DYM Dexter Title Re-Edit Evaluation

This is my evaluation of our remake of the Dexter opening sequence. We had to insert our own credits for the show without watching the real opening first, using only our knowledge of the show and the genre.

Relevant Title Sequence Conventions
We tried to make the creation of our credits coherent with the following appropriate conventions used in title sequences:

• Synergy between titles, credits and branding with font and colour
• Appealing/unusual visuals
• Titles/credits in sync with images

Planning

For initial planning we watched the sequence without titles to get an overall impression of the sequence and mood and our first ideas for where to place the titles. We then came up with a list of the cast and crew we needed to credit in congruency with what we felt were appropriate points in the sequence to put titles. After this we tested out different fonts, colours and effects on our first credit and decided where on screen to place them and then put in all the different credits we could in the time once we had worked out the style.

Creative Decisions

We chose the credited people based on our prior knowledge of television opening sequences, however, unusually we decided to put the lead actor as the last credit, since we wanted it to come when the audience first sees Dexter's face. The other credits came in when the shots cut to a slightly different camera position or suddenly to a new shot. We chose similar fonts and colours to the 'Dexter' title for synergy with the title and brand and also because we felt it best represented the crime genre and matched the violent undertones of the sequence. The effects we chose were a sudden static appearance to match jerky editing of the sequence and to catch the eye of the viewer and we inserted the fade out at the end so the titles weren't jarring and disappeared subtly and so they seemed more professional.

Comparison with Original
Our choice in credits were fairly similar to the those of the original title sequence. For one thing, the font was similar as well as the dark red colour - reminiscent of blood and the 'Dexter' title. Where we chose to place them was also similar since the original credits also appeared when shots cut suddenly. The originals also appeared suddenly on screen however some of their shots jumped around the screen a little whereas ours were static. Additionally the originals simply cut out of the screen without effects whereas ours faded out. Overall though we were pleased with having a majority of similarites with the real sequence.