Let’s look at some brilliantly conceptualized title sequences from the world of television, streaming platforms, and films, carefully curated by Wise Crow Media, and look at the inspiring process and approach of their creators.

Is there anything more amazing and brilliant than a short visual sequence encapsulating the entire storyline or gist of a series or a film? We believe there isn’t! When each frame of a title sequence tells a story, it makes it incredibly fun to analyze which story the creators are telling and how they have decided to tell it.  Here’s a list of four exceptional title sequences ever made across all genres and their sources of inspiration.

1.       Godfather of Harlem (2019)

An Emmy award-winning title sequence, its title sequence theme is archival, vintage, photographic, and tactile in nature.  The images and footages used have scratches, dust, and texture to show the age of time.

The main source of inspiration behind its collage style visuals is an American collage artist, Romare Bearden (1911-1988). 

Known for his photomontage style of compositions made from cutouts of popular magazines, his art evoked powerful insights into African-American life.

As the drama series unravels the social-political issues of America in the 1960s, the same time when Romare’s art was active and live, it seemed to fit the overall theme of the show perfectly.

“The Godfather of Harlem’s main title is an homage to the contemporaneous collages created by Bearden during 2960s Harlem. We felt his art was relevant to the show because it shared themes and portrayals of social inequality and the African-American experience that the show similarly explores. The tactile and tangible textures of collage, as well as its ability to present and juxtapose different subjects from multiple sources within a single composition, was highly influential to the main title design.”, says the creator of the show, Peter Pak.

2. Stranger Things (2016)

“You want it to feel original, you want it to feel like that title sequence which couldn’t work in front of another show.”, says Creative Director Michelle Dougherty.

The showrunners, The Duffer Brothers wanted to have a style similar to what the studio R/Greenberg Associates did in the 70s and 80s with Alien, The Dead Zone, and Altered States.

As reference material, the Duffers sent paperback books that they had read as kids in the 80s which were mostly iterations of the most popular typeface of the 80s – ITC Benguiat.

The creators of the title sequence also wanted to incorporate imperfections in the final product. To give it a gritty feel, they put the final image of the logo on an old film format called Kodalith, which produces very high contrast images. Next, they filmed what it looked like when the light shined through the letters on the image. The result ended up being in the final title sequence.

3. Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957)

“I wanted to make a picture where I got a laugh faster than anyone else — I guess that’s where it started,” said director Frank Tashlin.

The fourth-wall-breaking character of the film is established right from the moment the 20th Century Fox logo appears even before the title sequence. 

The entire sequence shows off Tony Randall’s (lead actor) erratic but a charming sense of humor while the credits appear.

Having worked as an animator with Warner Brothers on Looney Tunes, Frank Tashlin’s exaggeration acts as a significant character for the nature of the sequence, shedding light on the two-faced consumerism.

4. The Dreamers (2003)

Since the film is set against the backdrop of the 1968 Paris student riots, the titles make a reference to the location by incorporating the Eiffel Tower as an element.

The idea of using only shot footage instead of adding any complex visual effects is what makes this title sequence edgy and memorable. The interaction of the shapes and geometry within the tower’s structure forms a continuous loop of colorful typeface against the monochromatic background.

“I wanted this sequence to look organic, just like in the old days. So I just started piecing visually abstract elements together, like in a puzzle and decided to completely abandon any complex animation effects. It just did not fit in with the essence of the movie.” says the title sequence designer Richard Morrison.

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