Assignment 2:Conventions of opening title sequence.

By Toby Prichard, Josh Gibson, Liam Cornwall-Tombs and Mykola Serbov.

Opening title sequence:Penny dreadful

OTS convections explainedMykola

All of the text used in the opening title was in the same style and was placed on dark blue/black background. The meaning behind that is too create a dark theme while switching the screens. The colour of the text is grey, making the text look darker. The colour white would be easier to see, but they have used the grey colour to make it too look corrupted instead of “pure”

In the animation there have been used special effects to create a “poisonous” and deadly atmosphere. That is created by the use of different animals and insects representing the people in the show. For example you can see that to the right where this person to the right is represented by the spider. They use filters to give this an even eerier feeling and give a feeling of disgust to the audience.

Compare to the OTS in the starterPenny dreadful GO

Introduction of characters in the film in a very disturbing way. Introduced with their animals.

Introduction of characters in the film in a flashy way by springing through slides.

No establish of narrative as it is a TV series

Establishes the story arc of teenagers returning to new York on their holidays

Score music used to emphasise the mystery and dark theme of the TV series

Use of 3rd person narrative to add background info to the narrative.

Setting of location is not used but time period is set as we see from characters clothing.

We know that the story is set in present day new York.

Credits cast and company . Credits cast and company.

Penny Dreadful use of conventions (Josh)

Establishing character- penny dreadful establishes character by showing an animal such as a wolf or a snake and then showing the character in the next frame.

Establishing setting- penny dreadful establishes the setting somewhat as the characters are wearing clothes that would suggest the Victorian era.

Establishing Genre- penny dreadful use of religious imagery, blood and animals helps establish the monster horror sub genre.

Not useful for penny dreadful(Josh)

Are the conventions in your OTS typical in films of the same genre? Why or why not? (Toby)

The conventions are typical in films of the same genre such as: the blood and gore aspect is a prominent convention in the genre and features in films and PD. The use of mystery and religious symbolism is another typical convention within the genre which is used extensively within the genre. Another reason that they are so similar is that the big studios often employ the same people who follow a formula.

Examples of religious symbolism Examples

of mystery

Evaluate the effectiveness of the OTS (Toby)Why it is effective Why it is not effective

It establishes the genre and themes very well It does’t clearly show the setting the audience is left to interpret (however it could be seen as adding mystery)

It credits the actors and producers The antagonists are not clearly differentiated from the protagonists

Uses suspense to engage the audience

It establishes the main characters

The show is kept enigmatic