Title Sequence – The Forgotten Oscar

Well it was the 83rd Academy Awards last week and whilst it has been good to see directors, script writers, editors and actors all being honoured for their efforts at the Oscars, I can’t help but think there is one creative input within film that doesn’t get the recognition it deserves.

I am talking about a film’s title sequence! A film’s title sequence is the introduction to the story; it’s where the audience’s first impressions are formed. Over recent years title design has been growing in status, becoming increasingly established. Iconic designers such as Saul Bass set the trend years ago with collaborations with such ground-breaking filmmakers as Alfred Hitchcock and Martin Scorsese. Title designs went on to become as recognisable as the films they precede. Who could forget Maurice Bender’s classic James Bond titles? Since Bass and Bender set the foundation, designers such as Danny Yount and Kyle Cooper have explored the limits title design can be taken to.

Today, title design has edged its way even further into the framework of a film with a trend for stylised company logos emerging. Today, the title sequence can demand as much attention from its viewers as the film itself. As a digital designer I know that a massive amount of creativity and preparation goes into the title design, why isn’t this hard work being recognised at awards like the Oscars?
Like any other creative process, creating a title design requires conceptualisation, storyboarding and testing before the real work can even start. Designers work through a mass of possibilities and design stages to create a concept which is new and interesting, just as a director does. The first scene within a film is considered one of the most important, but the titles prelude that, should they not be given the same precedence?

It’s good to know sites such as Art of the Title are out there dedicated specifically to honouring the creative process behind such innovate work. However, I think it would be great to see creative agencies such as Prologue, Shynola and Shadow Play Studios gaining recognition from such established awarding bodies as the Oscars, Sundance and the Baftas. Until then though, here are my personal nominations for best title sequence of all time: