Do you hit “skip intro”?

13 Jan 2025 | Visual poetry

Visual poetry comes in many forms, and one that is often overlooked today is the title sequence in movies and series.

Maybe it’s one of the most underappreciated and even unnoticed part of a movie. A great title design involves not just setting the tone for the story, it also is a cooperation between graphic design, animation, music. Both the technical skills and the visual expression.

With the option to ”skip intro” you might miss the beauty and skill that comes with creating an opening to a story.

Little Women

LITTLE WOMEN | TITLE SEQUENCE | Peter Andersson Studio

“A handcrafted credit sequence using traditional illustration and animation techniques for the 2017 BBC One Little Women mini series”

Peter Anderson Studio

The Crown

The Crown | Title Sequence | Patrick Clair & Elastic

Development Javier León Carrillo Designers Paul Kim, Jeff Han, Felix Soletic, Maxx Burman • Head Of 3D Kirk Shintani 3D Artists Joe Paniagua, Ian Ruhfass • 2D Animator Tony Kandalaft ASSOCIATE PRODUCER Danny Hirsch • Head Of Production Kim Christensen Managing Director Jennifer Sofio Hall Antibody & Elastic

Creative Director: Alan Williams • Art Director/Original Paintings: Brad Kunkle
Executive Producer: Jon Hassell • Head of Production / Producer: Aleen Kim
Designers: Alan Williams, Joash Berkeley, Veronica Liu, Yifan Hu, Max Glascott
Animators: Chris Vincola, Max Strizich, Seth Minnich, Hogan Williams, William Russell
Editor: Rachel Ambelang • Coordinator: Christine Hernandez
Production Assistant: Michaela Forde • Music: The Tragically Hip “Ahead by a Century”

Anne With an “E”

Anne with an “E” | Title Sequence | Imaginary Forces & Brad Kunkle

“In collaboration with fine artist Brad Kunkle, we created a title sequence that is a mix of classic oil painting, gold leaf, 3D projection, matte painting, and 2D animation. These many techniques were essential to achieve something that felt truly authentic to Anne. Watch the Behind the Scenes video to learn more about our process combining the fine and digital arts.”

Imaginary Forces & Brad Kunkle

If you want to go deeper there is a video about the process of turning Brad Kunkle’s oil paintings into 3D on Imaginary Forces website.

The Essex Serpent

The Essex Serpemt | Title Sequence | yU+co

“To bring viewers into the world of the show, we found inspiration in the ornate graphic patterns of the period, and created a unique sequence that brings them to life in animation. The images constantly transform, taking us from the scientific and naturalistic world to more imaginative, religious, and metaphorical realms, expressing the psychological themes of the show.”

yU+co

We use it to skip past what we already known, to delve into a new episode uninterrupted. Hitting “skip intro” allows us to save time – even if only a couple of seconds. It gives us a sense of control and reassurance that we are avoiding waste, know what we want, and get it: watch the new episode (“play, already!”).