Opening, or abbreviated op, is a video accompanied by a musical theme that is shown before the start of a television series, cartoon, television program, etc. As a rule, a video sequence consists of fragments of the main material or past episodes, although sometimes it is shot separately. Less common is text opening. This, for example, is the famous star-shots of Star Wars, where, against the background of pitch darkness, the lines about “Once upon a time in a far, far galaxy ...”
What is opening for?
The main task of the opening is to identify film companies and people who were involved in the production of this picture, and a signal about its beginning.
For feature films, intro screens are mostly not used. Openings are mainly characteristic of category B films, such as, for example, the works of Robert Rodriguez. With the talented use of opening, the beginning of the film can be made quite spectacular.
Openings are sometimes used in computer games. They are found both at the very beginning, and before each new episode. They are needed in order to bring the gamer up to date and orient him in further actions.
Opening History
Opening for a television series or broadcast is like a parting curtain for a theatrical performance. It signals that something interesting is about to start, and sets it in the right way.
The first screensavers looked just like letters on a colored background. But cinematographers quickly realized that openings are a business card of a product, so special attention has been paid to their content. In reviews of television series more than once there are statements that the screen saver was more interesting than the series itself. This is due to almost unlimited technical capabilities. The effectiveness of opening depends only on the imagination of the creators. So in the late 50s, with the filing of Saul Bass and Maurice Binder, opening (or opening intro) stood out as a separate branch of art.
What does opening look like?
Openings have a number of features that are characteristic of the material of each genre. For example, screensavers for sitcoms are, as a rule, cutting frames from the series, and the series thrillers are accompanied by a set of creepy frames on a topic related to the main plot. Telecasts usually begin with incoherent 3D slices with random inserts. Accompanying music always matches the theme of the series, sometimes the name itself is used in the text.
On average, a screensaver lasts one and a half minutes or 45 seconds, depending on the length of the series. During the video, the names of the actors, voice acting and film crew appear on the screen.
As a rule, the creators try to adhere to the rule: one opening for one season. But there are frequent exceptions when one screensaver is used during all seasons or, conversely, changes in the middle of the season.
Anime opening
A separate type of art of opening is anime screensavers. They play a special role, because, as a rule, it contains the key theme of the entire main work. Usually anime opening begins after the tie or the content of the previous series and is a cartoon in which the main characters and villains appear and perform their characteristic action.
Songs for opening in the anime, as a rule, are written specially. The video sequence is superimposed with the names of voice actors, filmmakers and the author of the original manga, if any.
Famous openings
"Sailor Moon"
Each season of the anime series has its own screensaver. In the opening of the first season, three heroines appear in turn, the soldiers in sailors - Sailormoon, Sailor-Mercury and Sailor-Mars. Also featured in it is the beloved of the main character Torsedo Musk and her cat Luna. In the middle of the video, a demon appears on the screen, after which three warriors reincarnate, and the viewer sees their silhouettes descending along a wide staircase. In the background is the song Moonlight densetsu.
"Clinic"
In the short intro to the Clinic series, changing heroes take turns transferring an X-ray from hand to hand under the composition Lazlo Blane - I'm no supermen. Dr. Dorian hangs it on the device for viewing images, highlights it, and the inscription Scrubs appears on it.
"American Horror Story"
The screensaver for each season of the television series consists of cutting creepy frames related to the main theme. The exception is the 6th season, where instead of the screensaver, the audience saw only the symbol of the season - a painted tree on a black background and the signature “My nightmare in Roanoke”.
"Friends"
The opening of the television series Friends is known to everyone who already perceived the surrounding reality in the 90s. To the fervent song I'll be there for you, the heroes take turns appearing on the couch against the background of the fountain, dancing and jumping into the water. The names of the actors are mounted in the video sequence, and at the end, Friends appears on the screen.
"Dr. House"
Shots from episodes of the series mixed with old medical drawings depicting human organs. During the video, the names of actors and members of the film crew appear on the screen.
Opening is a very important element of the final product. The first impression depends on him, his main task is to arouse interest in the film from the first minutes. In fact, opening is the “face” of a series, film or television program.