Flim Opening Research

Hey, today on the blog I am going to demonstrate all I know about film openings, like the key elements, the purposes and reasons, and the similarities of opening scenes. I'll also compare horror, thriller, and science fiction, also known as sci-fi.The key elements of the opening scenes are the tone, setting, foreshadowing, and conflict. The tone of the opening scene is critical to setting the mood for the rest of the film. For example, if you watch the opening scene and it's depressing, you wouldn't expect the rest of the film to be cheerful. Setting: The setting of the opening scene is where the story takes place, the plot of the story, and the audience's expectations. Foreshadowing in the opening scene tells a lot about the plot of the movie. It's important to introduce conflict in the opening scene to show the different relationships between the characters. The purpose of film openings is to grab our attention with how they introduce characters and show the genre. How the opening scenes grab our attention is important because, without it, we wouldn't watch the movie. The characters and how they are introduced in the opening scene tells the audience their personality and the role they play in the film. The opening scene reveals the genre of the movie, because the genre has a great influence on the movie. The similarities in the opening scenes are that all opening scenes share a theme and have a message to send. All opening scenes should have a hook leading the audience to an inciting incident.

Horror, thrillers, and science fiction are three very similar yet different genres. The colors of horror are red and black, while thrillers use blue, yellow, and black, and science fiction uses a completely different color palette of red, green, yellow, and blue. Horror often uses sharp violins to build suspense and science fiction uses ambient music, while thrillers often use loud motivating music, which is different to the very subtle music horror and sci-fi use. Overall, characters in thrillers are developed to be smart, unpredictable, charismatic, and brave. Character development is very important in horror to make deaths more meaningful, and science fiction uses character development to fit into the setting and structure. All of these movies' plot structures start in the opening scene. In horror films, women are often represented as victims and men are represented as monsters or heroes, while men are often represented as the main protagonists in thrillers and action movies.

  

There are several different types of film opening that are used across genres: prologue, inciting incident, day in the life, cold opening, and Flash-forward. The prologue gives context to what’s happening through the backstory. There is a type without the voiceover and one with it. The version without the voiceover leaves a ton of exposition to the viewer compared to the version without the voiceover. The version without the voiceover is most likely a flashback, which suggests flashbacks lack tension when done wrong. The inciting incident is a profound change in the protagonist's life that sets the scene for the rest of the movie. A Day in the Life is a type of opening scene that introduces the main character before the hectic events that take place in the film. There are two types of "Day in the Life" openings: exciting and uneventful. The exciting day in their lives displays a dramatic moment in their mundane lives (ex. spy, cop, or bank robber). While the mundane days of life establish the main character, tone, or genre without introducing conflict. Cold open is essentially a teaser for the film, not involving the main characters. Flash forward to when the opening scene takes place in the present timeline of the film, making the film lead up to that point. 

://www.studiobinder.com/blog/best-opening-scenes-in-movies/

https://gizmodo.com/secrets-of-great-characters-according-to-6-science-fic-5065556

https://mythcreants.com/blog/five-essentials-for-an-opening-scene/

Film Opening Analysis

Hi, during class we were assigned to complete an analysis of film openings, I picked some of my favorite films Suicide Squad, Freaky Friday and ET.

Suicide Squad (2016) is an action, fantasy and adventure movie directed by David Ayer, starring Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Will Smith as Deadshot and Jared Leto as The Joker. Suicide Squad is about a group of felons, Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Killer Croc, El Diablo, Katana and Captain Boomerang are assembled by the government to go on high-risk missions, they have a bomb implanted in their neck and is set to go off if they ever attempt to escape. The Joker hears about Harley's predicament and blackmails one of the scientists to disable her bomb implant. Enchantress, took over Dr. June Moone's body and send out her minions to try to kidnap Harley, after Jokers helicopter gets shot down trying to get her. The squad battle Enchantress together, they almost lost the battle until Harley got close enough to cut out The Enchantress heart.

The opening scene is four minutes and twenty-three seconds long, and starts with logos that appear littered with graffiti and has a dark background mimicking a dark alley often associated with crime and danger, which connotes that all the main characters are dangerous. Next it transitions to an establishing shot of what looks like a dingy, somber prison with a black sky, that imply evil and also shows where some main characters live. It introduces the character punching a punching bag rather aggressively, being disrespectful to the prison guards and kicking them away which doesn't give the audience an accurate insight on the role he plays in the rest of the movie he is rather sarcastic, pragmatic and sometimes compassionate as shown with the relationship he has with his daughter. The groans transition us with an L-cut to the next scene of Harley Quinn swinging upside down in a cage, symbolizing her lack of freedom, but her swinging shows how she's feeling care free in these circumstances. This gives us great insight on her personality and how she doesn't care how anyone thinks of her. In the next shot, empowering music starts playing while the guards walk in, the cage shocks her and a flash back of her sitting vulnerably on the ground and being abused by the guards start playing, she screams and slams her head into the bar. All of this emphasizes how crazy and unpredictable she is in the movie, and the effect being imprisoned has caused her. Next it cuts to a scene of two black cars pulling up to a building, with a body guard with a gun coming out and protecting the woman coming out of the car showing her importance to the plot, she starts talking about the death of superman then it cuts to the title with the same dark alley aesthetic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7KrSSPelCA&t=2s

Freaky Friday (2003) is a comedy and a fantasy movie directed by David Waters, starring Jamie Lee Curtis as Tess Coleman and Lindsay Lohan as her daughter, Anna. Freaky Friday is about a mother and daughter who don't get along, Anna loves punk music and has aspirations to preform with her band and Tess is a writer, psychologist, and author and about to get remarried to her fiancé. They switched bodies after receiving a fortune cookie from a Chinese restaurant, and they have no option but to be one other, after they see what they go through on a daily basis they have gained a new respect for one another.

The movie starts off with an opening scene that is one minute and forty-five seconds long of imagery of mothers and daughters together, the pictures go from ancient to more recent times showing the progression of the mother-daughter relationships like how in the film their relationship progresses from irritating to understanding it fades to the title of the movie and the music picks up. Establishing shot of the house, as she snoozes the alarm and the music get louder like her loud chaotic presence. Her room is messy, that has a connotation that Anna is disobedient. Her mom, Tess, comes in her room and tries to wake her up, but she refuses covering her head with a pillow and started yelling at her displaying her difficult personality traits. Tess meditates and does her nails, two both very calming activities highlighting two very different personalities. Tess attempts to wake Anna for the 2nd time the 3rd time instead of yelling at her to wake up, Tess pulls on her legs and Anna resists again, displaying her disobedience. Tess gets frustrated and storms out the room. Her little brother blows a horn in her face then Anna chases him out the room which shows how the annoying her little brother is and how short-tempered Anna is. When she slammed the door it reveals a sign that said to keep out her room in black and white displaying her rebellious traits.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7CQWSGo7Ac&t=5s

 

E.T (1982) is a family science fiction movie directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Henry Thomas as Elliott, Drew Barrymore as Gertie and Peter Coyote as Keys. The movie is about a benevolent alien was found stranded on earth by a little boy, Elliot. Elliot was lonely, so he took the alien in to be his companion, he named the alien ET. Elliot's siblings saw ET inside the house and kept it a secret, and ET grew a bond together. The government tries to go after ET to examine him.

The opening scene is 8:03 minutes long, and the film starts off with logos in a space aesthetic. The 1st shot is out of the world showing earth from space, ambient music starts playing over the title and credits to set the movie of the movie. In the next shot it starts at the sky and pans down to a forest during the night, a hand with two fingers reach towards a branch. It transitions to strange plants and pyramid shaped objects, a group of aliens walk towards to a sapling and take it with them in the spaceship. It reveals a city though the branches, an alien looks out on it. A car pulls up in the forest and spots the aliens, a group of men come out of the car and start chasing the alien far out into the forest. The men hunting the alien are frozen in place after seeing the spaceship leave, but the ship leaves an alien behind.
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrTm9pYfbgo

 

 

Main Purposes of an Opening Scene

The main purposes of an opening scene, is to introduce the characters, grab the audience's attention, set the tone for the film. Suicide Squad introduces the some main characters, in the introduction alone we get to know Harley Quinn and Dead-shot, the film grabs the audience by using bright colors and appealing imagery and the opening scene sends a threatening tone throughout the rest of the movie. The main purpose of ET's opening scene was for the audience to know what the plot, and it introduces one of the main characters and the lore behind them. The main purpose of Freaky Friday's opening scene was to introduce the characters, the dynamic they have.

Compare / Contrast

All the movies I've chosen have very similar and different, all the movies have themes of rebellion, but all have very different aesthetics. ET has an outer space aesthetic meant for children unlike Freaky Friday which is make for teens with a rebellious aesthetic with a messy room, the way Anna dresses, Suicide Squad also has this aesthetic but toned up. The stereotypes between each opening scene differ, like all teenage girls are anger or rebellious in Freaky Friday and that all the guards are dumb in Suicide Squad. Based on viewing the opening scene, the one alien who got left behind in ET is important, the mom and her daughter are important to the plot of Freaky Friday and all the prisoners are important to the plot of Suicide Squad.

"It" is a thriller/horror movie that is about the town of Derry being terrorized by this shapeshifting clown. The titles of horror movies are typically in a big red scratchy font. the information you could tell in the title scene is some symbolism of the genre of the movie, and the title of the movie like in the movie "It" the title scene follows all the conventions of the horror genre. The dark mise en scene of the movie informs the audience of the genre, and sets it up as a thriller looking for the justice young boy (Georgie). 

The first two minutes of "It" opening scene a shot-by-shot analysis:

Shot 1 (7 seconds): The 1st shot is a tracking shot of the little boy and an establishing shot of the neighborhood (Georgie) at a high angle, exposing his vulnerably. The tracking shot of Georgie made the audience feel as if we are walking with him. The low-key lighting and the white noise of the rain give the shot a somber feeling to it, revealing the eerie horror tone of the movie.

Shot 2 (3 seconds): This shot introduces on older protecting figure telling the little boy to be careful. His sincere tone of voice telling his little brother to be careful is subconsciously letting the audience know we should trust him. The dark room and overall monotone color scheme still represent the bleak tone of the movie and starts to solidify the movie's genre as horror. 

Shot 3 (2 seconds): This shot is crucial for the opening scene of the movie setting off a chain reaction for the future of Georgie. This shot still captures the gloomy tone of the other two shots with the ambiance of the rain and thunder and the low-key lighting.

Shot 4 (3 seconds): This shot builds the tension, with the slow detailed progression of shots it creates a sense of anxiety for the viewers. Also, this shot has the same dismal theme, with the same ambiance of the rain and the lack of color intensifying the disquietude of the shot. 

Shot 5 (5 seconds): This shot is forcing the audience to follow the paper boat through the shot's composition is set framing the paper boat, this is an indication that the paper boat will be important to the opening scene. Music of ringing bells start playing in the background accentuating the uncanny tone of the opening scene and is signaling the start of a pursuit.

Shot 6 (8 seconds): This shot starts with the camera panning down and is a tracking shot of Georgie starts running down after the paper boat, making the audience feel as we are running with him. There was eerie music playing in the back, and Georgie, the young child was laughing in the background and sustains the terrifying tone. This shot still captures the gloomy tone of the other shots with the ambiance of the rain and thunder and the low-key lighting.

Shot 7 (3 seconds): This shot is the same as shot 4 in the same regard that it used to build tension. With an extreme long shot of the little boy running after the paper boat. This shot is different, the shot is filmed in a bird's eye view and is spinning down this gives the shot a disorientated feeling while still sustaining the grim tone of the other shots with the ambiance of the rain and thunder and the low-key lighting.

Shot 8 (2 seconds): This shot is a medium shot of Georgie running towards the paper boat which focuses on Georgie and the background of the forest behind him. The forest symbolizes how isolated that Georgie is, and this idea is also reinforced by the lighting has got darker making the shot feel like Georgie was forsaken. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring.

Shot 9 (1 second): In shot Georgie facing his back to the camera in a medium shot running. The medium shot focuses on character and environment, In the background of the shot there is two barricade that looks like Georgie is about to run into. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring.

Shot 10 (2 seconds): This shot is showing a side angle of Georgie ducking under the barricade. This shot is quick making the fact that he almost got hit in the head minimal. He still continues to run after the boat making the audience view Georgie as reckless. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring.

Shot 11 (2 seconds): Shot 11 is in Georgie's POV, only focusing in on the boat until the last second. This shot details how hyper focused that Georgie was on the paper boat that he did not notice the big barricade. The POV puts the audience in Georgie's eyes as a young child trying to have fun and catch the paper boat. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot.

Shot 12 (1 second): In this shot Georgie is pictured hitting his head at a different angle, the different angle symbolizes him being snapped out of the transfixion on the paper boat. The music suddenly stopping also reinforces this idea. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 13 (3 seconds): A lower angle shot of Georgie falling, this shot feels slower compared to the rest of the shots and making everything more suspenseful with the change in pace. The low-key lighting and the sounds of rain and thunder are still prevalent adding to the tone of the shot.

Shot 14 (2 seconds): A long shot of Georgie on the ground, the composition makes the paper boat look bigger compared to everything else in frame and the rack focus of Georgie to the paper boat tell the audience that Georgie still has a hyper focus on the boat even after getting hit on the heads with the barrier. The low-key lighting and the sounds of rain and thunder are still prevalent adding to the tone of the shot. 

 Shot 15 (3 seconds): Georgie is not hesitant and immediately gets up and chases the paper boat he stumbles a little after getting up and the tracking continues. The stumbling symbolizes that Georgie isn't in the right state of mind or physical health to keep chasing after the boat. The music picks up again showing that his venture is not over. The low-key lighting and the sounds of rain and thunder are still prevalent adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 16 (2 seconds): This shot is starts with a pan down and is a long shot of Georgie running down the dark road. The long shot emphasizes the gloomy neighborhood place, Georgie running down the street.  The low-key lighting and the sounds of rain and thunder are still prevalent adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 17 (1 second): This shot is a medium shot of Georgie running towards the paper boat which focuses on Georgie and the background of the forest behind him. The forest symbolizes how isolated that Georgie is, and this idea is also reinforced by the lighting has got darker making the shot feel like Georgie was forsaken. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot.

Shot 18 (2 seconds): This shot is a tracking shot of the paper boat heading to a sewage system. This shot looks as if it is a POV from Georgie's perspective. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot.

Shot 19 (1 second): This shot is a long shot of Georgie running after the paper boat emphasizing the sewer that the paper boat is going t

o fall into nearby and Georgie running though the rain, The music raises adding to the menacing feeling. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot.

Shot 20 (1 second): This shot shows the paper boat falling into the sewer drain. The shot is a close-up signifying the importance that this paper boat plays into the plot of the movie. The music also intensifies as the paper boat falls into the drain also displaying the importance of the paper boat. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 21 (1 second): This shot is a medium close-up shot of Georgie screaming while running towards the boat. The medium close-up shot focuses on the fact that Georgie is screaming. The screaming indicates that the paper boat fell down the drain and how important that the paper boat is to Georgie. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 22 (1 second): This shot is over the paper boat falling down the sewer drain. The way the camera is positioned behind the sewer drain gives the shot a dramatic touch and Georgie running after the boat reinforces the suspense of the shot. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot.  

Shot 23 (1 second); In shot 23 Georgie looks for the paper boat in the sewer. In the perspective we see Georgie he is surrounded in darkness symbolizing the evil living down in the sewer and the unfortunate circumstances that Georgie might experience.  The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 24 (2 seconds): This is a long shot of Georgie looking into the sewer. The long shot emphasizes the location of the sewer and the forest surrounding him, while showing the action of Georgie looking into the sewer. Georgie also exclaims that his older brother bill is going to "kill him" which gives the audience a reason on why he keeps looking for the paper boat. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 25 (4 seconds): This shot entails a slow dolly in into the sewer drain while Georgie is peering into the sewer. The slow dolly forces the audience's attention towards the sewer and builds anticipation within the audience.  The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot, but the music halts.  

Shot 26 (2 seconds):  This shot is a close up of Georgie's face. The close up shot draws the audience to the emotion Georgies intrigued facial expression. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 27 (1 second): This shot is a POV of what Georgie is seeing down the sewer. In the sewer there is bright green glowing eyes. This is very sudden for the audience essentially jump scaring them, which is also a convention in horror movies. This shot also successful introduces the main villain during the movie a clown named "It".  The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 28 (2 seconds): During this shot Georgie jumps back and makes this grunting sound. The shot is still a close up to draw the audience to the frighted emotion that Georgie is feeling. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 29 (4 seconds): This shot is close up of the clown, the clown slowly reveals himself by coming closer to the light. The light only hits the clowns chin giving him a sinister expression on the clown's face. The clown exclaims "Hiya Georgie" and proceeds to give him his boat trying to lure Georgie closer. This shot is at a slower pace compared to the previous shots to make his shot more tense and adding anticipation. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 30 (1 second): This shot is a close up of Georgie. The close-up of Georgies face successfully displays the flabbergasted expression that he has on his face, in reaction to the clown. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 31 (3 seconds): This shot is of the clown asking Georgie if he wants the paper boat back. The clown makes a blank start into the distance, when speaking to Georgie which gives an uneasy ambiance. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 32 (2 seconds):  This shot is a close up of Georgie. The close-up draws the audience to the startled expression that Georgie is feeling responding to the clown. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 33 (4 seconds): This shot is over the shoulder shot displaying Georgies back and the clowns face. The clown said, "You look like a nice boy it looks like you have a lot of friends". The also picks up music. This shot is used for conversation and the continuity of the opening scene. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 34 (4 seconds): This shot is a close up of Georgie from the POV of the clown. The close-up draws the audience to the startled expression that Georgie is feeling responding to the clown. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 35 (4 seconds):  This shot is a close up of the clown.  The close-up draws the audience to the eerie expression that clown. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Shot 36 (3 seconds): This shot is a close up of Georgie from the POV of the clown. The close-up draws the audience to the startled expression that Georgie is feeling responding to the clown. The ambiance of the rain and thunder is still occurring adding to the tone of the shot. 

Cinematography

Cinematography is important to a film, controlling how we see and feel about a shot. Cinematography includes angles, shots, and movement. Shots like POV are used to show characters' perspectives, while undershot is used to show underneath the subject. eye level, which makes the audience feel apart from the scene, overshot is looking over at an action, extreme close up is used to show emotion, close up draws attention to the character's expression, medium close up focuses on what the character is doing, medium shot focuses on the background and the character, full shot emphasizes action, long shot emphasizes location while showing location, extreme long shot shows the location. Angles like high angles show weakness, while low angles show power. The identifying shot types and angles assignment was fun to do. I took pictures of my friend in several different shots and angles, which helped me learn the different angles I needed to know to identify and find the meaning of. I also had to find examples of different camera movements on YouTube in a hurry to get to my next class on time. Looking back on this, I should have organized the pictures better, but I think I did well for the allotted amount of time given.

Source: Terms Glossary

Mise-en-Scene

The majority of last week was dedicated to mise-en-scene and the project we did along with it. I learned a lot of new information that assisted with the project. I already knew that mise-en-scene is a French word that means everything you see on screen, and everything that is on the screen the film director put there for a reason, but I didn't know that the reason was to create a mood for the movie. Everything from the design, setting, props, lighting, and acting plays a huge role in the meaning and the audience's response to the film. It allows viewers to experience a place and time and influences the way we think of the characters and story. The two major visual components are design and composition, which also influence the tone of a film.

The project I did was to use components of mise-en-scene to create meaning in my photo. I used a Superman figure, two pieces of construction paper, and a blue light to create my photo. used the two pieces of paper to make the background and the ground and got on my knees to get a low angle to create a sense of power for the figure. The blue light I obtained from my friend also accomplishes the feeling of power. Looking back on this, I could have bought a more detailed figure that would have helped play into the illusion of the picture. I like the light reflecting off the figure, creating more of a dramatic tone for the picture. Sources: notes

 

Genre Research

On September 20, 2021, we started researching a film genre. Our group chose drama. It was quite an experience working with people I had never worked with before and getting to know their work ethic. Setting up a group chat and Zoom calls to research, edit, and format the PowerPoint. Our little group chat was freaking out the night before, when we had to do what seemed like the most daunting task, presenting PowerPoint. Presenting in the class was not as dreadful as we made it out to be. We listened to all our classmates' presentations too. They had films in genres like sci-fi, horror, and romantic comedy. When my peers presented their pieces on the different film genres, I gained additional information to use when identifying the genres of a film. So far, they have presented action, romantic comedy, horror, musicals, and the science fiction genres. A brief summary of the genres: Action usually contains sequences like fighting, car chases, or explosions. Romantic comedies tell a love story in a humorous way. Horror films portray what we fear in film. Musicals are narratives with songs interwoven. Sci-fi films incorporate science-based themes into their films. Drama is a genre that includes stories with high stakes and a lot of conflict, which is the heart of drama. A comedy is a lighthearted film, a fantasy is fiction with a mystical element, a mystery is the solving of a crime or a problem, and a thriller is dark and suspenseful.

For the project, we had to research what drama is, the conventions, and the social functions. For example, one of the uses of drama is to bring people together. It influences the way we view people in different situations and the way we think. Drama also exposes us to different cultures, family dynamics, and representations. The movie that best represents the genre, Wonder, the history, and the analysis of drama, Drama is created and shaped by role, character, relationships, situations, atmosphere, and tension, like using silence to create tension. This gets viewers emotionally attached to films using gratification theory, personal relationships, and personal identity. The audience of these films sympathizes with and relates to the characters. Dramas aim to tell a story of human struggles, with high stakes and conflicts. We divided the questions amongst each other, so I was picked to select the short clips, analyze an important drama movie, and help my groupmate dive into the history of drama. I learned a lot about drama, like how to identify a drama, its conventions, and what makes a drama film. For example, I learned that Wonder is a drama movie because of all the high stakes and conflicts. After doing this project, I realize that there are certain aspects of the project I misunderstood, and I should have added more of the conventions of drama. I should have also summarized the information on the slides instead of crowding the slides with information. I like the overall aesthetic of the PowerPoint and the pictures that contributed to it. Some of the strong sources my group members used were also great.