Research Into A Title Sequence Designer
Saul Bass

He began his time in Hollywood doing print work for film ads, until he collaborated with filmmaker Otto Preminger to design the film poster for his 1954 film Carmen Jones. Preminger was so impressed with Bass’s work that he asked him to produce the title sequence as well.

Carmen Jones (1954)
The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)
The Seven Year Itch (1955)
Around the World in Eighty Days (1956)
Storm Center (1956)
Bonjour Tristesse (1958)
Vertigo (1958)
Anatomy of a Murder (1958)
The Big Country (1958)
North by Northwest (1959)
Psycho (1960)
Spartacus (1960)
Exodus (1960)
Advise and Consent (1960)
Ocean's Eleven (1960)
West Side Story (1961)
Walk on the Wild Side (1962)
The Victors (1963)
Nine Hours to Rama (1963)
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963)
The Cardinal (1963)
In Harm's Way (1965)
Bunny Lake Is Missing (1965)
Grand Prix (1966)
Seconds (1966)
Broadcast News (1987)
Big (1988)
The War of the Roses (1989)
Goodfellas (1990)
Cape Fear (1991)
Doc Hollywood (1991)
The Age of Innocence (1993)
Casino (1995)

The Man With The Golden Arm


Anatomy Of Murder


In both of these opening title sequences created by Saul Bass they both have a similar typography. on each slide of the sequence we see something move and then there is either a persons name in or around what has just appeared onto the screen.

"My initial thoughts about what a title can do was to set mood and the prime underlying core of the film's story, to express the story in some metaphorical way. I saw the title as a way of conditioning the audience, so that when the film actually began, viewers would already have an emotional resonance with it."
This is a quote what Saul Bass said about the design of title sequences and what he thought of them.