I originally found the motion graphics video on http://motionographer.com/. However, it took me forever to find one I really wanted to do because the site has a great selection! The article on the Sherlock Holmes ending credits is linked here, http://motionographer.com/2010/01/05/prologue-the-game-is-afoot/. The actual video link is http://prologue.com/movies/sh_moe.mp4. Lastly, the extremely talented company that created the credits is Prologue, http://www.prologue.com/#. Basically, this particular example of motion graphics is the ending credits for the blockbuster movie, Sherlock Holmes. First off, the credits introduce the main production crew such as the director, Guy Ritchie, and the producers, screenwriters, etc. It then continues on to reveal the actors involved in the film while also giving credit to the original author of the famous British spy. Although this may seem quite boring, the mixture of sound, graphics, color, and animation brings the monotonous credits to life! To be honest, I watched this video about ten times and didn’t catch myself falling asleep once ☺ In most audience’s eyes, the credits are the part of the movie that you immediately get up and leave the theater…Guitly….However, I feel that this set is completely different.
Personally, I feel the graphics of the credits are truly the most compelling element. The credits open with the final scene where Sherlock Holmes announces that the case is reopened. He swiftly turns around and the scene suddenly transforms into a sketch on parchment paper. It continues on with more scenes that are paused midway, appear as sketches, and continue on. Each corresponds with the credits displayed. (For example, the director of photography credit was shown with a scene with a camera flash) This technique captured the essence of the time period, character emotions, and major plots. The overall appearance reminded me of tea-staining paper to make it look old. Each sketch is a simple version of the characters at first but its as if it absorbs the ink on the paper and then appears to have a greater contrast. The sketches are also rough and appear to be made up of crosshatching techniques. Bordering the sketches are blobs of ink, constantly moving along the paper to emphasize the background of the scenes. The text looks as if it was written with a quill pen that causes the ink to bleed throughout the paper. There is also some text throughout the background that seems to act as the lines of the story that explain the scene.
The credits had a limited color palette that was made up of rusty browns, dark reds, light washed out greens and blues, black, and goldish yellow. Although it was mostly made up of the dark reds, browns, and black, the blues, greens, and light maroon colors added diversity and some form of color to the scenery and characters. For example, the red was used during gunshots and when Sherlock Holmes punched a character to appear as blood.
Not only did the graphics captivate the audience, but the music is really what draws you in. It is strong, powerful, yet subtle at times. The violin and the piano dominate at the perfect scenes to summarize the movie. The stills do not follow with the music completely at times, but the important credits corresponded with the music. For example, my favorite part of the instrumental was when the actors start to get credited. When the still of Robert Downey Jr. appears during the fight scene the music picks up with such a powerful vengeance!
The animation of the credits was just great! The ink moving along the page, the strong, quick camera movements throughout the stills, and the blobs of color constantly appearing is the backbone of the credits. It causes your eye to move throughout the screen, rather than just reading the credits vertically. Also, the transitions between the sketches were seamless and smooth. The live clip instantly became a sketch without any rough movements. The flow throughout the video was constant and the transitions between the credits was just outstanding. My favorite element of the video (even though practically everything is) is the sharp camera movements. For example, when Rachel McAdams is credited, I love how it becomes a still when she winks and the camera zooms out, moves to the right, and zooms out again. It gives such a unique, artistic element to the credits.
Clearly, I really enjoyed this motion graphics piece. I think this proves that even though credits are not as exciting as the movie itself, motion graphics can bring anything to life. I was captivated by how the video clips were magically transformed into the drawings. As an artist, I loved the crosshatching and rough sketch look that the credits had on a parchment paper type background. Also, I really liked how it was such a simple color scheme but it fit the “feel” of Sherlock Holmes. I now have a new respect for movie credits ☺
