Title Sequence: Pre-production

Title Sequence - Pre Produciton

Brief

Initial ideas

My target audience:

Age: Young adults (18+)
Gender: Mixed
Interests: Reading and writing novels/poetry and watching drama tv series/films.

Personality: Introverted, empathetic, humorous and intelligent.

a) Why would your target audience enjoy your title sequence?

I believe my target audience would enjoy my title sequence as it will incorporate lots of style, genre and symbolism. My target audience will be young adults (18+) who are interested in period television series in the drama genre. I believe they will enjoy my title sequence because it will be heavily stylised to emphasize the time period, this will be shown through the dark gritty colouring, costume and old-fashioned font I will create. These elements that I will incorporate can allow my audience to be enticed, as the immersive visuals will capture the dark atmosphere of the show and give the audience a taster into the setting which the series is based in, Cambridge during the 19th century.

I also believe my target audience will enjoy my title sequence as it shall adopt the conventions of a period piece and drama genre series, some examples of convections I will use are mise-en-scene, typical props (weapons, belongings) and symbolism (black vs white/good vs bad, religion etc). Incorporating these elements into my title sequence will allow my target audience to form a connection to the series as they will be given hints and references to the events that occur, creating more mystery which makes them want to discover more.

In my title sequence I would like to explore the three main themes of my series, being loss, duality and greed. In order to make the symbolism in my title sequence enjoyable and engaging to my audience, I will create a colour palette that reflects the themes of greed as the colour dark green, duality as the colours black and white and loss as the colour red. I have chosen these colours because of their connotations to the themes, as observant audience members will make the link between the symbolism and become engaged and excited to find out how these themes are explored and who represents them within the series.

Lastly, my title sequence will include visuals of poetry, this element in the sequence is purposeful as it hints towards the protagonist's passion and aspirations as a writer. By incorporating this part of the character’s interest into the title sequence it will be enjoyable for my target audience as they can find it relatability and comfort as either a reader or writer in poetry. Poetry is also an art form that is up for interpretation, using this type of literary work will excite my target audience as they can find their own hidden meaning behind the words shown on screen and what reference they might have towards the narrative.

b) What will they learn about your show?

My target audience will learn that the location of the series is based in Cambridge, this will be shown through graphic stylised visuals that show iconic/classic period buildings in Cambridge that are from the 19th century. They will also learn that the show is set during the 19th century, this will be shown through the props I will use, such as candles, stained paper etc. which all represent the resources people used in that time period.

My audience members will learn that the genre category that my series fits into is drama, this will be shown through the dark imagery and colour grading I will use. For instance, I will create a harsh green/brown toned colour grade that will capture the tone and atmosphere of a period piece. The dark imagery will be reflected through the symbolism of the themes in my series. For instance, the theme of death will be symbolised using imagery of skulls, flowers, graves and possibly a crow, this is because these three images share connotations to the theme of death, while also capturing a dark and morbid atmosphere.

My target audience will learn about the key three themes of my show, which are greed, loss and duality; all of which are present in the protagonist's life. As I have previously mentioned, these themes shall be revealed to the audience subtlety through the symbolism of the colours e.g black vs white - duality, dark green - greed and red - loss, as each of these colours have connotations to the themes.

My target audience will also learn that death is a common theme reflected in the show, as I have previously mentioned, I will create visuals that have imagery of skulls, graves and flowers, this is because these elements have connotations to the theme of death and will clearly reflect the drama genre of my series to my audience.

c) What symbolism, connotation and denotation is used to convey meaning to the audience?

My title sequence will include lots of symbolism, as I have previously mentioned, the themes of my show will be symbolised through the use of colour. The theme of greed will be represented through the harsh green colour grade and also will be shown through an image of the protagonist's hand holding a gold ring with a green stone in a thoughtful manner. The gold jewellery and dark green stone have connotations to power, this will foreshadow to the audience the theme of greed and emphasis its meaning and importance in the narrative.

My protagonist's storyline will be symbolised through subtle imagery, for example, I shall visually symbolise to the audience that my protagonist evolves and discovers the darker side of himself. This will be shown through a visual of a mirror being broken. This symbolism will reflect to the audience that there is a transformation or change in the protagonist as a broken mirror has connotations to the theme of duality, reflecting the internal struggle that the characters faces with himself.

Another way in which I will symbolise the narrative of the series is through imagery of money, I will recreate 19th century money with splattered blood across it, this image will foreshadow to the audience a huge part of the narrative by symbolising how in the protagonist's life money becomes a source of survival and to retain it could mean going to depths they never thought they would go. The symbolism of having blood across the money will also lure the audience in and emphasis the drama genre of the show, as this imagery has connotations to themes of crime, mirroring the term 'blood money'. For this visual , I will also create an overlay of blood slowly streaming down the screen, this will symbolise the emotions of loss and anger that the protagonist feels and how these emotions gradually become the catalysts that transform his life forever.

Lastly, as the series of events in the show are through the protagonist's perspective, I will convey all of the visuals as if they are flickered memories of the character's experience. To reveal more of the protagonist's interests and aspirations in the title sequence, I will create a visual effect using an ink splatter overlay that will reveal a poem written by the character, expressing feelings of grief and loneliness. I believe this visual will denote to the audience the protagonist's creative side, subtly referencing his aspirations to become a professional writer, as this will be a consistent part of the narrative in the series.

d) How does your title sequence connect to the genre, theme and story of the TV show? How is it clear to the audience?

My title sequence strongly connects to historical drama genre, this will be shown through the visuals of buildings from the 19th century in Cambridge that I will capture, by revealing these locations in the title sequence it conveys clearly to the audience that the setting of the series is based in the past and will be recognisable for audience members who live or know Cambridge.

Another way in which the title sequence will connect the historical drama genre of the show to the title sequence will be through the dark green/brown colouring I will create. This colouring will give the title sequence an old rustic atmosphere, emphasising to the audience that the series is based in the past. Also this colouring will form a dark tone and aesthetic that is a common convection used in the drama genre, attracting target audience members who favour tv shows in that category of genre.

My title sequence will also reflect the historical drama genre of the series through the costume and props. The props and costumes I will create or purchase are 19th century money, an old ink pot with a feather quill and an old-fashioned plain shirt. I want to connect the genre of the series to the costume and props used in the title sequence as I believe they play a huge role in denoting the time period of the series to the audience and allow them to learn more about the narrative.

As I have previously mentioned, the money prop will have blood splattered across it, this prop connects to the theme of crime by clearly foreshadowing to the audience the criminal acts that occur in the protagonist's life and storyline as a whole. The blood splattered money prop also connects to the drama genre of the series as it depicts a dark and realistic visual making the audience uncomfortable, emphasising the shows target audience is for viewers over the age of 18 due to its explicit content.

The ink pot and quill prop will denote to the audience that the protagonist is a (aspiring) writer, referencing a key element that forms the background of the show's storyline to the audience. This prop also connects the theme of literature in the series, as language and poetry will play a huge part in the protagonist's storyline, this theme will be clearly repeated throughout the title sequence to the audience as I will include lots of imagery that shows visuals of the protagonist writing and quoted lines from poems written in the 19th century.

Lastly, the plain shirt costume piece shown in the title sequence will connect the period setting of the series to the audience as I will include a bow tie with the costume to convey clearly to the audience that the 19th century is the period the show is based in, as a shirt with a bow-tie was a popular fashionable outfit during that time in history.

Title sequence

Primary Audience

The primary audience for my title sequence are people ages 18 to 25. My title sequence is targeted at an older age demographic due to its explicit content e.g blood and adult themes such as death, loss, greed and duality. The title sequence targets people within this age demographic because they're mature enough to understand the symbolism and connotations reflected in the visuals, this age demographic also allows the audience to appreciate the meaning behind the visuals more.

The dominant gender for my title sequence's primary audience would most likely be men/trans men, this is because the only gender represented in the title sequence is male, therefore it may seem more relatable and attractive to male audiences as the visuals focus on a male perspective. However, it is also accessible to people of all genders as the themes, tone and style are not targeted towards a specific gender and would be alluring to anyone who enjoys historical drama series.

The primary audience for my title sequence are people who watch historical drama series/films, this audience type would enjoy my title sequence as it will be heavily stylised with convictions of this genre, e.g dark imagery and symbolism, mise-en-scene, period setting etc.

The primary audience for my title sequence are people who are interested in poetry and art. My title sequence will be attractive for audience members who admire poetry because the visuals will include quoted poems from the 19th century, this allows these primary audience members to recognise and find meaning behind the poems purpose in the imagery. The visuals will also include shots of haunting dark paintings from the 19th century, this allows these primary audience members to recognise the symbolism and meaning behind the art's purpose and effect within the title sequence.

Secondary audience

The secondary audience for my title sequence are people who watch period piece media content. These secondary audience members would be interested in my title sequence due to its 19th century stylised visuals which would immerse these viewers through the shots of 19th century architecture, costumes and props.

The secondary audience for my title sequence are people who watch film/tv in the drama genre. These secondary audience members would be intrigued by my title sequence as it will have visuals that are heavily stylised to the drama genre e.g emotional, dark colour grade, symbolism etc. It will also feature dramatic classical music which will help emphasis the drama aspects of the series, attracting this audience type even more.

Lastly, the secondary audience for my title sequence are people who live or have visited Cambridge, England. My title sequence's secondary audience is targeted at people who are familiar with this location because the series is based in this city and the visuals will capture 19th century buildings that would be recognisable to this audience.

Types of audience

To separate clearly the different audience types of my target audience, I have created a table that sections them into geographic, psychographic, behaviour and demographic tables.

Moodboards

Aesthetic mood-board

Location/setting mood-board

Colour palette mood-board

Questions

a) What are the digital effects and art style to be used in creating your title sequence? How will this engage an audience?

The digital effects I want to use for my title sequence will be subtle, the first is going to be a rain visual effect, this will be used for the location shots in my title sequence and will engage my audience by setting up the dark dramatic nature and art style of the series, also the use of rain will create pathetic fallacy, alluring the audience in as it mirrors the melancholic and mysterious tone of the show.

The next digital effect I want to create is an ink splatter, this visual will splatter across a black background to reveal footage of the protagonist writing a poem. I believe this visual effect fits perfectly into my art style (which is a mixture of dark academia and gothic aesthetic), as it will references the use of literature during that period. The visual effect will also look similar to a drop of blood, this use of imagery also adds to the gothic style of the title sequence, making the audience engaged as the mysterious and dark visual entices them in.

Another digital effect I would like to create for my title sequence is a smoke effect, this visual will be used both in location shots and act as a transition between shots in the title sequence. I believe this visual effect works well with my gothic art style as smoke has connotations to mystery and darkness. The visual effect will also engage the audience by foreshadowing the heavy dramatic tone of the series, as the mysterious atmosphere and imagery the visuals create will attract the audience, making them want to continue watching.

Lastly, the other digital effect I would like to create is a masking transition, this visual will act as a transition between shots and will give the title sequence pace and smoothness. This visual effect will fit into my gothic/dark academia art style through its swift and mysterious movement. For example, I will be creating a mask effect of a faceless figure moving past the audience's view in a shot which will then smoothly cut to the next shot. This particular transition will engage the audience by making them feel as though something or someone is being hidden from them, this will brew curiosity enticing the audience in.

b) What is the title sequence trying to convey and how does it connect to a target audience?

My title sequence will include visuals of a graveyard, skulls and an old oil painting, my target audience will connect to these visuals as they are interested in dark academia and drama gothic series that focus on themes of death and loss.

My title sequence will include visuals of 19th century buildings in Cambridge, my target audience will connect to these visuals as they are interested in the dark academia aesthetic and some may even be from Cambridge, which makes them recognisable and feels more personal.

My title sequence will convey themes of loss, greed and duality, this is to give the target audience a taster as to what subjects the series explores and how they are part the protagonist's life. These themes will connect to my target audience as I will use symbolism and imagery that is seen in other drama period novels, films and series in order to emphasis the style and genre of my show to my target audience.

As I have previously mentioned, the colour of my props, setting and colour grade in the title sequence will each represent a theme. I will convey these themes to my target audience by using imagery e.g graveyards and skulls to symbolise loss, imagery of money to symbolise greed and lastly a cracked mirror to symbolise the theme of duality.

My title sequence will try to convey the historical drama genre of the series and the gothic/dark academia art style of the series by using genre convections, colour grading and shot types. My target audience will connect to the genre of the series as I will use mise-en-scene and dim lighting in the title sequence (which are both commonly used historical drama genre convections) to enhance the mysterious atmosphere and dark period setting of the series.

The dark green/brown colour grade I will create shall give the shots a gritty dated look which will reflect to the audience the 19th century setting the series is based in. The colour grade will also connect the audience to the dark academia/gothic aesthetic shown in the title sequence by intensifying the dark shadows in the shots, giving them an ominous atmosphere.

c) How will the visual effects work to create a dynamic and visually arresting title sequence for a target audience?

The rain visual effect I am going to create for my title sequence will make a dynamic and arresting visual as my target audience are interested in hidden messages through foreshadowing and symbolism which this effect will create due to its connotations of doom and sadness.

My target audience will be entertained by the rain visual effect as it is a common use of pathetic fallacy seen in drama series due to its connotations to sadness and change, which are also two key emotions/elements that occur in my series, making it a perfect effect for my title sequence.

The smoke visual effect I am going to create for my title sequence will make a dynamic and arresting visual by adding a dark, mysterious and ominous tone to my scenes. The smoke visual will blur in and out of shots making my target audience curious and interested as to what the smoke may reveal or hide.

The mask visual effect I am going to create for my title sequence will make a dynamic and arresting visual by subtly and smoothly adding transitions between shots making my target audience feel as though they are being immersed into the gothic/dark academia setting of the series.

Lastly, the ink visual effect I am going to create for my title sequence will make a dynamic and arresting visual for my target audience by reflecting the theme of literature/poetry in the series as the ink splatter will reveal a poem. The visual effect will also entertain my target audience through its symbolism as it will look similar to a blood drop, allowing the audience to be given freedom as to what dramatic effect the ink splatter represents in the title sequence.

d) What materials will you need?

For my title sequence one of the materials I need is a quill and ink pot, I need this prop because it was a commonly used writing tool during the 19th century, which is the period my title sequence is set and my protagonist is an aspiring writer. In order to purchase this prop I will look on the website Depop as I know they sell affordable quills and ink pots.

The second material I need for my title sequence is an old-fashioned plain shirt, I need this costume piece as I would like the clothes in my visuals to reflect the 19th century time period of the show and would also like to avoid continuity errors. To purchase this costume piece I will search in my own wardrobe, charity shops and Depop to find a shirt that fits that time period.

Lastly, the third material I need for my title sequence is 19th century money, this is because I would like to avoid continuity errors and one of the visual ideas I had for my title sequence was to have a close up shot of blood stained money. In order to retain this prop I will try and print off 19th century money or purchase some online.

e) What technical equipment will be used? e.g camera, visual effects software etc.

The technical equipment that will be used to create my title sequence is a camera and tripod for the production process. For the post-production of my title sequence I will use a computer and the adobe software known as after effects which I will use to edit my footage on.

f) How will you ensure that your title sequence's genre, theme and story is clear to understand for a target audience in relation to the visual effects and TV show itself.

To ensure my title sequence represents the historical drama genre of my TV show, I will include genre convections such as mise-en-scene, dark green/brown colouring grading to enhance the dramatic tone and capture the historical side of the drama genre by giving the visuals a dated look. The genre and storyline of my series will also be foreshadowed through the use of pathetic fallacy in both my smoke and rain visual effects as these visuals have connotations to mystery and doom which are two themes that occur in my protagonist's life and plot.

To convey and symbolise the themes of greed, mystery and loss that are seen in the narrative of my show, I will be creating a slow motioned shot in my title sequence of blood being splattered onto 19th century money. This visual also relates to the period of the show and subtly foreshadows to the audience a key change in the series when the protagonist has to turn to criminal acts in order to survive.

Another way I will also convey more of the storyline in my series to the audience is by creating an ink visual effect in my title sequence that reveals a shot of the protagonist writing poetry. This visual relates to the storyline of the show by denoting to the audience the character's hobbies of writing literate and poetry.

Lastly, as I have previously mentioned throughout these questions, I will make sure the colours of my props, costumes and setting convey the period of my series and also the themes of greed, duality and loss in the storyline of my series.

Planning

Storyboard one:

The storyboard I created consists of six shots, in total there are four visual effects. As I created the storyboard I thought of adding a rose petal visual effect into the money covered in blood shot. I also came up with a title for my series naming it Corpus, which means the 'main body' in Latin.

Storyboard two:

The storyboard I created below consists of four shots and in total there are three visual effects. I created this storyboard combining an idea I mentioned in my research which was the blood dripping visual effect. However, most of this storyboard is created from scratch with visuals appearing in my head as I drew them. This storyboard varies in style from my first one as it uses less symbolism and more denotation, for example instead of using skulls and graveyards to convey the theme of death I simply thought of creating a shot of a death certificate. The style in the second storyboard varies from the first one as it focuses more on experiment visuals e.g lines of poem overlapping the opening shot, blood dripping through screen in candle shot etc. than revealing the location and genre of the series.

After reflecting upon the final outcome of both storyboards I have decided to stick with my first storyboard, this is because I believe it would be more feasible to create. I also believe the first storyboard will convey the storyline and themes of my series more clearly to the audience than the second storyboard. However, I would like to try include the mirror visual effect from my second storyboard into my first storyboard as I feel it would be an effective visual in portraying the theme of duality in my title sequence.

Song choice:

After researching different songs to use for my title sequence, I found three I liked and would possibly use. I will conclude my decision between the three songs when in the post-production of my title sequence that way I can see which one works best with my final cut.

Song one: Choros Remastered 2020 by Ludovico Einaudi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9Wb9OrgRVc

Song two - Rêverie by Debussy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRjllL-MP0U

Song three - The Untold by Succession Studios

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-iHnbPb60Y

Script one:

As I began writing my first script I made some adjustments and added improvements to my ideas, I moved the sky mask visual effect from the location shot to the graveyard shot as I felt it would create a better transition. I added a shattered visual effect to the painting shot in order for me to create a smoother transition between the two scenes, this will also allow me to try out a new visual effect. Lastly I changed the blood money shot by having the title of the series appears on the brick wall behind the two characters after they have exchanged the money and exited the frame.

Script two

For this task I had to complete two scripts. I based this second script upon my second storyboard and added in a few new ideas. The ideas I added were to include a slow motioned shot of an emerald ring falling, for this shot I would practise my velocity skills in post-production by editing the different speeds and motion of the ring. I chose to add this scene in because as I have previously mentioned in my research, I wanted to symbolise my themes through colour, for this shot I have used the colour green in the ring to symbolise a key theme in the storyline of my series, which is greed.

Another idea I added into this script was to have the rose in the final shot expand as if it were still growing, I thought this would look more visually enticing and would symbolise the growth of loss and death that occurs in my protagonist's storyline, as red roses have connotations to death and loss.

Lastly, the final detail I added into this script was the specified poems quoted in the opening shot, which were Edgar Allen Poe's 'Raven' and William Vaughn Moody's 'A Grey Day'. After doing some research on 19th century poets, I came across these poems and thought they would work perfectly in my title sequence as they symbolise themes of death, sadness, loss etc. which all connect to the storyline and characters experiences in my series.

My first script differs from the second script as it focuses more on the aesthetic style of my title sequence. For example, it combines the shots using smooth transitions e.g the mask visual effect with figure walking between the street and graveyard, the shattered painting to mirror effect. These transitions are far more thought out, meaningful and symbolic than any seen in my second script. The first script is also longer in duration and concludes of more visual effects, by choosing this script it would allow me to challenge myself and broaden my editing skills.

My second script differs from my first script as it focuses more on camera techniques and symbolism. For example, the shots of the emerald ring, poetry floating into frame and the rose expanding are interlinked and have connotations to the narrative in my series, they also include more camera movement and experiment with panning shots and zoom outs. However, the issue with choosing my second script is that it lacks in aesthetics and the visuals will be may not be feasible. To conclude, I have decided to use my first script for my title sequence as I prefer the style and effects I have thought of and believe they will be more feasible to create.

Visual Designs

For this task, I created multiple visual deigns for my title sequence. I re created many of these visuals using my storyboard as an outline and also added some new ideas too. Some were harder to create as I could not find images that captured what I envisioned, however when I am in production I will shoot my own shots in order for me to depict my visuals accurately and the way I imagine them in my head. I personally only like the first three visual designs I created.

The visual design of the money shot looks very bad due to the lack of images I found of people 'exchanging money' and the visual of the titles I dislike due to its font. For the next stage of my pre-production I will be researching fonts that capture a 19th century look to convey the period of my series and also for it to fit into my title sequence's aesthetic.

To help me process and structure my visual ideas, I created a short video of the visuals I believe depict the narrative of my series best. The song I have added into the video, Choros Remastered 2020 by Ludovico Einaudi, is one that I am considering to use as the audio for my title sequence. Editing the visuals to the song helped me understand the structure I want the the visuals to unfold in and has reassured me that the audio I have chosen works well alongside my visuals.