This Vodcast sums up my initial understanding of the basic expectations of film openings. I looked at 8 basic conventions: company idents, film titles, opening shot, main character being identified in the opening, sound and genre signifiers, diegetic sound and narrative enigma, transition to the main body of the film and audience representations.
Idents:
The average amount of idents before a film is 3-4, usually shown largest shareholder to smallest, and are often accompanied with an audio bridge to connote the genre of the film before it’s opening shot.
In Bridget jones diary there are free company idents as well as ident for working title, it is a subsidiary of Universal Pictures that are part of the big 5. The ident for Universal is 20 seconds and it is the longest idents highlighting that it had the biggest share in the production of the film. The idnets for StudioCanal and MiraMax come out to be around 12 seconds which I found to be the average amount of time for an ident. The ident for working title has an audio bridge that denotes the whimsical and romantic atmosphere of the film.
On the other hand, in Pretty in Pink there is a single Paramount ident that also lasts 12 seconds. Paramount being the only ident tells us that it was produced by a single company, meaning there was no one to share the risk and cost of film with.
In Tyrannosaur the lack of idents tells us that it is produced by a small indy company, but it isn’t typical.
Titles:
I would expect to see over 20 titles in an average film opening with the total running time being approximately a minute as we see in Bridget Jones diary and Napoleon Dynamite. In Bridget jones diary we start with the titles of all the leading acting roles. The bigger stars have bigger titles. Then technical roles like editor and executive producer and finally the director Sharon Maguire. The roles and linking terms like ‘and ’are distinguished with a different font. The names are done in calligraphical font to connote the romantic genre of the film.
In napoleon dynamite there are also over 20 titles lasting 2 and a half minutes which is longer than expected however they serve as exposition to the film and letting the viewer know that this is a teen comedy film through the use of pops. The first credits are to fox searchlight pictures and paramount pictures who co-produced this film in association with MTV films. Instantaneously, the viewer knows this is a teen comedy through the incorporation of the film name into a student ID card. Jared Hess is the auteur of this film as he is listed as a writer as well as director.
Pretty in pink is a counter example as it only has two credits, one to paramount pictures and one to John Hughes. This is a counter type to what we would normally see in a romantic teen comedy, however, it broadens the film to a secondary audience which is older.
Opening shot:
The most common opening shot is an ELS (extreme long shot) like seen in Submarine. There is a use of cross fading extreme long shots that reveal the main character. This scene has great exposition as we are met with a mise-en-scene of a messy chaotic room of a teenager signifying that this is a coming-of-age movie as well as immediate dialogue denoting the location through the use of accents.
The opening shot of Bridget Jones diary starts with a mls with the protagonist in the middle of the shot which isn’t the norm. There is exposition straight away with the use of her English accent and a classic taxi in the back. The mis-en-scene is set to be very nostalgic and connote Christmas which would link to the romantic genre of the film.
In tyrannosaur the opening shot is a big close up of a dark silhouette against a blue background. This shallow field of focus provides exposition about this character’s villainous attributes.
Main character identified:
Another convention is the main protagonist being identified in the opening. For example, in Bridget Jones diary the character Bridget is shown immediately with no narrative enigma whatsoever. She is in the central of the shot and the camera tracks her as she walks anchoring her as a central protagonist.
In Pretty in Pink however the initial narrative enigma over their identity of the main character is maintained by avoiding revealing face and following her morning routine which provides exposition on her as a person. Stereotypes of her being a teenage girl are reinforced through her flowery jewellery and pink make up.
Sound and genre signifiers:
In bridget Jones diary there are many genre identifiers like the voice over, as well as the mise-en-scene that tells us that Bridget is working class. Everything in the scene hints towards her living alone, from a single wine glass, heart picture frames and the overall mess of the apartment. This is when all by myself starts playing. The scene is set clearly to portray Bridget as a hopeless romantic who is incredibly lonely. The use of red as well as hearts and flowers we are told the romantic genre of the film.
In pretty in Pink “Pretty in Pink” by the psychodelic furs plays, which is a pop song furthermore stereotyping her as a teenage girl
Audience:
In Bridget Jones diarys primary audience is women aged 18-35 as they either like romantic comedies or can relate to the title character. It appeals its target audience mainly through its narrative of finding Mr right who is a conventionally attractive actor. The stereotype of a realistic British woman boosted commercial potential in the UK, however, might not be so great for productions seeking international distribution.
Ternasaur, being an 18 rated film would have a much older and less varied audience. A younger audience might not be inherently attracted to this film because of its longer takes and an older protagonist making it harder to relate to him. Using the uses and gratifications theory we could identify the primary audience as being upper class men who might use the film as a diversion, since the protagonist is working class. The secondary audience might be females 35-44 as the second lead character is around that age, making her easier to identify with.
Other examples were non-diegetic sound is successfully used as genre identifiers is Submarine, napoleon dynamite and pulp fiction
Sometimes the transition from the introduction to the main body of the film and sometimes its clearly identified, like in pulp fiction. There is a clear distinction as there is a freezeframe and non-diegetic music starts playing.
Narrative enigma creates mystery by intentionally withholding information to create mystey while Diegetic voiceovers do the exact opposite. They give the viewer exposition, giving them context and information about the characters. Narrative enigma provides derives from a theorist Roland barthes who believed in a system of 5 codes. The enigma code The action code The semantic codev The symbolic code and The cultural code . The enigma code creates intrigue so a voice over would not be used. A voice over is used in the film opening of bridget jones diary.
The voice over gives us insight into her background and her relationship with other charcahters
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