Art of the title: Kung Fu Panda

The opening sequence for 'Kung Fu Panda' only features two pieces of text; the first is the 'Dreamworks' intro and the second, the title of the film: 'Kung Fu Panda'. This may seem very basic but considering the target audience of the film is children, it is actually quite relevant. Children wouldn't appreciate seeing actors names who voice-over the characters, but would rather be introduced via colourful pictures. The text which you would find in a thriller movie opening sequence will be different to that of a film aimed at children. The text is either replaced by images and sound, or is not particularly important and so is left out entirely. Also, some children may not be able to read, or may not be strong readers, so having a lot of text in the opening sequence would be irrelevant. There also a voiceover which, again, replaces the text in the opening sequence.

The design of the titles is very cartoon-like. This shows the audience who the film is aimed at, as cartoons are usually watched/read by children. The shapes and colours are sharp and contrast well with each other, so that the images can be easily understood by the younger audience. The opening sequence consists mainly of the primary colours and black which keeps it simple, and considering other films use basic images (so that the attention is more focused on the text), it works well using an opposite method for a younger audience. There is an element of manga in the opening sequence which is also incorporated in some childrens cartoons (e.g. Pokemon). It also tells the audience that action is a main theme of the film and that the film is set in china, as manga and manga style cartoons originate from the far east.

The first piece of text is the 'Dreamworks' intro which is themed to suit the film by using a gong song effect and also a light reflection effect to make it seem as if a sword has struck and split apart the image from the text. This introduces the martial arts/action theme, along with the name of the film; 'Kung Fu Panda'. The next piece of text is 'Dreamworks Animation Presents' in the same style as the 'Dreamworks' intro, which builds up excitement for the start of the film, and also advertises the institution. The next and final piece of text is the name of the film: 'Kung Fu Panda' which is in large bold letters to make it stand out.

The trailer is overall very visual which suits the target audience well, as they could still be in early learning stages, or just coming to terms with learning to read. Text is not particularly necessary in this opening sequence as the audience are more suited to seeing images instead of reading text. The cartoon style images and the voiceover introduce the film better than text.

Hannah : )