2. We were really inspired by the
following OTS:
• The Walking Dead
• Dexter
• The Last of Us
3. The Walking Dead
• It’s a non-linear OTS because:
-It is introducing the setting to the audience and it could bring narrative enigmas to the
audience such as; Where are the people?
• The OTS prepares for the programme by:
-Establishing the setting, the sub-genre and the themes of the programme.
-Themes include: death, danger, conflict and survival.
• Narrative within the OTS include:
-Where are the humans?
-What has happened to the human race?
-What do the establishing shots want us to see?
• It mostly supports forms and/or conventions of the genre because:
-A non-linear title sequence is common with zombie horror films/programmes
-It introduces the main characters of the story
-The audience do not know what there is to come in the story (it gives nothing away to the
audience)
4. Answers continued
• Characters represented?
-No characters have been represented in this OTS
• Why there is no representation of the characters?
-The OTS does not want to give too much away to the audience
-Creates more narrative enigmas
• The OTS presents credits and the main title by:
-Using the rule of thirds
-Small font size for actors and production company, large font size for the title
-White font makes the text stand out more from darker backgrounds, black font makes the
text stand out from lighter backgrounds
-No credits are placed in the centre of each shot, this is so it won’t distract the audience from
the establishing shots
-Title appears word by word. It is large as it is more important to the audience and it stands
out clearly from the dark background
5. Effective shots in
OTS
The placement of the title
doesn’t distract the audience
from the deserted streets of
the city
Empty streets/roads can connote
a sign of loneliness and can make
the audience feel at unease because
they will not know what could
appear in the streets at any random
moment in the programme
6. The use of a filter on this shot can create
narrative enigmas to the audience because
it is unclear on what the dark liquid on the floor is
The blurred edges of the frame allow the audience to
focus more on the centre of the composition which is
more in focus than the rest of the shot since it is more
important to the audience as it carries more of an effect
to the shot
7. Use of low key artificial
lighting makes the setting
darker and can connote a
sign of danger to the audience
as dark places can often mean
something could be there
Use of mise-on-scene of the papers on
the floor could tell the audience that
there was chaos (something has happened)
and has caused the setting to become
deserted
8. Sped up shots can show the
audience how empty the setting
is for the programme. Narrative
enigmas such as “Where is
everyone?” could arise by using
this type of editing
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9. The use of blood and the birds
eating the flesh of an animal can
tell the audience that there will
be scenes of blood, guts and gore
throughout the programme
The fact that the animal is lying on the road
dead could connote death within the
programme
10. The use of a long shot to establish a scene is
effective because it can tell the audience why
the city in the background is deserted;
everyone wanted to leave the city for some
reason. This reason is unknown to the
audience and this will make them want to watch
the programme so they can find out what happened
11. The font size used for the title shows the audience
how important it is compared to the rest of the
credits used in the OTS
The colour of the font allows the font title
to stand out from the darker background The filter used on the shot makes the
image look run down and worn out. This
links to the setting of the OTS as the streets
and buildings look as if they are run down
so this effect is relevant and effective to use
12. DEXTER
• The OTS in Dexter is Linear and symbolic. Linear because it flows from one
sequence to the next simultaneously, it also symbolic because a lot of the
scenes in the OTS represent a lot of the themes in the series.
• The OTS prepares the audience for the programme by setting up the series and
tells us a lot about the main protagonist and the themes.
• Narrative enigmas throughout the OTS include: Who is he? Why does his
normal everyday activities connote different things? Why are his activities
observed so close up?
• Certain serial killer movies and TV shows such as Se7en have very detailed
opening title sequences that reveal a lot about the characters within the
show/film.
13. • The main protagonist ‘Dexter’ is represented through a number of symbolic
actions throughout the sequence
• I think it was important for them to do this as it sets the scene for the show and
gives you a brief glimpse of what you are about to watch. I also think that
doing this makes the audience appreciate the personality and the
characteristics of ‘Dexter’ and how he is different from everyday people.
• The OTS uses depth of field to pull in and out of focus during certain scenes of
the title sequence. This turns the viewers attention from one thing to another,
and is often used to emphasize certain things. Also, no credits are placed in
the center of each shot, this is so it won’t distract the audience from the
establishing shot.
14. Effective Shots in the
OTS The depth of field technique
is used here to not only
distinguish between Dexter
and the mosquito, but to
also show the swiftness of
death along with blood. This
gives us an idea that the
themes throughout the
series are to do with death
and gore.
Also if you look closely, you can
see that Dexter is smiling after he
has killed the mosquito. This gives
us a key bit of information
regarding Dexter’s character and
reinforces his character as
basically, a bloodthirsty serial-
killer, but on a much smaller
15. The methodical and technically
skilled side of Dexter’s character
is portrayed using these shots of
the orange being cut into. You can
see below the fine cut and the
technique used is similar to that of
an experienced knife wielder. This
gives us our first glimpse of the
skill and experience Dexter has
had at chopping things up,
namely flesh.
The gore aspect of the
series is again
reinforced as we see
the juice of the orange
shoot out. This
connotes the blood
spatter that will no
doubt be ever present
in the series.
Dexter’s identity
16. The ruthless and aggressive side
comes out in Dexter’s character
during these two scenes. In
these scenes Dexter is just about
to tie his shoes and floss, but the
force he is applying and the
tension in his hands can imply
that he is strangling someone.
Also, the fact that these
things are being implied
during such mundane
activities shows that this
ruthlessness is embedded
into his DNA, rather than
he has just got into it. This
tells us that his dark side is
a massive part of his
character and it wears off
on everything he does.
Dexter’s identity
pt2
17. To reinforce this point I can use these three
scenes to show, again, how his serial killer
identity rubs off on everything he does. The
multiple cracks in the egg show his power
and efficiency and connotes broken bones.
The two scenes below show his love of
domination and his controlling personality.
This is conveyed by showing how the
downward movement of his hand crushes
the coffee beans, which implies he is always
in control of the lives of his victims. It also
implies that he is always one step ahead
and never out of his depth.
Dexter’s identity
pt3
18. Again, these scenes reinforce this point. We can
see below the way he squeezes the orange
against the juicer shows the inside of the fruit
falling out. This easily implies guts spilling out of
a stomach. This is the same with the second
orange scene, where the remnants of the
orange is lying on a table. It shows the trauma
the orange has been through and for a second
time uses the mundane everyday activity of
juicing an orange to mask Dexter’s dark side.
Another scene where this is apparent is the
scene where he cuts up the bacon in the
packet. The combination of these everyday
normal activities combined with the execution of
a bloodthirsty serial killer gives us this sense of
him hiding in plain sight, and trying desperately
to keep his dark passenger hidden, but at the
end of the day you can’t hide who you are
forever and that becomes evident with the little
details shown in these scenes.
Dexter’s identity pt4
19. The theme of gore is a mainstay
throughout the Opening Title
Sequence. Again, it conforms to
my earlier argument in the last
couple of slides about Dexter’s
dark side being hidden in
mundane activities. As well as
this though normal things like
Tomato sauce and drips of blood
are used just to reiterate the
main themes of the series as
well as increase the feeling of
unnatural normality when we see
blood.
Themes
20. Lastly, the title and the credits
combine with the activities taking
place which again heightens the
feeling of normality with blood.
The ‘Dexter’ title gives us a bit of
information about his character,
everything in Dexter’s world is blurred
and uncertain but the one thing that
has remained a constant throughout
his life is his love of blood and
violence, and this is outlined by the
bold and sharp bloodstained title
accompanied by a blurred
background. The subtlety of this
makes the scene even more effective
as it builds on Dexter’s hidden identity.
Title and Credits
22. What type of ots is it?
• The OTS to the Last of Us is both non-linear and
symbolic. It’s non-linear as it shows the audience a
montage of how fast the virus can spread.
• It also symbolises that the events will be focused
around the virus and how it devastated the human
population. The purpose of this is to frighten but inform
the audience.
23. How does the OTS prepare the
audience for what to come?
• The OTS prepares for the game as it informs the
audience what has happened, the consequences and
which direction the events that occur are going in.
It creates narrative enigmas such as:
How did it occur?
How many survivors are there?
What is left of Earth?
24. Forms and conventions of the genre.
• Symbolic opening title sequences aren’t usual for sub-genres.
• It gives us no location so we don’t know where the events will
take place or if the virus has hit most or all of earth.
• There’s no characters, action or bodies being shown but we
know it’s there thanks to the news reports keeping the
audience informed of the casualties and the consequences of
the outbreak.
• The names of the cast and crew are slightly bigger than the
role so it catches the eye of the audience first and so they get
credit for the production.
25. Forms and conventions
• The OTS reinforces aspects such as death, chaos, danger
and survival.
• The OTS presents credits and the title by using the rule of
thirds. The title is in black and white and slowly fades in so
it stands out from the background, grabbing the attention of
the audience immediately.
• The whole OTS is in black and white. This was done to
clearly show how fast the virus can spread by making the
virus white and the background black.
26. What I enjoyed about the
OTS• I enjoyed the use of sound e.g. the news reports and the use of
carpuntal sound as the news reports and the sirens in the
background emphasise chaos and lack of control. Whereas the
carpuntal sound is something you wouldn’t expect.
• You would alternatively expect something more intense or
dramatic to signify to the audience that this virus is serious.
• I enjoyed the different camera angles and shots to accurately
and successfully show the progression of the virus to keep the
audience entertained.
27. • The title of the game is announced at the start of the
OTS. The use of black and white helps the title of
the game stand out from the background as well as
making it bright and bold.
28. • The OTS shows the spread progression of the
virus by editing the speed of the shots,
suggesting that the virus is fast spreading and
contagious.
29. • The role of the crew member is smaller than the name of the person that
did the role as it’s more important.
• It stands out from the background, doesn’t get in the way of the virus
moving about so the audience can focus on all of it and so it catches the
eye of the audience first. It also allows them to get credit for their work.
30. • The OTS uses the rule of thirds when it comes to
text and credit as it’s easy for the audience to read
and they can focus on everything that’s going on in
that shot due to it being easy to notice.
