"
This tells the audience who produced the film so they can acknowledge them with other films made of a similar genre perhaps.
00.21
"In association with BIG ARTY PRODUCTIONS"
This is just to tell the audience who the producers worked with to give them credit.
00.23
"A SHANE MEADOWS film"
Here,the Director is exposed quite early on the opening sequence so the audience are aware of who directed the following film before they watch any further in the opening sequence to give his title more dominance.
00.37
"This is England"
Title of the film is placed after the Director's name to highlight the link between the film director and the film itself.All previous titles were blacked out but there is more a contrast for the film title because it is overlayed on the archive clip of the housing area.
0.44-
Actors e.g "Thomas Turgoose"
From 0.44 we begin to see the name of the actors used in the film.They come in the order of the highest payed actor to the least. Of course the highest payed actor would be the person who in the lead or is a well-known actor.The numbers used under the actors names represent the number of soilders died during the Falklands War.
2.07-
"Script Supervisor
DIARMID SCRIMSHAW
Casting
LOUISE MEADOWS
DES HAMILTON
Hair and makeup Supervisor
DONALD MCONNES"
At 2.07 we get a list of credits for the Script Supervisor , Casting Director and Hair and Makeup Supervisor, this tells the audience who was in charge of certain areas in this film.Unlike the Director who got to have black out title with only his job title on it, it is suggested these Supervisors perhaps were either not credited enough or did not have alot of input for the film as their titles are put together,giving no sense of individuality as they are overlayed over the archive to blend it.
This continues with other crew members such as the Costume Designer , Hair and Makeup Designer, Production Designer, Music Supervisor and Original Music.
Director of Photography , Editor , Line producer, Co - Producer and Executive Producers.
3.14
"Produced by Mark Herbet"
Torwards the end we are finally notified who the film was predominately produced by and at
3.25
We are introduced to Shane Meadows name again as the Writer and Director which highlights his importance in the film.Second crediting Meadows gives the audience more recognition for his name which inturn makes them more aware of the Director so they can learn about this style of work.
Institutional logo-
From the institutional logo , we can denote white block text overlaying in front of a block of flats.Not all windows have curtains and you can see the grass is quite patchy.Near the front of the entrance we can denote a group of young kids waving.From this , we can connote that England has big rowdy families because of the windows with washing present and the kids we see at the entrance.England is represented as a poverty stricken area because a block of flats is shown in a lower class area rather than a big warm house in a richer area and not all the residents can afford curtains!
The institutional logo is written in white block typography with the words "This is England".The white colour along with the word "England" highlights how England harbors the majority of white British citizens.The relevance to colour and country sets up the possibility that racism can be a theme as well as the representation of white people in England.
Typography-
From the typography we can denote white block text overlaying different clips of the combined archive.Underneath the titles we denote some random numbers.I can now tell you that the numbers represent the British soldiers that were killed in the Falklands war, this is linked to the storyline because Sean lives with only his Mummy as his Daddy was killed in the Falklands war.
The colour white can be associated with either purity or lifeless to symbolise death, due to the opening sequence using archive clips of war mixed in with people dancing acts as an enigma for the audience as they are unaware of what the exact narrative follows.
The typography is also plain in a block style , giving a sense of practicality which sets the mundane feel that BSR films should exemplify because it is boring and simple and doesn't give any themes away.
What did I learn about Titles/Typography in
class?-
In lesson we learnt that to make our typography look more professional,it should be overlayed on the footage instead of being blacked out.
A nice idea I would like to use in my own work is the concept of motion tracking,so my writing follows nicely with what is shown on screen.
Here is a tick list of titles I need to include -
- Film 4 Logo
- Film title
- Name of the actors
- Casting director
- Costume designer
- Film editors
- Music editor
- Production designer
- Name of the Producer and Director
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