Title Research: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

 

1. What titles are displayed during the opening sequences?                                                                          Some titles that appear during the sequence are the director, the screenplay, what the movie was based on, and the producers. The sequence also included photographers, designers, editors, and music. After those, the actors' names were listed. At the end, the different production companies were displayed.
2. What images are prioritized in the opening sequence?                                                                              The opening sequence had a red and black theme for the background. It was mostly silhouettes of trees with long branches growing, like in a forest. When the title appeared in the opening sequence, it had a smoky appearance and it seemed to dissolve. There was also fog in the background during the sequence. 
3. What connotations do these images carry?                                                                                               Silhouettes of tree branches are common in horror films. They make it look like the branches are hands, trying to grab the character. The trees are also in forests, and forests, especially at night, are common settings for horror films. The fog in the title sequence could symbolize the unawareness the characters have about the antagonist. Fogs are common effects in the forests and cemeteries in horror. It gives the effect that the character cannot see anything.
4. How does the film establish a feeling of the genre from the outset?                                                          The colors of the opening sequence symbolize horror. Red is the color of blood, and is common in many horror movies. The color black could symbolize a lot of things in horror, such as, the night, the darkness of a setting, death, or a bad omen. The song playing also establishes the mood, because the lyrics say "the season of the witch." It could mean that the movie takes place during Halloween, where kids could dress up as witches. It could also mean that a witch is the antagonist of the movie.
5. What strategies are used to ensure the film appeals to its target audience?                                                The different movie posters and covers appeal to the audience. The covers are always dark or have something creepy as the main subject. For example, the cover above shows a very old and tattered scarecrow with the scarecrow bird on it. It is alone in the middle of the field and the sky is dark and cloudy. All of these factor into the genre and appeal to a certain audience, because it looks very creepy and eerie, rather than bright and cheery.
6. How has technology been used effectively? You want to consider camera angles, transitions and editing techniques.                                                                                                                                       The names during the title sequence appeared like ink blotches, which could hint at something later in the movie. The images displayed slowly faded out into a new image, along with the credit.