3 credit sequences from films within horror

3 credit scenes from horror

    Within horror, credits scenes tend to have common characteristics like; ominous music, slow creepy rolls, flicker/glitch effects, retro effects, jump scares, gothic fonts, and many other things. In this post I will be researching 3 specific credit scenes from horror movies and dissecting them to conclude what is needed to be implemented into my future horror opening scene.

Dawn of the Dead (2004) 

    The title sequence begins mixed into the opening, what is being shown is a bunch of fast cuts of VHS footage displaying disturbing scenes of zombies and a politician saying the doctors do not know if "they are alive or dead". The text that is shown on the screen is in a red font and seems to be written in blood. Writing first that "Universal Studios presents", and then goes down the list of entertainment companies for production. The title is then shown written in blood as an eerie country song begins to play in the background as people discuss the virus, all while disturbing images are still being shown. Then the same formula repeats but what is odd is that it just lists an abundance of name, without stating the role they took in the movie for about 25 seconds. Then it states who did the casting, who the music is by, the co-producer, etc. After this continues on, the credits finish with a cut of the VHS tv and the politician speaking on the zombies as the music ends, creating an uneasy cliffhanger.

Smile (2022)

    

   

 Similarly to the previous film covered, Smile also starts with a scene and "Paramount Pictures presents" written in a red font. The scene in question is an unconscious body on the floor with a puddle of liquid leaking from it with miscellaneous items on the floor that are broke. The scene seems to take place in a hospital as the camera slowly pans revealing more and more, while this is going on there is eerie music playing, whilst associations and productions are being named. The camera finally pants to a woman sitting down in a chair looking very uneasy as she is crying with one tear running down her face. The camera continues to zoom into her eye until it is completely in the pupil where then a transition is implemented to show the title card which is in a red font.

The Nun II (2023)

    

    The scene begins in a very dimly lit church hallway with dust floating everywhere displaying the title "The Nun II" in a white font, which is slightly irregular for a horror movie. While this is happening there are reverbed sounds that are unsettling mixed with the sound of a phone ringing. The scene is then cut black as the phone is picked up and a woman screams "Mr. Warren!". Following this there is a cut to the outside of a house which has Warren on the mailbox, insinuating that it's Mr. Warrens house. The woman informs Mr. Warren that Father Gordan is searching for him and claiming that it is an emergency, eerie music is put in the background for the audience to pick up on the hint of the impending danger. She hands him the phone as he says "Yes Father", and the scene cuts to black.

Conclusion: To create a credit sequence that would fit in the realm of horror it needs to be still eerie, use preferably red font, and have constant eerie sounds being played to keep audience uneasy and engaged.