Opening titles

The opening titles of a film are that film's first chance to make an impression on the viewer.  A well crafted sequence will introduce the audience tone and theme of the film as well as its cast and crew.

Opening titles traditionally are at the films beginning and commonly over black or animation. over an image the image typically features a panning shot which then puts the camera in focus of a specific thing, person, location or object. They also open with montages occasionally.

Pulp Fiction opening titles, starts over animation and 

eventually becomes over black

The opening titles typically include production companies, producers names, the films title, main actors, director and sometime, but not always, the writer or writers. Roles which are more behind the scenes are shown at the films end. The opening titles usually feature a score of some kind which tend to be indicators of the overall feeling of the film. If the music is loud and fast which expect a high octane film not a period romance drama. If the music is bleak we expect the film to have a reflective theme overall.  

Halloween opening titles. The music sets up the

the mood for a sinister and ghostly thriller. 

Opening credits can also feature whats known as a 'cold open' which features a brief snippet  of the film or programme in the hopes of grabbing the audiences attention immediately although this technique is usually used in the comedy genre. Cold open's are generally short although sometimes can be extended making the opening titles almost a surprise. This is done sometimes to point out to the audience that they were so gripped they did not even miss something they expected. The 2004 film 'Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind' has a cold open of near 17 minutes. 

Joseph Power