Final Film Opening Remakes

For one of our first tasks ask a group, we were asked to create remakes of certain genres of films. This would help us to learn what was included in the openings of films and inspire us when producing initial ideas for our final piece. We have chosen these three openings as we like the effect they had on the audience and believed it would help us investigate a wide variety of genres and their atmospheres, including how they are created and why.

These are our remakes:

Juno

We tried to be creative with this opening as it would be the most difficult to reproduce and we needed to pay close attention to the titles and the timings. Though we were fully prepared, it took an hour to film this opening due to the various scenes and background changes. It was also difficult to use the right transitions and to recreate it accurately as we did not have the programmes needed to replicate it properly. Making this opening has taught us to be creative when thinking of ideas and pay attention to the details necessary in order to make a professional opening. There were also random clips of audio in the opening, showing us that we needed to ensure we have all the fine details completed properly and will be more aware of this in the future.

Vertigo

Vertigo was particularly difficult to create as it had to be filmed in one, continuous shot and it was hard to not get distracted when staying still for long periods of time. As a simplistic opening, we had to be particular with the effects and overall look of it in order for it to be effective. However, this was the easiest opening to create and it taught us that the most simplistic openings are often the most effective. When we produce our initial ideas for our final piece, we will try to remember this and keep it simple in order to achieve a professional opening in a short amount of time.

The Strangers

The Strangers was also a fairly easy opening to recreate. Since a majority of the opening includes titles and very few shots, little filming was needed and most of the opening could be put together in editing. This helped us manage our time effectively and concentrate on the other openings that required more filming time. This suggested to us that in our final piece that maybe 'less is more' and that we could still create a successful and effective opening without including much footage.

By recreating these films, we were able to learn that the titles and the opening credits should appear in the same sort of style as the genre and to fit in with the music to keep the overall atmosphere and look of the opening. The order in which they appear is also important and this must be kept to in order to create a professional-looking opening. The font, colours and positioning of the titles they should suit the genre and not interfere with the images on screen to be most effective. Our group also learned that the opening of a film should be around 2 minutes and should cause the audience to ask questions. The narrative should be open in order for a story to continue and that we should be weary of this when thinking of initial ideas for our opening. Editing techniques and transitions are also important to create a professional standard opening. They must suit the genre and not be used just because they can.

As a group, we worked together nicely and were able to finish all three remakes in the given time and they turned out well. Working together has helped us improve our communication, time management and organisation skills allowing us to work efficiently and to the best of our abilities. We have learned to spread the tasks between group members, assigning individual jobs which built trust and communication between us. In order to maintain this teamwork, we need to keep to deadlines set and help others when necessary.

Charlotte Morrison