Directing, 4th Edition

C H A P T E R 4 4

TITLES, ACKNOWLEDGMENTS, AND PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL

TITLES

Festival programs and TV listings rarely have much space to describe their offer-ings, so your work’s title may be its sole means of drawing an audience. Although every film acquires a working title, the final one is often plucked late and in an agony of indecision. It must be short, special, and epitomize your film’s allure.

Title style: Overambitious front titles are a liability if they promise more than the film delivers, so be conservative. For models, see films of comparable length and subject. Artistically ambitious ones often use brief and classically simple white-on-black titles. You could do a lot worse. Make legibility your priority, and decide your titling ...