Year Zero - OFFF Barcelona 2011 Main Titles
Following in the footsteps of Prologue Films and The Mill, PostPanic have created this year’s prestigious opening titles 'Year Zero' for OFFF Festival 2011 in Barcelona offf.ws/bcn2011/
Now what makes a good title sequence? Personally, I think it's something that gets you in the mood, warms you up for what you're about to experience, be it a film, tv series or in our case, the OFFF festival. We decided to treat the OFFF festival as a feature film experience. So all we had to do was get the viewer into the right state of mind. Without, of course, being too narrative led. The best title sequences out there are nothing but a random collection of images/scenes that don't tell a lot if you watch them on their own. But edit them together and a new context is created. A context that matters, a feeling that gets the viewer ready for the main event, in our case, the festival.
We also wanted the actual titles to be different this time. Most of the time festival titles are driven by the idea on how to show titles. A mechanism that displays titles in a creative way. We actually thought to bring the festival theme to the foreground and have the titles play a part in it. Incorporate them so they become the actual fiber/texture of the piece itself. Practically I still think it's nice that the viewer has to actively look for the names and not get too comfortable. Even if it means to see it a couple of times which surely is the best we can aim for as a free project ; )
The idea was to trick the audience into thinking they're watching some kind of documentary. We basically follow a guy going home. Bit by bit his environment gets stranger and more uncomfortable to watch. Is he living in a war zone? Slowly the background takes over and the piece changes into an urban nightmare. And like a nightmare, the story/edit doesn't always make sense but makes you feel really uncomfortable. I also wanted the viewer to experience the nightmare. That's where the dark matter comes in. Dark matter is what I call the macro shot bits. Flashes that derail your train of thought like there's something eating away at your brain as you try to make sense of the nightmare. I wanted the viewer to go nuts, alongside with the cast. Erase the line between nightmare and reality. The end result is something you won't come across easily on your tv. And is also just another fun way to do titles.
The sound design and music made by Hecq added a lot to the feel and scale of the film. It clearly divides the 3 acts (1st act: up to execution, 2nd from execution, 3rd final shot) and makes completely different ideas and scenes feel coherent. It also emphasizes the dynamics of the film and brings the much needed pace at the end. It's been great working with Ben. We've been surfing the same wave length throughout the project.
Finally I want to thank everyone involved for making these titles possible. For creating something out of nothing. For showing so much love for something as dark as this.
CREDITS
Directed by Mischa Rozema
Story by Mischa Rozema & Si Scott
Production Company: PostPanic
Executive Producers: Jules Tervoort, Ania Markham
DoP: Jiri Malek, Mischa Rozema
Music & Sound Design: Hecq
Senior Producer: Annejes van Liempd
Production Assistant: Jacinta Ramaker
Production Designer: Roland Mylanus, Nicole Nieuwenhuis
Editor: Mischa Rozema
Post-Production: PostPanic
CG Supervisor: Ivor Goldberg
VFX Supervisor: Chris Staves
3D Artists: Jeroen Aerts, Matthijs Joor, Jurriën Boogert, Marnix Reckman, Adam Janeczek
2D Artist: Erwin van den IJssel
3D Interns: Cara To, Xander Clerckx
2D Interns: Mathijs Luijten, Per Westholm
Compositing: Chris Staves, Ivor Goldberg, Adam Janeczek, Matthijs Joor
Graphic Designs: Si Scott
Additional Graffiti Elements: Florian Stumpe
Matte Painting: Wieger Poutsma
Additional 3D and Compositing: Storm PostProduction
Production (Prague) by Savage:
Executive Producer: Klara Kralickova, Pavla Burgetova Callegari
Producer: Michaela Berkova
Production Assistant: Vojta Ruzicka
Prop master: Jan Fiala
Location Scout & Management: Petr Bastar, Adam Fuchs
Location: CREVISTON, a.s.
Tattoos made by: Wowa tattoo prague
http://www.postpanic.com/
