Writing A Great Movie Opening - Christian Elder

[@batman5224]

I love movies that immediately evoke a sense of atmosphere. This can be done with music, lighting, or a combination of both. I don’t think movies should open straight away with dialogue. Personally, my stories never open with dialogue. This is why I love the opening sequence of Vertigo. There’s no dialogue for the first five minutes of the film, but you immediately see James Stewart dangling from a rooftop, Bernard Herman’s music playing in the background. You get an immediate sense of what the film’s about. I also like it when a movie has an opening credit sequence. A good opening credit sequence can really get you in the mood to watch a movie, but most modern films don’t have them.

[@thetiltedcat6167]

There Will Be Blood has no dialogue for like 14 minutes.

[@nickp7069]

What about something like THE SOCIAL NETWORK which uses dialogue as the main driver to set the tone though…. Or PULP FICTION….

[@roathripper]

let's all circle back to a discussion about the rules of screenwriting - yay!

[@hansjuker8296]

The Godfather has a great opening.

[@soundone1502]

Jaws definitely has one of the best openings ever

[@ZigUncut]

Yep and Raiders.

[@blaisetelfer8499]

The opening of The Dark Knight stands out. It sets the tone for the rest of the movie, introduces the villain by showing his ruthlessness and cleverness in action, and builds anticipation.

[@nsporiginals888]

We had to re-watch it multiple times the first time because it was so intense and packed full! Truly a great opening!

[@purefoldnz3070]

Writing a great opening is easy but backing that up with an equally good middle and end without losing the audience is hard

[@roathripper]

that's way it pays to write a great ending FIRST, then logically and causally work your way back to act1,scene1.

[@Flip_That_Tape_Production]

What I normally do, is roughly do a map which I call Major Turning Points... Then when I start writing a script it's easy cause I have a map that takes me from point A to point B

[@ernestocaro9802]

@@Flip_That_Tape_Productionthat’s a good idea

[@constantdoodle32]

The opening of mad max fury road hooked me immediately

[@xenoverselv2269]

I love you film courage. keep it up👍

[@Ruylopez778]

Advice for the first page(s) of a novel, by Michael A. Stackpole: For the first paragraph, lock the reader in with an emotional connection to the character. Then take a step back to describe the scene and what's going on for a paragraph or two, then hit back on that point again. Use the emotional touchstone to encapsulate and bind together the description, and try not to over describe. Make the characters interesting and engaging. Replace vague sentences with specific and effective verbs. [Avoid filter words, and try to use sensory details, genre specific words, enter the scene late and leave early, of course]

[@AnnoyingMoose]

Establishing shots of New York City with the classic song "Summer In The City" playing after the title card us the basic where & when then after 50 seconds the song ends as a building instantly explodes throwing cars and trucks across the street - Die Hard 3 has begun.

[@not_enoughmana]

Chester A. Arthur

[@androoduck]

The opening to inception. Not only is it my favorite film, but the entire concept is cleverly revealed in the first 10 minutes through a thrilling action-packed scene, all the while promising excitement, mystery, and emotional value to invest you.

[@danisalusha5739]

Sicario 2015 directed by Denis Villeneuve has the best opening scene of any movie I remember from 2010s. The heart heartbounding score and what comes after that really sets the tone of what to expect the rest of the film.

[@nsporiginals888]

Yes!

[@codylakin288]

I’ve noticed that about every single film from Villeneuve. It’s usually within the first minute, sometimes within the first few seconds, that I know immediately I’m the hands of a great film. Incendies, Arrival, Sicario, Blade Runner 2049, all gave me that feeling most strongly,

[@danisalusha5739]

@@codylakin288 the best Working director at the moment. His film Prisoners is my top 5 favourite of all time.

[@mattkhourie4037]

I could listen to this dude talk script for days. Beyond insightful.

[@filmcourage]

Well the good news is that this is only our second video with Christian. We have much to share!

[@mattkhourie4037]

@@filmcourage smashing!

[@themerpheus]

Opening of Children of Men is the best on that.

[@granspada4544]

Batman dark night. Joker introduction.

[@AnyDayNow360]

I enjoyed this interview and conversation. Different and eloquent.

[@joannkelly7994]

Thank you. God bless,

[@nathanrollins2395]

The opening to Who Framed Roger Rabbit is one of my personal favs.

[@kyletitterton]

"As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster." And start of Once Upon A Time In The West. Both impeccable.

[@desmondwilliams4068]

I thought of Goodfellas too...

[@DouglasJohnson.]

Couldn't agree more...

[@filmcourage]

What movie opening do you love?

[@BestofBestStudio]

The Goodfellas opening for sure

[@xenoverselv2269]

John carpenter's Vampires 1998

[@two-moonz2953]

Jaws.

[@ironrobotfilmsllc3790]

2001

[@Armadillopants92]

28 weeks later

[@the_gratefulgamer]

I love the opening to the Watchmen Movie. Inception has a good opening. It opens like a dream. Right in the middle. A quiet place has a VERY memorable opening.

[@carlostomas1917]

The Core & Twister's opening definitely did that for me.

[@blaisetelfer8499]

Amadeus has a good one, too: the main character is found having tried to slash his wrists, moaning that he killed Mozart, yet when the priest comes to take his confession he begins to tell him that Mozart was his idol from a young age. This viewer is now curious as to how this could have happened.

[@ragnes18]

My fav movie , watched 30 times, so sad that Mark Hamill didn't get the role

[@astroboy3002]

'Hey Mister! HEY MISTER! You forgot your...*BOOM!!!!

[@kyletitterton]

Here endeth the lesson.

[@mahonrimartins1767]

Se7en's is also amazing. Jurassic Park's as well. Sicario's was a 'wall buster'.

[@filmladyproduction]

Who is this guy? He should be acting. He has a great voice..he should do voiceover, Animations or even a Graphic Novel / Marvel, Black Lightening character etc ... He's also pretty funny.

[@DeviantGryphonFromTinyMoat]

I was literally searching for videos under this topic, just yesterday. So excited to watch this!

[@DerrickFargo]

Great interview. He gets right to the point.

[@AnyDayNow360]

Christian keeps it real 😂. I do appreciate how he says that our screenplays should wow everyone not just that one person we think will give us a "greenlight." But Christian's metaphor of grabbing attention is funny awesome!

[@sarangbsr]

OMG !! I was just thinking about it

[@ianhtexas]

I agree 🍻 but you can also catch people with the other side of the spectrum. The way Susan Tyrell narrates the opening of Ralph Bakshi’s, Wizards, is like an ASMR trigger and the story she tells is beautiful, tragic, and magical. The opening of Contact from Robert Zemeckis and Carl Sagan is phenomenal. We take a ride through the cosmos and into the birth of a child, like wow. Those radio clips set it off too. Lagwagon, Angry Days, had a little clip in there btw.

[@nocomber]

Atmosphere and stakes beats shock value. Though shock shouldn't be avoid completely. The hook should reveal distinct character traits, if possible. Know your genre: rom-coms: it will probably start with a humorous/awkward scene that introduce the character and their comedic flaw. In murder/mystery: will be mini-story showing the victims last moments as well as killer's signature/habit. Perhaps the detectives unique way of catching guys. In war stories: likely a hero on a deadly mission that forever changed them. Also show specific type of warfare in action. If your story is about submarines, show some awesome sub-nautical warfare. Set stakes. If anyone can die at any moment, make us feel for a character before tearing out their heart. Drama: a human element that's pulls you into these characters world, quirky if on the lighter side, something cynical on thr darker. A death in the family is cliche, but how the characters react to it is not. Fantasy: introduces world and threat. It should be visually stunning and revealed the rules of the world. Fantasy can crossover many genres. Experiment. Sci-fi: lean into the mystery of the odd science happenings. The best sci-fi's are mysteries and play on the fear of the unknown. Young adult urban fantasy: introduce a world of wonder the teenage you would love to explore, hint at a greater threat for the hero to overcome. Biography: show the audience a familiar moment in character's life but also a new, unexpected aspect that the general masses don't expect. The greater empathy / sympathy the better. Lastly: something you think would be awesome and you've never seen. Take everything I've written and twisted it for your own benefit. Crossing genres will give you a treasure trove of ideas.

[@RoddyTullenz]

This is, one person’s opinion. Don’t forget. Being a writer is personal, not relative. Only through the writer’s selfish indulgence, comes the relatability.

[@nsporiginals888]

And 2001.. game changing

[@TheJuzi]

I too have won International awards for playwriting and have had several plays on in trendy London theatres, also been a winner/finalists/SF and QF in every contest you can think of in the last 5 years, but i am still struggling to 'breakthrough'...

[@roathripper]

you must have made 'connections'? leverage them!

[@MaurandisDaRadusFilms]

Ghost Ship is a very great opening

[@SquaredbyX]

Kick the ball...? Got it!

[@sifatshams1113]

"It appears that your baby has sustained some fractures while inside your uterus. His arms and his legs are broken."

[@jonathangriffin8060]

My favorite movie openings are the animated ones from the classic movie franchise "Pink Panther" with the late character actor Peter Sellers. They start with a live action prologue and then, the opening credits, along with the Pink Panther and The Inspector chase each other as the theme music (written by Henry Mancini) and the opening credits are seen. My favorite one is "Revenge of the Pink Panther" where the Pink Panther and The Inspector chase each other around the movie's title. I thought that was amazing! I also loved the movie. Classic opening to a classic film. Here's the link for the animated opening for the movie: kzbin.info/www/bejne/b2rImqp3fLiMkNE

[@Cafefilmik]

Who is the woman behind the camera ? We Want to say Thank you ❤️

[@Mr.Monta77]

I notice the films he refers to all romanticize violence and brutality. I find that primitive and dehumanising.

[@Jamesington]

Seinfeld got flipped here. If you're stroking your own ego you're definitely NOT master of your domain.

[@nsporiginals888]

Baby Driver has such a good opening!

[@Oldisnew2me]

🎥📼📹

[@penjamfilms]

Zero actionable advice. Only some wonderings and musings.

[@colly392]

The Matrix

[@fabianoperes2155]

Really easy to say without saying nothing. Give some good exemples.

[@nocomber]

Think about the opening scenes for your favorite movies. What implanted them into your memory? Why? When writing your story, think about a powerful opening image and add in character heart to make it hit home. Every genre varies. What can you bring to the genre of your choosing no one else has seen? What would you want to see? These are the question you should be asking, and when you find the answer, go all out.

[@meg-k-waldren]

@@nocomber Its today's toxic $$$ hurry, hurry, gimmick, gimmick mentality over storytelling. Back To The Future, Sing Street and They Live are examples in a long list of movies that dont have heavy-handed, overplayed hooks in early scenes. Frankly, if a hook is not extremely unique it should be cut out of the script.

[@nocomber]

@@meg-k-waldren I've been working in the ebook market 5 years as a content creator. As much as we hate tropes/hooks, they sell. However, my goal is to always write something that gives strong character insight as early on possible and a twist that will set the tone the of story Know your market: Amazon allows the reader the first 10%-ish of the book free. The majority of readers make their buy decision off of that. That 1st 10% is everything for online content. Unlike a handheld book, they can't just flip to the middle. Movies in theaters can be a little more of a slow burn because the person has already bought the ticket. TV requires consistent good pacing throughout because anyone can tune into any part of the episode and need to be engaged. You can write for art or you can write for money. Unfortunately, it's very hard to sell art for arts sake. If you find something that is artistic AND marketable, you've struck gold. You're happy and your boss is happy. And you get paid. Primarily, I write murder mysteries and the hook is always necessary to draw in the reader. The more you know cliches, the more you can subvert them. What I find sells is when I keep the structure of the story recognizable but the situations there within unique and the characters well portayed.

[@roathripper]

if your script is in a pile.... it is never getting read. it has been 'pre-tossed'. It's who you know, not what you write.

[@meg-k-waldren]

I dont know about that. But I do know just about 90% of theatrical releases the past decade dont come remotely close to punching me in the gut or kicking me where it hurts.

[@roathripper]

@@meg-k-waldren i concur. frankly, the quality of movies went downhill at the turn of the century. it may be that my tastes have fossilised with age but i just see a cycle of remakes, reboots, clones and mostly unoriginal uninspiring stories on top of a distracting tendency to push and pull the color saturation in the edit which is often tantamount to vandalism.

[@SheffieldAbella]

Up. Punch in the gut.

[@Deroliebe]

This guy is putting me to sleep…

[@MrStosh12345]

Way to much phallic imagery in this interview. LULZ 😂