Film Opening Techniques

 The Part Most People Don't See

    The title I chose for this post references the excessive amount of time that goes into any production. With this project, I have to dig deep into how to make a good film opening. In the beginning, I was at a loss for where to start so I said to myself, "Oh well," and started watching random film openings.

    After watching some I learned of different film opening techniques:

Dark Knight

Enter The Villain- 

Showcase the antagonist in the opening to show what they are capable of.

Examples: Dark Knight, X-Men First Class, Avengers Infinity War

Enter The Hero-

Focuses on the protagonist in the opening

Examples: Sky Fall, Guardians Of the Galaxy

Sky Fall

Plot Catalyst-

This technique focuses on the problem and main issue that the film will focus on.

Examples: Uncut Gems, Thor The Dark World

Genre Films-

This technique takes a genre and uses its connotations in the opening

Examples: Lala Land (Musical), Dumb and Dumber(Comedy)

 

Flashback- 

This technique uses a flashback to show a story of the past to relate to the plot of the film.

Examples: Creed, The Lord of The Rings, Death On The Nile

Flash Forward-

This technique involves the film opening at a certain point of the film and during the film, it shows how it got there.

Examples: The Wolf of Wall Street, Memento, Forest Gump

 

 

Red Herrings-

This technique is used to mislead the audience about what is actually going to happen.

Examples: Psycho, Shutter Island