What are the 4 different types of film opening? (RESEARCH)

The four basic types of film openings are as follows:

• Titles on a blank screen
• Titles on still images
• Titles over moving images
• Titles using animation or motion

My favourite is without doubt the use of titles over moving images - but I still like to see a little bit of motion (and sometimes animation) just to make it a bit more interesting.

Under these categories lies 'sub-titles'. Personally, I really enjoy narrative title sequences, and I love to watch stylised title sequences as they're aesthetically pleasing. I find that discrete title sequences often go wrong and are easily misunderstood - so I prefer to avoid them.

A good example of a narrative title sequence is 'Friday' (Watch up to 3:25):

I enjoy this type of title sequence as we learn of the characters in the movie and a bit about them before we even meet them properly. We get an idea of the setting - 1990's Los Angeles - and a slight insight into the plot. The voice-over and dialogue also adds to the introduction of characters and plot, and as a result, is interesting (not to mention funny) to watch and listen to. As a result, I believe it engages the audience to a greater extent than the other two types, even if it is not as visually interesting.

However, that's not to say that's the only type of title sequence I enjoy. Even though I'm far from a big fan of animations. some of the motion in stylised title sequences like 'The Taking of Pelham 123' is fascinating and beautiful to watch:

This is why stylised title sequences like this are so common these days - they look so good. The editing is slick and the transitions between shots is second to none. The beautiful camera angles and pinpoint cuts make this very aesthetically pleasing, and very interesting to watch - the motion means you can't take your eyes off it. Although it doesn't offer the storytelling aspect that a narrative does, it engages the audience just as much. 

I'd conclude by saying that a combination of the two - stylised and narrative, if executed well, would definitely be the best choice when making a title sequence.