Film opening Background

Film opening Background

    The idea I have for the storyline is to follow a young boy who will go on to become a serial killer, while this isn't going to be stated or shown it is going to be represented through his meticulous and questionable actions. The boy is a sophomore in high school and he is over obsessive about his cleanliness and physical presentation, in this opening he is confronted by his teacher who has discovered his suspicious drawings.

This is the visual idea I have for the boy's drawings I want to create the psychological aspect that he is within his "own world" that holds no passion and represents a hidden darkness.

Additionally I want to include moments of dissociation where the boy will focus on his hand, his drawing, or whatever task he has at hand. 

To emphasize his lack of empathy and socialization as I want the character to make the audience feel unsettled as the character themselves is unstable.

I want to be able to use lighting elements to further portray this "darkness". Using low key lighting or contrast ratios to keep this idea of isolation.

Lastly the order in which I believe I will show my credits is to begin by focusing on the boys desperate need to feel clean as he scrubs his hand and aggressively flosses his teeth. These actions will all be enhanced with sound, while it gradually increases I would cut straight to the production title allowing the rest of the credits to appear as the story continues.

Credit Sequence Research

 Credit Sequence Research

    For my film opening I would like to make the credit scene as apart of the opening engaging the audience attention with my content. I would like it to go in somewhat of a chronological order to establish the character, while incorporating bits that off set the watch keeping them in the dark at what truly lies within.

    I will be researching the following films opening credit sequences: "Spilt" (2016), "Black Swan" (2010), and "Alice Sweet Alice" (1976)

Split

Using a repeated full screen transition it begins with the production titles and credits.  Then the movie title is displayed center in a larger bold font. Directly after it inserts film clips leading up to the opening, it interchanges between these clips and the credits. This credit scene leaves much to be interpreted as not much is divulged and it only reveals that the man is taking a unconscious woman through a dimly light and empty hallway.

Black Swan

The credits are displayed through the sequence of a black stick of chalk being used. The credits appear in the lower halves of the screen, as the line begins to gain and lose momentum, seemingly dancing around the page as classical music plays in the background. The lines appear in all different varieties some are thin, curved, thick, and shaded but progressively they become more aggressive covering the whole page leaving little of the chalk stick left, the title is then displayed as the screen fades.

 

      

  Alice Sweet Alice 

 

The film beings rolling the credits while a woman wearing a crown and veil is standing to the right clasping a cross. As the credits pass there is an audible prayer being spoken at a rapid whisper. Once the music shifts becoming more disturbed the women's cross is lifted to reveal a dagger edge while the title appears in a bleeding font and color. The next sequence of events are the past welcoming the family into his home. It begins to set up a relationship between the sisters, mother, pastor, and maid. There is not much disclosed however one of the daughters is portrayed as peculiar.

    Overall, after researching these credit sequences I have decided I want to take a slightly different approach still including similar elements. I want begin with an opening scene that is then interrupted by the production company logo. Then having the credits appearing through the scenes to come after, maybe including some before.

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Film opening Research

GENRE UPDATE

    As of yesterday I decided that the genre I will be following is psychological horror, even though it's completely different than what I was swaying to before it is true to myself being my favorite sub genre. I love watching horror movies I don't know if it's the thrill or the reliable plot lines I find them being my comfort genre and one I am particularly interested in. I am currently a senior in high school looking to pursue criminology in college so the topics of behavioral studies and law are ones that peak my interests, and I would rather work with a genre I feel passionate about.

    In this post I will be focusing on three film openings "The House That Jack Built" (2018), "American Psycho" (2000), and "Dressed To Kill" (1980)

                            The House That Jack Built

The film opens with a lonesome man in his car who plans over to a "vulnerable" women on the side of the road who car has broken down. She requests assistance upon their first interaction almost insisting upon it. As her drives her to the car repair shop the dialogue between the two foreshadows what is yet to come additionally establishing the women's persona as annoying and chatty. The woman makes comments on him possibly being a serial killer as she almost threatens him to ensure her safety making it clear that if he tried to hurt her she could kill him with the car jack. When arrived at the car shop scenes of vast forestry is made clear to establish the isolation of the location. The mad drops the women off at her car declaring it a lost cause through she almost demands he take her back to the car shop as she enters his car without an answer. This time she is making fun of him hitting his ego by stating he is to wimpy to be a serial killer, triggering something in him he immediately picks up the jack and bashes her face in without a second thought, there is some light irony in this as she claimed she was going to use it to defend herself. Then a faceless voice begins to comment on the situation comparing it to art almost mimicking what the character believes in this situation after hearing such Jack (the man) responds to the voice claiming it is art. The opening ends with Jack establishing his desperation to be seen as an engineer.

                                    American Psycho

The film opens as it rolls through the credits on a solid white background the music is faint until the noticeable red droplets fall on the screen to the musical notes. These droplets can be inferred as blood creating a striking contrast with the minimalistic white background. As the music picks up in pace the droplets rain down slightly faster until one splatters the reveal the film tittle establishing a theme. The color red is made significant as now red "sauce" is being poured meticulously and a knife makes a brief appearance this isn't necessarily scary although its pacing makes it captivating. The knife then slices through steak on a harsher beat of the music almost foreshadowing what is to come. The consistency of vibrant colored dishes juxtaposes the minimalist title sequence as the scenery is now elegant and poised filled with extravagant dishes being served and consumed. One table in particular is focused on with a few business men talking about work and making insulting comments, this is like a reflection on materialism and narcissism. 

                                            Dressed To Kill

The opening credits for this film are almost two minutes just passing one after the other in a simple aesthetic white font on a black background, the font doesn't seem too representative of the film itself. It begins with a tracking shot into a green and brightly light bathroom where a man shaves his face with a razor and the women in showering. The camera zooms into a close up of the women it the shower who seems completely entranced by the man with the music being soft and romantic, as the women goes through the process of her shower. Though the music shifts and plays a startling on edge sound as she is raped. It appears as though this is a traumatic memory as she attempts to reach out the man in the bathroom with her he notices nothing. This opening scene leaves much to mystery as it only introduces one character and doesn't go into much depth.

                                                   Analysis

Overall, I have found inspiration from each of these films and will continue to utilize the data and research I have collected to enhance my work.  Moving forward I want to look into more character based films like Norman Bates from Psycho, or Kevin Wendell Crumb in split to further assist in my storyline and mise-en-scene.

IMAGE LINKS:

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Portfolio Project Planning Schedule

    Hey bloggers as I last updated you guys I am now working towards my portfolio project. To begin I wanted to pace myself with an ideal goal for each week up until the seventh week of this project, as to provide a high quality piece. I have given thought towards my opening and look forward to future brainstorming analysis and the creation of my storyboard. I am still unsure in the direction I am taking towards genre selection, however I know that I want sound to be a crucial element featured within the piece. Allowing it to create contrast and pull focus within the opening. This is my current ideal schedule I created for myself utilizing Canva.

    I plan to research more today in order to begin further in-depth research on the genre I wish to pursue as I believe that will be the major catalyst towards my process. At the moment I am looking for something between romance and  cinematic realism, as I want to create a depiction of life in solitude going through the general steps we take without thought, and then use an additional element to change the way life is lived to become more mindful. Though my personal deadline for myself to have decided on a genre is tomorrow, so I better get researching. I cant wait to share more about my project to come, thanks for reading!
 

Portfolio Project Genre #2

                                                                   Horror

    The horror genre appeals to a younger audience predominantly under the age of 25. The gender profiles for horror movies are women being around roughly 42% and men are 58%. The horror genre appeals to audiences seeking a thrill that can be delivered in one form, providing audiences with adrenaline rushes.

In the horror genres the use of stereotyped behavior as seen in a behavioral study conducted by Zillmann and Weaver (1996). It has been established that females and adolescents often display weakness and harm, while men don't face stress and establish dominance. However these portrayals stem from when women were treated with less rights, and in recent times the rise in feminism has changed the dynamics making women more independent with movies have female leads like in the movie "The Conjuring 2"

Horror movies purposes are to strike fear into their audiences they do this with the technical assistance of lighting and sound. The lighting in horror movies is usually dark and misleading to create on edge effect for audience with the use of shadows to keep them entertained and guessing. While the sound is used during moments of tension and suspense to amplify the effect it has this is heavily seen in the movie "Pyscho".

Institutional conventions within the horror genre are used to signal fear and danger. The marketing for these films often use disturbing images while they withhold information as to main the mystery of the films containments. Trailers are also a strong point for horror movies as they quickly startler the watcher leaving them wanting to learn more about the mystery like in the "Weapons" trailer.

 

                                                                            Bibliography

Cotton, S. (2012, November 26). Research: Conventions of the Horror Genre. Shannon Cotton. https://shannoncotton2.wordpress.com/2012/11/26/research-conventions-of-the-horror-genre/

Dirks, T. (2010). Horror Films. Filmsite.org. https://www.filmsite.org/horrorfilms.html

Mesned. (2020, April 11). Audiences for different genres. AS Media Studies Project. https://mesnedalmisned.com/2020/04/11/audiences-for-different-genres/

View of The Symbiotic Relationship Between Genre Theory and Film Marketing. (2025). Epublishing.ekt.gr. https://eproceedings.epublishing.ekt.gr/index.php/iccmi_ep/article/view/7598/6939

Who Is The Haunted House Demographic? (2020, March 9). FearWorm Hauntvertising. https://fearworm.com/who-is-the-haunted-house-demographic/

(2026a). Google.com. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https%3A%2F%2Fencrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com%2Fimages%3Fq%3Dtbn%3AANd9GcSKsD6SjBx2-3ERatCmH_LtnLi5mgZIJ6vdbpM4fJy__vgKwN09&ved=0CBUQjRxqFwoTCPD_uJyxqJIDFQAAAAAdAAAAABAH&opi=89978449

(2026b). Gstatic.com. https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS0iRrtjckWh2xTUi3XCLaRXCX1nnYNLJV156YqWcC6la4-FC7k

Portfolio Project Genre #1

                                                         Romantic Comedy

                                                            A sub genre of the romantic genre 

   According to “Romantic Movie Lovers” the romantic comedy is said to be made up of 85% of women often between the ages of 25 and 34 years old. They are often marketed towards women due to its effect on subconscious showing audiences what an ideal relationship is. These films usually include the realism behind relationships too as they represent the good and the bad, allowing for connection and relatability from the viewers.

Within romantic comedies the presence of love, humor, and storytelling are strong keeping classic elements like first encounters and witty remarks. This is seen in the Adam Sandler movie “50 First Dates” with comedic relief character such as Ula or always flexing Doug. As well as relationship conflicts, grand gestures being key components of the romantic comedy genre.

Romantic comedies are often light hearted and in order to consistently match the energy of the film a soft light lighting is commonly utilized to create a warm color pallet. This creates the cozy atmosphere for chemistry to evolve in. Additionally in order to maintain the audiences attention quick dialogue and quick paced editing within montages. The use of close ups during monumental confession scenes are a key technical element when building suspense often used during the climax of a romantic comedy.

Romantic comedies follow institutional conventions where they rely on predictable plots beginning with a meet cute and and guaranteed happy ending. To promote these films production companies often rely on the commercial holiday valentines day. As well as the relationships the actors how with one another often doing press tours where they are closely interacting. 

  

                                                                                Bibliography

App, C. (2014). Romantic Movies and their Influence on the Audience’s Ideals of Real-Life Relationships. https://carmellaapp.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/romantic-analysis.pdf

Nicole. (2026, January 7). What are the Key Elements of a Romantic Comedy? BeverlyBoy Productions. https://beverlyboy.com/filmmaking/what-are-the-key-elements-of-a-romantic-comedy/
Perelman, B. (2024, February 12). The 9 Elements of All Great Rom-Coms. ScreenCraft. https://screencraft.org/blog/the-9-elements-of-all-great-rom-coms/
Perez, G. I. (2026). 23_Romance_Key_Scenes_and_Conventions. Scribd. https://www.scribd.com/document/648294743/23-Romance-Key-Scenes-and-Conventions
(2025). Gstatic.com. https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRKGsPMiCDRdapRxGwf7Bb4U69d9oYlNuvIljeQ6rPOvfAD4aTx
(2026). Google.com. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https%3A%2F%2Fencrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com%2Fimages%3Fq%3Dtbn%3AANd9GcTNunE4yyCl_FQYbU0bhgBzTdNWiXtKE6vVYmMrxN7Hmb9HN64b&ved=0CBUQjRxqFwoTCIj42v-oqJIDFQAAAAAdAAAAABAH&opi=89978449

           Transitioning into the Cambridge Portfolio Project

 Hello Cambridge! As of January 25, I decided I was going to focus my blog posts on my Cambridge final project. My blog posts up until now how documented my progress within the class detailing my research and knowledge on media marketing, camera shots, angles, and mis-en-scene.

     

Transitioning into the Cambridge Portfolio Project

    Out of these researched approaches, I would be the most interested in developing character as I was to create a strong character that engages the focus of the audience. Using the character to create a narrative as if it is their background. When developing character the mise-en-scene elements are significant as they utilize the costume design, props, blocking, and set all which work together creating a visual interpretation of the character portrayed. The fixed character I intend to create will assist other elements to further enhance a story line and create opportunities for additional technical pathways.

    An additional approach I would be interested in exploring is developing a singular overall purpose. As I find myself jumping from one idea to the next and letting my creative juices flow I noticed that I often lose the plot in the excitement of the ideas. This often makes it over complicated and difficult for others to interpret. If I were able to harness my skills in developing the purpose I could strengthen the message I decide to present.