Creative Motion Graphic Titling

Titling with Motion Graphics for Film, Video, and the Web

Bill Byrne, Yael Braha

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9781138452916
• eBook ISBN: 9781136132131
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Art General

Captivate your audience and enhance your storytelling with this tutorial based 4-color cookbook, featuring dozens of solutions to your titling needs. Each chapter includes case studies and interviews with the pros, lending cutting insight and lessons learned that will have you creating inspired title sequences in no time.The book features genre-based tutorial sections, with step by step instructions for creating effective horror, comedy, drama, and suspense titling sequences. Tutorials for creating some of the most popular title sequences in blockbuster movies are included (Se7en, The Sopranos, 24, The Matrix). Other tutorials teach you how to effectively use sound and VFX in your titles, and also included is instruction on editing your title sequence. These techniques, as well as chapters on the essentials of typography allow you to apply these lessons to your title sequence regardless of whether it's for TV, the web, or digital signage.Also included iare downloadable resources with sample clips, as well as project files that allow you to refine the techniques you learned in the book. As an added bonus we've included 3 titling chapters from other Focal books, with specific instructions on titling within certain software applications.Cover images provided by MK12, from The Alphabet Conspiracy. Learn more at www.MK12.com

1

TITLE SEQUENCES: FUNCTION WITH FORM

You sit in a movie theater. The lights go down. The music and picture start. The opening titles fade in, and you know you’re in for a journey! On the surface level, the primary purpose of title sequences is to accurately credit the cast and crew, or even more simply, to give the film’s title. But if we dig a bit deeper, title sequences offer much more than that. In some ways, the function of a title sequence is very similar to the cover of a book. It not only gives the title and relevant authorship information; it also attracts the curiosity of the audience, encouraging them to open it up and start reading.

The music of title sequences could be compared to the concert overture of a classical musical performance or opera. A typical overture precedes the main performance by introducing the main musical themes. It is like a musical call for attention, as if to say, “Everyone! We are starting now! So hold onto your seats!”

Title sequences are a powerful expression of motion graphics. They are a prelude to the movie. They engage the audience by hinting at what is about to start, whether it’s a movie, TV show, or Web animation.

The Purpose and Functions of a Title Sequence

One of the primary functions of a title sequence is to set the tone of the movie you are about to see. Even if you didn’t know anything about the movie—and whether you are watching at a movie theater, at a TV in your living room, or at your computer— you get a sense of the genre and pacing of the movie simply by experiencing the first few seconds of an opening title sequence.

Imagine watching the opening title sequence of a horror film such as Zach Snider’s Dawn of the Dead (1994), created by Prologue, versus a comedy-drama such as Jason Reitman’s Juno (2007), with a title sequence created by Shadowplay Studios. Or imagine watching the fast-paced sequence made by Jay Johnson for David Lynch’s Lost Highway (1997) as opposed to the calmer and dreamier pacing of the title sequence made by yU+co for Kevin Lima’s Enchanted (2007). Even if you stumbled into any available room at a multiplex without checking the show title first, at the end of the title sequence you should know what genre you are about to experience.

Effective title sequences engage and excite the audience by hinting at some of the topics, themes, and, in some cases, the challenges that characters will be facing. The intention is to build anticipation, sometimes revealing some of the main character’s traits and possibly setting the stage for questions that will be answered later in the movie. Successful title sequences create an emotional reaction from the audience, leaving them glued to their seats, waiting for more.

Effective title sequences foreshadow themes of the movie without overshadowing the movie itself: They anticipate what will come later in the movie but do not give away key plot points. Title sequences shouldn’t summarize the plot of the movie or give away a perpetrator’s identity that is supposed to be revealed only at the ending.

Sometimes a title sequence can be designed so ingeniously that it adds additional meaning, or, even better, exposes some details that are missing from the movie or could go unnoticed. Maybe the scenes that contained the specific details got cut; maybe the script wasn’t developed enough, so the title sequences need to clarify a confusing detail; maybe the movie was taken in a different direction in the editing room; or maybe details were intentionally omitted in order to let them thrive in the titles.

At times, the most interesting and enduring title sequences offer the audience details whose significance will be revealed by the end of the movie or after a second viewing, such as the one created by Kyle Cooper for David Fincher’s Se7en (1995).

While fulfilling these functions, the author(s) of a title sequence must visually capture the essence of the movie. You have an arsenal of elements at your disposal to accomplish this task. The following are some elements that as a designer and animator you will have to keep in mind while beginning to work on a title sequence:

• Typography

• Color palette

• Textures

• Lighting

• Camera/movement style

• Editing

• Imagery (video footage, still images, 2D or 3D animation)

• Styles/techniques (cell animation, CG animation, stop motion, video, match moving, etc.)

Functions of title sequences:

•

Set the tone, pacing, and genre of the movie

• Build anticipation

• Create an emotional response; engage and excite the audience

• Foreshadow without overshadowing the plot

By carefully picking these elements, you are making a statement about the look and feel of your work and carefully directing the audience’s emotional response toward the desired result. Before we dive into all these topics, we’ll explore title sequence processes and their history.

Creative Process Overview

There is no set formula on how to create an effective and successful title sequence. Success depends on a variety of factors, including objective, strategy, and the target audience of a movie.

A common tool that will help you navigate through the myriad options, keep the project on target, and avoid pitfalls is to compile a creative brief after the initial meeting with the client. This necessary document will help maintain the focus of your work and identify the best possible creative solution for a given client or project.

Every designer should compile this document at the inception of a title sequence project and have it signed by the client. In larger agencies this document is generally prepared by a creative director and then given to the creative team, so that each member can keep the big picture of the project close by.

A typical creative brief might include all or some of the following sections: client and company/designer contact information, overview/background, objective, target audience, timeline, deliverables, and budget.

When working on larger projects that require large production teams, creative briefs could be quite elaborate and as long as 20 or 30 pages. For smaller projects, a creative brief of two or three pages is often sufficient.

To compile a creative brief, you’ll want to meet with the client first, learn about the project, and then do as much research as possible. Part of this research includes:

• Watching the movie, TV pilot, or series (at least once!)

• Reading the treatment

• Reading the script

• Researching the themes and topics covered in the movie (this includes thorough audio/visual research)

Doing your homework will greatly affect your creative brief and the successful completion of your project.

Creative Brief in Depth

Here is a closer look at the common sections of a creative brief:

• Client contact information. Insert the client’s name, phone number, and email address. Include the main contact person for this project; if there are multiple contact people, indicate the ultimate decision maker, the person who will sign off on your final project.

• Project name. Assign a name to your project (e.g., “The Matrix opening and closing title sequence”).

• Prepared by. Insert your name, role, company name, date, and contact information.

• Overview/background. Provide a short overview of and background on the project.

• Objective. What is/are the main objective(s) you are trying to achieve? What strategies will you utilize to achieve these objectives?

• Target audience. Describe the primary and secondary target audience. Include any relevant information regarding demographics.

• Timeline. Insert your project’s milestones. These are due dates that need to be established at the start of the project. Generally these dates are built forward in the calendar, from the actual date to the project’s desired delivery date.

However, if there is already a set due date because of a fundraising event, theatrical release date, or other reason, an easy solution to determine your milestones is to work your way back rather than forward. For example, if your delivery date is April 16 and today’s date is February 1, you’ll need to build all the milestones backward from April to February. That will give you a rough idea of how many days or weeks you’ll have to work on each of your design phases. Besides giving you more negotiating power before starting a project, having a detailed timeline at hand will help you by forcing you to create a realistic plan of what can or cannot be done.

Make sure that you reserve enough time for yourself or your team to complete the designated tasks. Most important, set deadlines for the client to provide feedback. A designer can do everything in her power to maintain her deliverables (e.g., three concepts for an opening title sequence by a set date), but if the client doesn’t provide feedback (such as which one of the three concepts is the best) in a reasonable or designated timeframe, the designer is prevented from completing the next deliverable by its deadline.

• Another important step is to identify the client’s deadline to deliver you a digital file with all the credits for the title sequence. More often than not, especially in smaller-scale projects, this is a task that is overlooked or left until the last minute, which could cause delays, especially when your project files require a long render time.

• Deliverables. Insert details on the exact deliverables that need to be delivered to the client, including file format, frame size, frame rate, color information, and video codec. Indicate whether there are any technical special instructions (such as alpha channels) or any practical instructions (for example, final deliverables must be sent to the film lab for a film-out).

• Additional remarks. Include any relevant information or special instructions received from the client that don’t fit in the other categories. For example, you could list elements that the client wants or doesn’t want to see in this project, such as specific fonts or color palettes.

• Budget. Indicate your compensation. This could be a flat fee, an hourly rate, or by accomplished task. When working for an hourly rate, indicate your estimated work hours per each milestone. It would be wise to also indicate the payment plan(s). Is there an advance? Will the payment happen after the deliverable of the final project? Or will there be multiple payments based on what’s completed?

Typical Workflow Overview

Now that you are familiar with what should be included in a creative brief, and before moving forward, let’s have a quick overview of a typical workflow. While creating a title sequence, a designer (or a creative team) will have to go through three major phases: prepro...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Halftitle
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Chapter 1. Title Sequences: Function with Form
• Chapter 2. A Brief History of Title Sequences
• Chapter 3. The Essentials of Typography and Time
• Chapter 4. Lights, Color, and Clarity: Preparing Your Titles
• Chapter 5. Importing Text and Other Files into After Effects
• Chapter 6. Title Sequences in Production: The Camera and the Edit
• Chapter 7. Sound in Movie Titles
• Chapter 8. Essential Techniques
• Chapter 9. Famous Movie Title Techniques
• Chapter 10. Completing the Creative Process
• Resources
• Bibliography
• Index