1. Titles Analysis
Suzanne Micael
I thought it was important to research the way films within the Horror Genre include opening
titles to inform (which is a key concept in the uses and gratifications theory) the audience about
the film by relaying subtle hints of information about the contents of the storyline. As well as
this, the audience is aware about who took part producing the film such as the director,
producer, sound etc. Titles are often manipulated to suit a certain genre and in this case I will be
analysing two distinct horror films within the genre. Friday the 13th (2009) and Sinister (2012)
are both examples of successful horror films as they include many of the conventions
recognised in other forms of research I have analysed. This includes foreshadowing, red imagery
and a heavy reliance on special effects. I have chosen 2 relatively new horror films as I felt their
opening sequences and titling would be more appropriate as my film is also based on
contemporary society.

2. Friday the 13th(2009)
The first film I decided to analyse is Friday the 13th which follows
a group of friends who discover an abounded camping site. They
soon come to realise the murderous Jason Voorhees is hunting
them down and his true intentions are made known. I felt this
film was particularly interesting as it conveys many of the Horror
Genre features that I had previously studied. I also found it
intriguing that I would be considered the desired target audience
for the film which also contributed to the reason I chose this
film.

3. Initially, the films begin with silver stars, directly from the centre using the rule of thirds positioning, falling
from the night’s sky and through the clouds to form the classic Paramount Pictures logo. The camera pans out
slowly in pace following the stars, in a slightly high angle to allow more visual information to be shown such as
all of the stars forming together. This highlights the importance of the company as it is the first title the
audience can see. Paramount Pictures is a successful and distinctive production company and this logo is
featured in every film the company produces in the introduction of its opening sequence. Therefore the
audience recognises the success of the intertexual brand and automatically associates the film with being
worth watching as it allows the audience to identify (uses and gratifications) the film with others the company
has also produced. However, the logo has been manipulated to present different denotations of the colour
red in the classic trademark. This is a peculiar juxtaposition as the connotation of the clouds is symbolic of
dreaming and positivity which is a complete contrast to the connotations of red which throughout my
research I found red imagery (a key convention in film within the horror genre) represents the unnatural
nature of blood, gore and thoughts of murder. This thematic red tint continues into the next logo of the
production company Platinum Dunes as the logo is shown using an extremely close-up shot, also using the
same panning out movement. The red aspect adds to the level of continuity in the sequence which
intentionally connects the film to create a fluent introduction that grips a audience.

4. The shot suddenly jump cuts to a short clip of a
dark forest, however the audiences attention is
set towards the vivid white titles in positioned
in the rule of thirds bottom right corner. The
typography is a classic font text that has a
dated motif. This informs the audience of the
date of the footage they are watching set in
June 13th, 1980 taking the audience back in
time to relive the events they are about to
witness; preparing them that action is about to
take place. The denotation of the colour white
really stands out against the contrast of the
colours within the actual shot. This title also
refers to the title of the film as the audience
can put together the date exaggerating the
important of the opening sequence. After the
next couple of scenes, The audience then
witnesses the same typography and colour in a
slightly larger font size this time positioned in
the centre of the blank black screen. Again, this
clearly stands out and appears quite effective
even though it seems quite simplistic. This
carries on with the other titles of the film such
as the names of the actors, directors etc. in the
same continuous progression in billing order.

5. Finally, the actual appearance of the
title of the film was actually shown
approximately 23 minutes into the
film. This was very interesting as the
titles were clearly controlled to a
certain level of continuity; as right as
the audience became used to a
specific routine of the same titles
being repeated, they were caught of
guard with considerably the most
important title they would have seen.
This is similar to the plot of most horror films as the scary factor supporting
most of them relies on the unexpected occurring and shocking potential
audiences. Therefore the build-up of the action in which the villain kills
multiple people and then the sudden stop to this with use of the title makes
the titles a lot more memorable. The titles appear in the centre of the screen
similar to before in a faded in effect. However, this time the titles are a vibrant
shade of red. As well as this, the typography appears slightly bolder, larger in
font size and in all capitals. These three aspects combined are successfully
used to distinguish the title of the film with the other titles already shown. As
stated before, this generates a more memorable title.

6. Sinister(2012)
The second film I chose to observe the opening sequence of
within the horror genre is Scott Derricksons ‘Sinister’. This film
tells the supernatural story of a ‘serial killer’ dating back to the
1960s work, in which a crime writer discovers; the numerous
victims’ cause of death in a series of home movie films. The
writer himself, including his family find themselves in the same
pattern as the victims experienced. When watching this film, I
felt the opening titles were very entertaining as they heavily
reflected the plot of the film and told a story in the space of two
minutes.

7. Universal trademark making audience connecting
this film to the already successful films that the
intertexual bran Momentum Pictures has previously
produced.
Using a bold gold colour, the camera follows the
fizzling fireworks that form the second logo of
Alliance Films.
Gold is often associated with luxury and connotes
the idea of wealth. This makes Alliance Films
production company more glamorous as the
typography suggest this company only creates
quality media products.
The fireworks also creates excitement about the
products as the use of fireworks are often displayed
in times of celebration therefore audiences should
be aware they should feel a sense of joy watching a
film made by this company.
The iconic figure of the ‘A’ above the actual
name is used as visual information of enabling
the audience to remember the production
company by.

8. The titles of this production company are
edited to appear in way that plasters them
into the corner of the room. This connotes
the idea of being vulnerable as being
cornered suggests there is no escape route
and possibly the risk of death.
Using a key theme in the narrative of the
homemade movie roles, in the sequence in the
background of the titles as well as the frame of
the shot.
The rule of thirds positioning, the
titles are seen in the bottom right of
the screen.
Dim lighting in the foreground of
the shot to create a more eerie
motif and allow the brightness of
the titles to stand out more.
The typography is unique as it is in
a scribbled font in different sized
lettering as if it was written by a
child.
Haunted Houses are often a repetitive
convention in the horror genre.

9. To conclude..
To conclude, I felt it was very helpful acknowledging the ways in
which opening titles can impact an audience in a way that affects
their view of the film in a build-up of suspense. It was evident
that both films that I had studied were very different in their
portrayal of titles, yet mutually made an impact on me as part of
the audience. To ensure my opening titles are just as well done, I
observed specific traits I could inject into my own media
production of the opening sequence. This comprises of a
different colour that sets apart the title of my film with the other
billing titles e.g. Directors name. Also, the importance of having
an iconic logo for the production company. The fluency of the
repetitive premise of titling was also deemed necessary as it
marked the stability of the opening sequence.