The art of the title sequence

I know you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but I do tend to judge a show by its title sequence.

I’m often amazed by the care and attention put in to communicating the story, before the show even starts, and how a great title sequence reveals more depth as you watch each episode and learn more about the themes and setting.

The Art of the Title website reveals the process behind some of the best title sequences. I particularly enjoyed this interview with the Creative Director and Title Sequence Director of the videogame game The Last of Us.

Originally the game didn’t have a title sequence, but the directors felt the opening part of the game was too intense to drop players directly into. This interview details their creative process and how the sequence developed from a fairly generic computer-generated animation, to unfreezing and re-freezing black ink, and eventually to filming the growth of slime mould over the course of weeks.