The History of Opening Sequence's

The Beginning:

In the very early days of cinematic films, the opening sequence was simply made of titles giving the name of the film, director and the production company involved in the film. This was especially in the days of silent film and before. The opening sequence is done to give the audience a hint about what the film is about and what they should expect from the film.

This is a picture of the first film ever made. 'The Horse in Motion' by  Edward James Muggeridge and was made in 1878.

Titling:

Subtitling developed from 1917, during the silent film era, whereas surtitling has been used in the live performing arts since 1983. Film production companies began to hire typecasts whose expertise was to make printed cards. This gradually evolved as animated styles of titling were developed allowing film makers and editors to produce more impressive and complicated opening sequences' which would appeal more to the public.

This picture shows a collection of stills from the opening titles to the 1995 release 'Se7en' where different typography was used in the titles to express the director, producers and actors names. A selection of different camera angles are now used which compares hugely to the silent film era. This is due to a radical change in technology allowing editors to create exceptional opening sequences. With Se7en, the pictures tell us that the film has a scary and gruesome element to it as well as it may be a thriller.  



The Opening Sequence of today:

The opening sequences of modern day films include a longer piece of filming, it can be action filled or can be done to create atmosphere and a tone for the rest of the film. This technique and objective is till done today for the audience to understand the film's meaning and storyline. For example, a modern day film such as 'The Hangover' which is known for its comedy and action filled story-lines use a simple yet effective opening sequence to allow the audience to understand the main themes of the film.