A thoughtful opening shot is vital for a successful video, especially in this age of limited consumer attention, clouded with online media fog in an online environment desired for distractions and new premise one wipe away; your video is gone from your targets view and mind with the move of a thumb. The opening shot should arouse the viewer to stay around a bit longer and beat the surprising element of what could be next on the web.
Introduction through a narrative hook or investing in an extended, creative opening shot will help separate your video from the noise. Cinema films often use the opening shot to plant and seed ideas about what is to come. What comes at the beginning and items at the end are often best remembered, so making a strong first impression will increase the chance of your film becoming an unforgettable experience.
Effective Ideas for an Opening Scene
A Preparation – Whether the preparation is for a cocktail party or a battle, there’s an inherent tension in preparation – will everything go right? Have we anticipated everything? In an opening scene, you can use this tension to get the viewer interested, and to reveal how the character responds to pressure.
A Dialogue – The spoken voice has a directness that not only grabs the viewer, but is key to developing character. Dialogue with the reader is another great way to open a story. Notice how Quentin Tarantino uses the dialogue to establish relations between his characters and positions of power. An opening seen through dialogue between multiple characters can be perfect for priming information about a characters path or hidden motives.
A Song – The genre of the song can really put the viewer in the mood and make for interesting transitions right at the start of your film. What genre song is being played, why, what is the relation of the song to the viewer? Is it the lyrics? The instruments? Is the song played on the radio? The where is the radio located? What is our relation to that location? etc.
A Chase – A hunt or chase scene yields lots of opportunity for action, intrigue and mystery. Who’s after what? Will they get it? What will happen if they do? What will happen if they don’t? An action-driven opening hooks the viewer and tells a lot about who has power over whom and what the characters are really after.
An ordinary Routine – An ordinary routine can be a great way to show how ordinary a character is, and an extraordinary routine can show how extraordinary a character is. Routines are good character short-hand because they’re activities that we’re motivated enough to perform on a regular basis, until they become part of our identity. “We are what we repeatedly do.” Note how a routine is a great opportunity for a fun, playful edit.
A Monologue – A diary entry, quote, self-talk, a telephone conversation or a speech are powerful opening components. A quote can be great for quickly pointing out the core idea of the story. A speech can motivate, inspire and activate an audience from the very start. A phone conversation makes for a vibrant speed of conversation as you can introduce two worlds at once; from one end of the line and another. Mr. Robot opens their show using self-talk, creating empathy for the main character from the very start. Note how the monologue can also be great fun; when a powerful speech or mental note completely contradicts what is seen by the viewer.
A Lecture – Similar to a speech, but the purpose of a lecture is to impart knowledge rather than to motivate the audience to change. This opening does have the danger of becoming boring and prone to “info dump”, but it can be a good choice for a story in which intellect is an important theme.
A Departure or an arrival – A man goes on a journey or… a stranger comes to town.
A Description of a Place, Person or Object – A set of close ups of the scene may be a classic, but why reinvent the wheel? If your setting is important for the story, and it’s strange or interesting, use it to set the scene.
However, if unusual and interesting characters are an important part of your story, then why not begin by introducing one (or more) of them? It’s common for 19th-century novels in particular to begin with the physical appearance of a character, or with an overview of their personality. Readers are accustomed to this sort of opening, so it’s a comfortable and familiar choice.
If you are advertising a product, why wait for the end shot to showcase this? Zoom in on one small detail – perhaps even a part of an object – something that’s important to the narrative perspective, and that can focus the viewer and jolt them out of their usual way of looking at the world.
A Letter – The heyday of letter-writing and the epistolary novel may be past, but there’s no reason you can’t still begin with a letter (or an email or text message). Missives are perfect for quickly developing a character’s voice, and they can also have a physical presence in your story. A letter also works great when working with video with no audio. Think of video for narrowcasting or Facebook which autoplays without audio components.
A World Overview – Starting with an overview and then zooming in on a particular character, place, or event can help place the story in context. Is the character important in the grand scheme of things? How does their puzzle piece fit into the big picture? Where in the world are they?
A Surprise discovery – A surprising or dangerous discovery is a great way to add some drama from the very beginning, even if the discovery isn’t part of the main narrative. This technique is often used in mysteries and thrillers to unveil a murder or introduce an antagonist.
A Herarld Bearing (Welcome or Unwelcome News..) – This doesn’t necessarily have to be a liveried messenger. Think of the last shocking news bulletin you watched – how could something similar affect your characters and grab your viewer’s attention?
A Flashforward or Flashback – This is a useful technique if you’re writing a story in which the end is known (for example, a retelling), or in which the end creates a mystery that propels the plot – how on earth does the character wind up there? Often the scene will be repeated later in the story, when the chronology catches up with it.
An Aberration – Similar to a surprise discovery, but depending on your story this could be anything from a break in the character’s morning routine to the apocalypse. Anything that you can highlight as a change from the ordinary is a potential hook to draw the reader in.
A Birth or Death – This may seem like an obvious place to start a story about a central character, but unless the birth is unusual or important, it may feel too early. However, a birth that isn’t the main character’s may be just the thing.
Like births, deaths have the potential to push a story along with their momentum. They’re emotionally charged, and can be a dramatic turning point for a character, especially if they’re the one dying…
A Meal – This is a useful way to gather a group of (potentially unrelated) people around a common purpose. Useful, because as a film maker, it gives you plenty of scope for description (of food, setting, and characters) and exposition in the form of conversation.
A Schedule/Itinerary – A schedule or Itinerary gives great overview of what to expect and in what order from the start of a video. Like reading an appendix before starting the first chapter. A schedule is also great for a story that relies heavily on timing and tension. What is the schedule’s timespan? Who or what created it? Are there consequences to not keeping to it?
Graduation Report Roos M Jansen 