Wednesday, May 8, 2013


Opening Credits

In a film or TV programme, the opening credits feature at the very beginning and list the most important members of the production. They are usually shown as text superimposed on a blank screen or static pictures, or sometimes over the top of action in the show. There may or may not be accompanying music. 
Where opening credits are built into a separate sequence of their own, the correct term is title sequence (such as the familiar James Bond title sequence). Opening credits identify only the major actors and crew, while the closing credits carry a much more extensive listing of cast and production crew. 

Closing Credits
Closing credits are added at the end of a film or TV programme to list the cast and crew involved in the production. They usually appear as a list of names in small type, which either flip very quickly from page to page, or move smoothly across the background or a black screen. Credits may crawl either right-to-left (common in Britain) or bottom-to-top (common in USA). The term credit roll comes from the early production days when the names were literally printed on a roll of paper and wound past the camera lens.




For a look at some classic opening title sequences, CUT and PASTE the following link into your browser...      http://vimeo.com/60964497


If the above link fails to work, try this link...







What is a "cold open"?

One of the most important ________________ for producers of TV shows and films is to keep the audience interested from the first seconds through to the very end. This is often accomplished through the use of a dramatic device known as a cold open, sometimes called a teaser. A cold open is a snippet of action shown before the actual rolling of the opening credits. Sometimes a cold open is a quick reprise of previous plotlines, or it may be an attention-grabbing _____________ which hooks the viewer into the rest of the show.
Soap operas often use a cold open to bring viewers up to speed on the plot-lines that the new ____________ will explore. A crime show might show details of the actual crime as a cold open, then run the opening credits several minutes later. Action and adventure movies, such as the James Bond spy series, often________ a cold open featuring the hero making a dramatic escape from enemies who may or may not be connected to the actual plot. The purpose of a cold open is to ______________viewers from changing the channel during the opening credits, and, certainly, to set the pace for the rest of the programme.
The use of a cold open can be traced back to the 1960s, as network producers noticed that viewers were often switching channels during the opening credits of shows without waiting for the first scene. To counteract this ________, many shows were ______________ to include a teaser sequence. During a sitcom's cold open, for example, the main characters might be shown receiving a mysterious package and showing shock at the unseen contents. This cold open would hook curious viewers who wanted to know what was in that box and what might happen next.
A cold open for a drama might show the end of a previous episode with a ___________ explaining how the characters wound up in their predicament. Curious viewers would naturally want to see the_______________ of the story once they've become hooked on the teaser ending. A cold open might also end on a curious or ________ piece of dialogue, which would naturally _________ curiosity in many viewers. A good cold open is all about _____________ the audience wants to return to the show after the first commercial break or opening credits.

For the above passage, use the following words to fill in the blanks.
restructured        discourage     voice-over     challenges      habit        episode     provoke    guaranteeing        cliffhanger         cryptic       employ          beginning    


What is a "hot switch"?
In broadcasting, the term "hot switch" refers to where the ending of one TV show leads directly into the start of the show in the next time slot without a commercial break. The concept is used to reduce the chances that people will switch to another TV network during the commercial break and allow, perhaps, the cold open of the new show to attract viewers. It could be considered a kind of "seamless" broadcasting.


 CONSIDER YOUR CURRENT FILM... Will you begin with a cold open? If so, what kind of intriguing 'hook' will you begin with? Or do you intend to start with your opening credits? Soon you'll be needing to compile a list of who did what in the making of your film, so that your credits will reflect this. (Follow the bullet-point guide below.)
Billing is a term used in referring to the order of how credits are presented for films, television, or other creative works. 

The order in which credits are billed generally signify their importance. For example, in films, the first is usually the motion picture company, followed by the producer (as in "A Jerry Bruckheimer Production"). Next, depending on his/her standing, the director may be granted an extra, prominent credit (as in "A Ridley Scott Film"). This is also known as the director's possessive credit.
The major starring actors generally come next, then the title of the movie and the rest of the principal cast. If their contribution is deemed significant, other personnel (such as visual effects supervisor or costume designer) may also be included. These are then followed by the other producers who were attached to the project, the screenwriter(s) and again the director (as in "Directed by..."). 
If the main credits occur at the beginning, then the director's name is the last to be shown before the film starts. However, if all billing is shown at the end, his/her name will be displayed first, immediately followed by the writing credits.

Over the last two decades, it has become standard practice to put all the filmmaking and cast credits at the end of the film, usually in this order:
  • Director
  • Screenwriter(s)
  • Producer(s)
  • Executive Producer(s)
  • Cinematography
  • Film Editor
  • Production Designer
  • Sound Designer
  • Costume Designer
  • Visual Effects Supervisor
  • Casting Director
  • Main Cast
  • Production Company (e.g: in association with "Working Title Productions")
  • Studio (eg: "20th Century Fox" presents...)

Actors whose names appear first are said to have "top billing". They usually play the principal characters in the film and have the most screen time. However, well-known actors may be given top billing for publicity or contractual purposes in the event that lesser-known, or first-time performers appear in a larger role (e.g: Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman were both credited before the title in Superman (1978), while Christopher Reeve, the then-unknown actor who played Superman, was not. 
In some cases, an actor may receive "last billing", which usually designates a smaller role played by a famous name. They are usually credited after the rest of the lead cast, prefixed by "and" (or "with" if there is more than one) as Samuel L Jackson was in the latter two Star Wars prequels). 
The two or three top-billed actors in a movie will usually be announced prior to the movie's title. This is referred to as "above-title billing". For an actor to receive it, he/she will generally have to be well-established, with box-office drawing power. Those actors introduced afterward are generally considered to be the supporting cast.
Sometimes, top billing will be given based on a person's level of fame. For example, besides his small role in Superman, Marlon Brando's relatively brief appearances in both The Godfather and Apocalypse Now earned him top billing.
If a largely unknown actor has the lead role, he may be listed at the end of the principal supporting actors, his name prefixed by "and introducing". However nowadays, the prefix "and introducing" is mostly reserved in feature films for a young actor (usually a child) who is appearing for the first time. 
If a film has an ensemble cast with no clear lead role, it is traditional to bill the participants alphabetically, or in the order of their on-screen appearance. An example is A Bridge Too Far (1977), which featured 14 roles played by established stars, any one of whom would have ordinarily received top billing as an individual. The cast of the Harry Potter films includes many recognized stars who are billed alphabetically, but only after the three principal actors.
An interesting exception to this rule occurred upon the release of the 2001 film Oceans Eleven when the actor Don Cheadle was denied having his name appear above the title, presumably because his name would have alphabetically preceded George Clooney's name, as well as Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts. The producers apparently wanted Clooney, not Cheadle, to be the first name a casual viewer of the advertising would see. After much legal wrangling, Cheadle removed his name from the credits. 
In the film Miami Vice (2006), Colin Farrell originally received top billing. However, after Jamie Foxx won an Academy Award, he requested top billing and received it despite his role actually being much smaller than Farrell's. Foxx's name appears first in the opening credits, while Farrell still receives top billing in the closing credits.

Not sure what name to give your production company?


Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)