Conventions of Film Openings; The Stepfather

What Are The Conventions Of Film Openings?

Conventions of a film opening are methods that often use certain common conventions for conveying meaning through particular camera and editing to make it an effective film opening.

The Conventions Of Film Openings Consists Of:

• The production company logo
• The distribution company logo
• The title of the movie
• Cast names that are usually the main characters to show the audience that they are important & to also attract their attention more as the audience would want to see what role they give in the film.
• The production and directors names
• Mise en scene that shows appropriate props,setting,lightning etc
• Music that sets the mood

In class we looked at a few film openings and this observation helped identify many conventions to a film opening and also helped giving me an idea for when me and my group get to film our own opening sequence.

An example is the film The Stepfather- 2009

I decided that the stepfather was a great option as it has a strong opening and includes all the things a film opening should have in films. It also really introduces the film to the viewers in a clear way.

Plot-

Michael (Penn Badgeley) returns home from military school to find his mum happily in love and living with her new boyfriend of six months. As the two men get to know each other Michael becomes more and more suspicious of the man who is always there with a helpful hand.  

Here are a few shots borrowed from the opening-

Production company title-

The american movie production company 'Screen Gems' is firstly introduced styled differently as they have used text rather than logos being shown.

Title Name-

The title of the film 'the stepfather' appears written in text below left around a Caucasian man with thick glasses, thick beard, thick moustache and thick hair, glazing at his bathroom mirror.

Actor's Name-

'Dylan Walsh' is the name of the actor that plays David in the film who is the crazy serial killer and "America's most wanted "as he is the person that killed his wife and her three children. In this shot David is transforming himself in the bathroom.

  He dyes his hair-

He shaves off his beard-

He changes his contact lenses that were brown and you can see that his eye colour is actually blue-

Name's of the Cast Selectors-

Mise En Scene-

Appropriate props used in the beginning of a film especially in a thriller film helps viewers to indicate who is the person that is the evil character and  the one to watch out for  that is going to continue to do more evil things as the film progresses. Before you get to see the shot of the dirty dishes in one sink and the weapons filled with blood in another the audience would have thought David was just an ordinary man despite him changing his appearance. The weapons in the sink gave it more of a hint that viewers should be suspicious of this guy.

Name Of The Music By-

The opening plays music that sets the mood for the viewers watching. The mood and tone is first used by a non diagetic instrument that gives you a cool and calm feeling and is then followed by the sound of Christmas music which is rather odd as Christmas music is usually used for more of a cheerful or happy scene and this scene does not follow upon that.