3 Film Credit Sequences

 Credit Sequences

Seven Pounds: This film sticks to a very traditional kind of style which shows the credits being displayed on a black screen while in between all the shots of the main character. In the drama genre, the black screen is very important because it develops this pause the viewers are forced to take to think.

(Seven Pounds, 2008)

Juno: The credits in this film are use a "cut out" style, meaning that the text appear as if they were cut off from a newspaper or magazine of some sort. This makes the font look very uneven and messy which helps represent the film by using the credits. The messyness of the credits tell the viewer a lot about the main character already, making them appear messy, creative, all over the place.

(Juno, 2007)

The Perks of Being a Wallflower: The credits of this film are placed in lower corner of the frame while the characters are in the car. This is done to make the viewer pay more attention to the characters than the credits. The letters also appear to be transparent so you can slightly see things through them like the lights from the city. The letters are also in all lowercase which is very important as it represents the sadness and intimacy in the film.

(The Perks of Being a Wallflower, 2012)

3 Film Openings

 Openings

As I continue my research for my project, I have been looking at the opening scenes of some drama films to give me inspiration. The three films I will go over in this blog are Pursuit of Happyness (I know I talked about this one before but I love this example), Lady Bird, and Moonlight

In the opening scene of this film, it shows how cluttered the environment is and uses multiple long shots to show the contrast between the main character, Will Smith, and the rest of San Francisco. The long shots help develop the idea that the area Will Smith's character lives in is relatively poor and shows his financial situation. A lot of tracking shots are used in this openign to show him walking the through the busy crowds representing his hustle and determination. The lighting is also very grim and not great quality keeping the footage real and "raw" which is one of the conventions of a drama/social realism film.

In the opening of the film called Lady Bird there is a mother and a daughter who are shown to be arguing about somehting in a car. This establishes the relationship between these two characters. The editing is very quick like an action movie to show the emotioons of the scene. The use of props in the opening is also used very well. For example, Lady Bird is wearing a cast which already shows her broken and fragile nature before she even utters a word.

This opening is the most important film which is helping conduct my research as I want to do something with a broken and struggling teenager and this film relates heavily to what I want to do for my project. The opening in this film is quite unique as it uses a square frame. This is done to make the viewer feel very tight and represent the character as having very little room to breathe or freedom. The shots are mostly handheld and follows her very closely using medium shots and close ups. The background is also made very blurry to make the viewer only focus on the main character.

Schedule

 Schedule

Creating an entire film is already very difficult, so I know that I need to create schedule for how I will organize all this because the more organized I am, the easier this process will be and less stressfull.

1) Research

I will start by researching the genres that I will be considering and watch some of the openings of some of the films from that genre.

2) Planning

After I have confirmed which genre I am planning to commit to, I will begin planning for my own opening. This will consist of creating storyboards, location scouting, prop gathering, etc.

3) Pre-Production

This part in the process wil just be doing all the paperwork like writting my script, finishing any storyboards and a shot list for when I begin my filming.

4)Production

During this step, I will try to film all the shots that I intend to have on film and shoot extra shots for each scene to help me choose which one I will use when editing.

5) Editing

This is the meat of the project! This part will be the most difficult part, which is putting all the work I have done and everything I have filmed into one piece. For editing, I will use either adobe premiere or clipchamp to bring together all my clips and sounds. This part I know will take the most time, so I want to try an finished all the other steps as early as possible, so I can focus on the editing for a longer period of time.

Timeline

Week 1: 1/16 - 1/23

• Research

Week 2-3: 1/26 - 2/8

• Planning
• storyboards
• location scouting
• prop gathering

Week 4: 2/9 - 2/15

• pre production

Week 5-6: 2/16 - 3/1

• Production'

Week 7-8: 3/2 - 3/17

• Editing

Start of Portfolio Project

 Portfolio Project

Hey there Cambridge! This post will mark the beginning of my journey for my portfolio project and all my posts from here on out will be centered around this project. I am very excited to get started and come up with a creative plan for my 2 minute opening. Currently I am in between two possible genres: social realism/drama or thriller. Both genres are very appealing to me, but im leaning more towards social realism as of right now, however I know this may change in the near future.

If I were to choose the genre social realism, what I had in mind was to create a story about someone growing up in poverty with many struggles. The only problem is that I do not live in a poor environment, rather my environment is unironically the opposite. So this would be hard as the location would not quite suffice for the opening.

On the other hand, if I were to create a thriller film opening, the location would work either way as it is not as relevant to the plot of whatever film I would choose to create.

Aproach

My first step to starting this project is to figure out which genre I am going to be going with. After I confirm which one I will commit to work on I will try to watch multiple examples of films from the category of genre I will be creating. For example, if I choose to commit to the social realism genre, I will begin analyzing dramas like "kitchen sinks". Looking at pre-existing films in this genre will help me learn how to build my location and sense of place at the beginning of the opening.

Portfolio Project Genre #2

 Social Realism Research

This genre is a sub-genre of Drama and I am also considering choosing social realism as my genre as it is something in my eyes that stands out from the other genres. It does not require all the flashy effects and animations, but it is facinating as it just captures the human life.

Conventions

The films are typically filmed in urban settings usually in places that represent poverty or unemployment. The characters in these films are mainly just ordinary working class citizens who are struggling. They are themed around main struggle such as unemployment, homelessness, depression, etc. Most of the time, these films tend to be very sad and heartfelt as the viewer is watching the characters go through their harsh struggles which has an effect on the viewer. These films also tend to appear more low quality to match the mood of poverty or struggling situation.

(Pursuit of Happyness, 2006)

Techniques

Social realsim films sometimes use non-proffesional actors to make the film seem more authentic and real to the viewer. This makes the film look more like a documentary rather than a film.

(American Honey, 2016)

Setting

Social realism films are almost always filmed on the actual location of where the film is trying to portray. They are almost never done on a soundstage. For instance, they could be shot on real apartment buildings, streets, houses, parks, etc. This helps to create the realistic and raw look to the film.

(Brokeback Mountain, 2005)

Fiveable. (2025, September). Social realism. https://fiveable.me/key-terms/film-and-media-theory/social-realism

Portfolio Project Genre #1

 Action/Crime Thrillers

Genre Conventions

Many thriller films use techniques such as suspense, fast paced, and plot twists to engage the audience to keep them always indulged in the film and never bored. They are also centered around life or death sitatuations as these scenes cause a lot of suspense to the viewer. Additionally, there is typically crime related scenes in these films revealing a major villian in the movie.

 The Joker is a prime example of a crime related thriller which reveals a big villian in the film.

Target Audience

Crime related thrillers are typyically seen to be viewed slilghty more by the male audience than the female audience, but nothing significant. The ages vary from 15-50 years old showing how this genre can be applied to a more wide audience. A potential sub-genre are psychological thrillers which are mainly fro the adult audience being 18+. These movies are also for the people who love sitting on the edge of their seat and crave suspense.

Institutional Conventions

Usually in thriller films a main problem or mystery is waiting to be solved by the main protagonist by the time the film is finished. Dark and low-key lighting are utilized to create a dark and mysterious vibe. They are also fast paced to  create constant action and very little potential for boredom.

Examples

Now You See Me is a great example of a crime related thriller as it is a very fast paced movie with constant action and creates mystery with the goal that is made in the film.

Batman is another great example of crime thriller as it centers on the mysterious tone created through an unkown serial killer. The Batman uses very low-key lighitng and very dark colors which helps to create this mysterious and dark mood.

Willis, C. (2024, January 24). What is a thriller? Exploring the psychological thriller genre. Killer Nashville. https://www.killernashville.com/articles/what-is-a-thriller

MasterClass. (2022, September 2). Writing 101: What is the thriller genre? Definitions and examples of thriller in literature. https://www.masterclass.com/articles/writing-101-what-is-the-thriller-genre-definitions-and-examples-of-thriller-in-literature