Conventions of opening sequence

Conventions of a opening sequence

Trainspotting (0:00-2:00)

Introducing characters

This is a long shot which is good because it shows all the main characters in this one scene. You can tell that these people are going to be the main characters because they are in the centre of the shot and from this you can tell some of the archetypes of the people. It’s good that they have used artificial lighting in this because it is night time and the light really spotlights the characters bringing your eyes directly at them. It represents these characters as all different people because it seems that they are a team but they are all wearing different clothes and they aren’t even standing properly for the shot. This shot is just a straight on and that is as simple as it gets. It does not make them look superior or vulnerable, it makes them seem like normal people you see on the street which makes it more realistic for the audience. It adds a sense of realism and also the director is not trying to emphasize who they are. Introducing these characters and the way they are could connote the genre of drama as they are in the situation of playing football which is a everyday thing for people in the world which is realistic and dramas are all about realism.

Engaging music

Throughout this whole opening sequence engaging music is playing which is really good for the audience. It keeps them interested and makes them want to see more and makes them expect things out the ordinary to happen as this music is fast paced and has a good beat to it. It represents the characters in this scene to maybe be lively characters and crazy so that they fit in with the music and on top of that the first couple seconds of the opening sequence is two characters running as fast as they can away from what appears to be security guards so the situation fits well with the music. The music keeps the audience on the edge of their seats and makes the want to see more and it makes them anticipate the next thing that is going to happen in the scene. The engaging music at the beginning of the movie may show the style for the rest of the film. It can connote that the rest of the movie is going to be just as fast paced with something always happening but later on in the opening sequence a scene shows them playing football and standing there. They are not doing any action yet this music is still playing so it can connote that this music is just to liven up the scenes that can considered as boring.

Intrigue/Enigma

Intrigue and enigma is the main thing that makes the audience want to watch the movie and to see what happens because it creates suspense. It makes the audience ask questions. E.g. For the scene above the audience can ask why are they running? What did they do? This makes them want to watch the movie more to find out the answers to their questions. It can represent some of the characters to be mysterious as this enigma doesn’t say anything about them except from they did something and are now running. This enigma can also connote the genre by just showing one scene. The scene above is of men running so you can say the genre is crime and they’ve done something bad and illegal and are now running away from it. Having this enigma with the engaging music is a good match because it keeps the audience interested and it makes them want more. It broadens their mind and makes them sit on the edge of their seats and look at the opening sequence and just think; and then get amazed when the answers come to them.

Smash mouth beginning

The smash mouth beginning makes the audience jump from their seats and keeps their eyes glued to the screen. It starts of with action and in the middle of it’s own situation and this creates enigma and there is engaging music and the characters are introduced. The smash mouth beginning covers it all. It has to have all different conventions mixed together to achieve a good smash mouth beginning. It can connote that the institution have a specific way of making films and they may do smash mouth beginning in a lot of films. This makes the audience want to watch more of their films if they are engaged in this opening sequence. In this sequence it put s the audience right in the middle of two characters running away from security guards and it follows them around as they are running. Smash mouth beginnings consist of fast paced action and a lot cuts to keep the audience interested in it. The beginning has to have a variety of camera shots. The opening sequence to Trainspotting has camera shots from longshots to close ups. This keeps it more original and intrigues the audience.

Non linear start

The opening sequence of this film is non linear as it cuts from a scene to them running to a scene of him smoking to a scene of him playing football. This shows that this opening is showing the background of all these characters and this I show it represents them. It brings in the audience to a little bit of background knowledge to who these characters are and establishes them for the audience. This also makes enigma for the audience so they don’t see the typical beginning, middle and end. They see different scenes that make up the opening sequence. Almost like a small montage. This keeps the audience into the film as this has a lot of cuts to the different scenes and then cuts within that one scene to different camera angles of that one scene to make it more exciting for the audience to watch it. This makes the audience not know what to expect when watching this opening sequence as they are doing completely different things are completely different times and different locations.

Introduce themes

In this scene you can see a character isolated in a house that is very run down and all he is doing is smoking. He has no facial expression suggesting he is calm. Also during this opening sequence there is a voice over from one of the main characters and at the end of the opening sequence he says “who needs reasons when you’ve got heroin?” This scene and the voice over suggests that a strong theme of this movie is drugs. The fact that he is not doing anything except smoking and he is calm shows he is just in that house to smoke and relax. This may interest the audience as they may want to find out more about drugs and watching this movie may help them. The appearance of the house also shows that this house is not ordinary and may in fact just be a ‘crack house’. The fact that this is a mid shot yet they included the torn walls and his shadow is on purpose to show that he is isolated and that’s all he wants to do.

Production company

This shows the production company and this is very simple as it is just white writing on a black background. This can connote that the story of this movie is very simple and there is not anything complicated like plot twists and anything to do with thinking. This can let the audience expect simple characters to be shown which have normal lives and aren't doing anything big like a secret agent. This adds the realism to the movie. Also if the audience like films made my Channel Four then they know they will like this film and people who do not like films where you have think they will enoy this film as it is simple. This colour contrast also makes the writing stand out so you can read it easily backing up the fact that it is a simple film.

Actors

Ewan McGregor is a very well known actor globally due to his films and if the audience know who this guy is and they recognize him they will want to watch this film even more if they like his acting in other films. If Trainspotting is being watched in this year of 2013 he is more well known than he was when Trainspotting was released. He has been in Star Wars, The impossible etc. This shows the institution got Ewan McGregor when he wasn’t so well known which shows that their expenses weren't as much as they would be now. This can also connote the genre as the audience may recognize Ewan McGregor to be in only certain types of films.

Minimal dialogue

During this opening sequence the only dialogue heard is the voice over but being the voice over it makes the audience only focus on what they can see on the screen and not what they can hear but this works effectively because what is being said in the voice over goes into the viewer's mind subliminally and lets them know what’s going on. In this opening sequence the character is not talking about what is happening in the scene. In this is opening sequence he is talking to the audience talking about how nothing is needed in life if you have heroin. This makes sure he doesn’t give any of the story away as is starts as a non linear narrative but it does introduce that the plot may revolve around heroin. He only said the essentials in this voice over but if any of the characters actually spoke making the sound diegetic then it would take the audience’[s attention away as they have to listen to the dialogue as well as focus on the action,. This makes it boring for the viewer.