The Graduate (1967)Kenza Mokhtari

Initial Shot:The sequence begins with a man in a close up, this stimulates a magnitude of enigma codes such as ‘Who is he?’ ‘Where is he?’ ‘What is he looking at?’

• The screen then zooms out to reveal that that man is aboard an aeroplane

• In the long shot, the audience see the rest of the passengers in an identical position which gives the character a sense of normalcy; a common aspect of drama films

The titles:

• The titles appear in a black, sans-serif font, conventional of comedy dramas

• The titles begin to appear after he boards the travellator

• A tracking shot is utilised to exemplify the lack of movement

• The mundane scene allows the focus to be directed towards the titles

• This repeats from 00:25 until he leaves the travellator at 01:55 – A large majority of the title sequence

Reflection of themes• During the time the protagonist is on the travellator, the audience

see a multitude of people walking past; this reflects the comparatively slow pace present in his life

• Furthermore it may reflect themes held within the narrative; for example one may deduct the previous lack of excitement in his life

• There is then a tracking shot of the luggage belt as more titles appear

• The similarity between the two shots causes the audience to relate the two subjects; not only of it being his belonging, but again to exemplify the mundane nature of the two

• This is followed by a close up of the man picking up his bag, it is noteworthy that he picks up the bag as soon as it drops off the travellator as it reveals a sense of expertise and repetition.

Font change:• The font and colours used in the titles change; this simply may be to

make the titles easier to read, but possibly used to replicate a change in the protagonists life or plot twist

• In this shot the man is lost between a mass of people which again suggests a sense of normalcy and reinforces the genre

Final shot:• The audience are again shown the protagonist in a close up, starring

blankly in the direction of the camera• The mice-on-scene of this scene is unusual and has a has a sense of

unfamiliarity as the tank appears to replicate those found in a dentist or other waiting room; thus suggesting that he is waiting for someone/thing.

There is a graphic match of the initial and final shot in which the protagonist is captured in a close up and the final image consisting of the same shot type. The only difference is the framing in which shots captured, in which the later image is more central. This enables the sequence to have a sense of closure; thus indicating to the audience that the pre-credit scene has finished.

02:43

00:02

End of title sequence: