2. The general impression we get of this title sequence is that is has been inspired by a
child’s cartoon book, which is easy to follow and looks fairly amateur - suggesting the film
will be appropriate for young viewers. This overall theme is presented through the various
camera positions, movements, the extensive animation, non-diegetic sound and creative
mis-en-scene.
The title sequence consists of the main character – Juno – walking through her
suburban neighbourhood. The first 10 seconds show her in ‘reality’, but from then onwards
(apart from the final 6 seconds of the sequence) she becomes partially-animated, and
becomes a 2D picture walking through a hand-drawn
looking, animated, 3D neighbourhood. A tree marks
the transition between reality and animation.
The camera pans as she walks through the
streets, and presents the animated background
through wide shots. This creates the amateur,
childlike theme, which looks as though it was
created by putting multiple still images together to create one continuous moving image (i.e
it looks as though time-lapse photography has been used). This theme is also supported by
the titles, which also look hand-drawn and disjointed. The child-like text reflects the inner
child within her, which is supported by the fact she carries a bottle of sunny-D with hersuggesting she has the stereotypical teenage attitude of not caring about what she eats and is dressed casually with no make-up and walks in a casual stride - as though she is calm
and relaxed. The informal approach hints at the comedy within the film, and suggests the
main character possesses a laid back approach to her life.
The sequence suggests there is a strong sense of normality
within the film, as the lighting is natural in the ‘real’ parts and the
background in the animation seems repetitive (through the
repetitive look of the buildings in her neighbourhood, and the dull
colours of both the setting and her clothes). There is a suggestion that she is bored with her
life, which is implied through the close ups on her face – showing her deep in thought, and
her slouched body language. She also appears to be from a ‘normal’ family in the way that
she dresses, which looks fairly basic and implies she is from a working class background.
As mentioned above, the majority of the title sequence consists of the camera
tracking and panning the main character; however there are
times when the audience are placed in Juno’s position and view
the sequence from her point of view. At 1.38 minutes there is a
point-of-view shot from Juno’s
perspective, looking down at her feet,
this is poignant and suggests she is
3. deep in thought, thinking about herself. This is a hint of what is to come within the film,
whereupon Juno is forced to think hard about how her life will change, and grow up quickly.
The sound which assists the title sequence features a completely non-diegetic
country and western-style song, called ‘All I want is you’, which plays throughout and fades
out at the end. As she walks into the animation, the tempo of the track is significantly
increased. The song creates a ‘dreamy’ atmosphere and corroborates with the initial view
that Juno is daydreaming. The lack of diegetic sound also
contributes to this idea, and suggests that she is in a world of
her own oblivious to the sounds of the world around her.
There is no indication of the main event of the storyline
(her pregnancy) in the title sequence, nor does it feature any of
the other characters in detail, but at some points a high angle is
depicted on Juno, as she looks up to the sky. This makes
her look vulnerable, and in the last 6 seconds when ‘reality’
is restored, we see her walk into a drug store – suggesting
she has a rebellious side which we were not exposed to up
until this point.
