IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR OPENING SEQUENCE USE, DEVELOP

OR CHALLENGE FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF REAL OPENING

SEQUENCES?

Jacob Widmann-Oliver

Conventions of an opening sequence

The opening sequence of a film is a vital element contributing to its success. It is used to establish

characters, the setting, the genre, the narrative as well as the visual style. As we decided to create

and develop a crime thriller film I have decided to focus the majority of this evaluation question on the

opening sequence of crime thrillers. The typical conventions of a crime thriller opening sequence

includes the following:

They often involve fast-pace, suspense, action and violence.

There is always a protagonist and an antagonist.

There is usually an investigation within a crime thriller.

Enigma (creates questions for the audience)

HIgh intensity (action sequences, car chasing etc)

Characterisation - Protagonist

Typically opening sequences introduce the main characters to the audience. In particular to crime

thrillers these characters are usually a protagonist and an antagonist. The protagonist is introduce

immediately. We see him on screen in an office carrying out regular activities many usual people

would in an office environment. We wanted to challenge the conventions of crime thrillers by using a

character which to the naked eye seems like a regular person. We hope that making this decision will

further draw the audience into the film, as such a relatable character is on screen. It will also lead the

audience to asking questions about their co workers and perhaps force them to challenge stereotypes

of criminals. The character establishes himself very early on picking up the phone and answering

“Hello, Michael Phillips.” The character soon begins to portray himself as anxious/nervous about

something through his body language. With the camera using close up shots and editing fast cuts this

really puts emphasis on this factor and again creates an enigma. The audience soon realise

something is wrong and being to question what is wrong. Further into the sequence we see Michael

leaving the ‘Directors Office’ placing the character in a position of authority and of power, again forcing

the audience to challenge their stereotypical criminal.

Characterisation - Antagonist

When developing the antagonist of the film we decided to create a stereotypical criminal. Wearing a

hooded jumper not only enabled us to create this but also meant we were able to keep his identity

hidden. Keeping the characters face out of shot for the majority of the sequence creates an enigma

surrounding this character. The character is not formally introduced as Michael is, his name, career

and all other aspects of this character remain a mystery. To reinforce this mystery we decided to use

a Dutch tilt as the antagonist is first introduced to us creating a sense of surrealism. We decided to

dress the character in all black, as black is often associated with death and mystery, but also power.

Although the character appears to be of a lower class than Micheal we soon see that he is in

possession of a gun, a prop often associated with crime thrillers placing him in control of the opening

sequence. Although the antagonist is seen in the opening sequence he is not introduced to us,

therefore we have gone against what you would expect to see in an opening sequence, which is all of

the main characters being introduced. We have decided on this based on the fact we aim to build an

enigma surrounding this character, which should entice the audience to continue watching our film.

Settings

The settings we chose were very important factors of our opening sequence as it helps to answer the

question of ‘where’ and ‘what’. We decided to follow the conventions of a crime thrillers opening

sequence by using a forest as our main location. This is an isolated area in which many of us fear due

to its density restricting our vision. The decision to use a small office and toilet was made based upon

the restriction and confined spaces they have. We wanted to echo how the character was feeling

through the location so using these isolated spaces resembled the characters feelings and emotions.

Our forest location was inspired by the film ‘Gone’ which has been previously mentioned on my blog.

To create a dense looking forest in a small woods at the back of our school we used only specific

camera angles to film our sequence. Below is a direct comparison of our shot of the woods and a shot

of the woods used in ‘Gone’

Genre - Props

As mentioned previously we decided to create a crime thriller opening sequence. As a group we were

hugely inspired by many works of other people, ranging from famous directors to other AS Media

opening sequences we had watched. We were also heavily influenced by our feedback from our

questionnaires which were handed to our target audience. I have previously discussed how the

characters used and the settings have established this opening sequence as one from the crime

thriller genre. The props we have decided to use have also contributed to establishing this opening

sequence as a crime thriller. We decided to keep the use of props as a minimum as we would rather

have the audience focused on trying to work out the plot rather than drawing their attention to several

fancy looking gadgets. The three key props that established this genre as a crime thriller were the gun,

the hand ties and the head bag. All 3 of these items are associated with kidnapping, violence and

crime making them important props to use in our sequence. We also decided to create an office scene

which looked as realistic as possible. We mirrored an exact copy we found of the idyllic office we

found online.

Genre - Editing

Through editing we were also able to establish the genre of the opening

sequence. Thrillers often contain a disordered sequence including a flashback.

After collecting our information from our questionnaire we discovered that the

majority of our target audience found that flashbacks are overused and have

become a gimmick in thrillers. To ensure we followed the conventions of a

thriller by creating a disordered sequence we decided to include a flash forward

at the very beginning rather than a flashback. This not only meant that we

followed the conventions but also included a new concept for our audience who

will not be expecting this. We have also used fast cuts to create a high intensity

opening sequence adding to the suspense and sense of urgency/anxiousness

that the protagonist has.

Genre - Cinematography

Similarly to editing, we were able to use different camera shots to establish the genre of this opening

sequence. The most typical shot used in thriller films seemed to be the close up, which was greatly

used in Se7en and Kill Bill. The use of a close up creates suspense and mystery. We thought that it

was a key shot which helps to establish so placed huge focus on the close up. We also discovered

through our research that low and high camera angles were frequently seen in crime thrillers. Baring in

mind these three main shots we went away and began filming. As you can see below we have a wide

variety of examples of these camera shots.

Narrative

After we analysed our feedback received from our questionnaire we have decided to aim our opening

sequence at young males aged between 18-30. Within our opening sequence we used strong

language and violence, and assuming this will follow on during the rest of our film and perhaps

intensify we decided it should be an 18 rated movie, based on the BBFC. The majority of crime thrillers

are rated or 18, meaning our sequence has followed the conventions of crime thrillers in this sense.

We also decided to stick with the general storyline of a crime thriller. In a crime thriller the audience

expects several things. They expect an investigation. In our film the protagonist is being investigated

by the antagonist, a twist on the usual idea of a police investigation. We have also ensure it is a fast

pace sequence with action and violence taking place. With support from our questionnaire we created

what our audience wanted. For example we ensured our main character was introduced as early on as

possible.

Credits

We did follow the common form for credits in an opening sequence by

superimposing the text over the video. The credit types we included were the

production company, the distribution company, the editor, the director, and the

cinematographer. We made the decision to leave out our actors names as we

wanted to create an enigma not only surrounding the character, but the actors

themselves creating a further more intense mystery.