1. Film Trailers: Titles
Typography is an important part of any film trailer, used for credits and captions they
capture the audiences attention in order to inform them about the films positive reviews
or informing us about the plot. Many stick to conventions linked with the genre
because the audience needs to understand straight away what genre of film they are
being shown, these trends are used to connote feelings or emotion through letter design
or colour connotations.
The film title is in every trailer, usually at the end so that the audience are more likely to
remember it. The font, colouring and back drop are also usually a good clue as to the
genre of the film. The genre is generally conveyed through different conventions of fonts,
colours and effects. Here I have researched into the lettering and looking and comparing
different genres.
2. Horror
Here are two well known horror film titles, they both clearly follow the
conventions of the horror genre as they both appear to use similar font type
and colour pallet. The use of red on a black background implies danger, as red
is has a connotation of blood, black also suggests death. Which is essentially
what the film makers what to portray, to increase the dark tone of these titles,
the font used makes the lettering seem like it has been smeared with blood
which creates a sense of danger which entices the target audience who seek to
be thrilled and freighted but left in suspense about the ending and plot twists.
3. Social Realism
These two titles vary completely, however most social realism films do show a lot of
individuality so therefore that is typical for social realism films. Firstly Juno; this title
shows the main protagonist which is different from all the other film titles, and
immediately gives the audience an idea about the films characters and perhaps
plot. The image, which includes the title, is hand drawn. This gives a creative and
arty sense to the film which indie audiences will appreciate because they like
something different from the mainstream blockbusters. The orange and blue
colours of the title screen connote a youth appeal, the orange suggests the main
protagonists characteristics are fiery and exciting.
Whereas Submarine is shown to be more simplistic, the background image
connotes calmness and suggests the setting for the film is near the seaside. The
layout of the title is different from others as 3 letters are shown in 3 rows, this
makes the title cover the middle third of the screen and as a result captures the
4. Action
These two title screens show similarities which are typical features of the
action genre, The use of bold font is the first thing that stands out to an
audience as the title fills the screen and immediately grabs the attentions of
the audience. Both are placed in the middle of the screen to achieve the
same effect; the colours vary The A-team being a metal gold which implies
strength and power, whereas ANTMAN in a dark red which matched the main
characters costume. Therefore the colour is promoting the films contence,
whilst also suggesting danger and excitement. The Marvel logo is shown in
small print above the title ANTMAN to promote brand awareness and
suggest what to expect from the film because marvel is so well known and
admired by many due to the international fanbase of superhero comics. The
A team font has multiple bullet holes in which suggests action scenes of
violence and possibly death.
5. Drama
The layout for this genre can vary however these
examples are of recent drama films and share
some similarities, both don't give too much away
and keep to a simple but effective layout which
matches the style of the film. The age of Adeline
uses Photoshop to layer the female protagonist
under the main title and through a light source to
add a dramatic effect as she appears magical,
like something of a dream ( which fits the tone of
the film ). The font highlights the key words AGE
and ADALINE as these words appear larger due
to their importance in contrast to the connecting
words of 'The' and 'of' which are smaller and
italic. The Imitation Game uses a simple font and
layout, the black and white contrast well and
draws the audiences attention to the smaller
title, however the spacing between letters also
creates an effect as this spreads the title across
the screen in order to become more eye
catching. There are also faint circles around the
individual letters to give the idea of a typewriter
which is a key era element to the films plot and
style therefore i think it is successful.
6. Overall...
Overall my research has highlighted general codes and
conventions of any title screen regardless of genre, all use
capital letters throughout the title as this signifies
importance's and grabs the audiences attention as capitals
are clear and easy to read quickly. Also a key feature to
consider when creating my own title screen is the use of
thirds and how the title is mostly in the center of the screen.
The title itself is also important and must be memorable to
the audience so that they can generate hype through word of
mouth and online, therefore short quick titles which link to the
film in some way are often chosen.
