Opening art

A few sites have been linking to this great new(ish) site called The Art of the Title Sequence. The site collects examples of great opening credits and opening sequences from films through the history of cinema. Naturally, contemporary movies are featured more than the older stuff, but it really doesn't matter. Every post is fascinating, and gives you a real insight into how filmmakers set the tone of their work from the very outset. Some of my favourite examples from the first few pages of the site would be these:




As always, click on the images for higher resolution.

The first image is the opening sequence from the film Stranger Than Fiction. Such a great film, and the graphics in the opening sequence are just so well done. If you haven't seen this movie, rush out and get it.

The second set of titles is from the David Lynch film, Lost Highway. In my mind, David Lynch can do no wrong, and it's interesting to compare the titles he used for Lost Highway, to the ones he used on his film Mulholland Drive. They're quite similar, and work well to set up the sense of foreboding that is so strong in both films.

Finally, the third picture is a grab from the titles of Napoleon Dynamite. Some people love this film, some people hate it, but you can't deny it had its own particular style that made it unmistakable. (I quite liked the film, by the way)

So I'd really recommend checking out The Art of the Title Sequence, it's got some awesome stuff, and most of the entries have links to high-quality quicktime movies of the sequences, so there's heaps to see.