Kyle Cooper research

 Kyle Cooper 

Introduction:

A 59 year old American designer, Kyle Cooper, who specialises in creating title sequences for motion pictures, has produced and directed more than 350 visual effects sequences for diverse media institutions. His earliest works, which essentially made him famous included "Se7en" and "Spider-Man". 

In 2003 Cooper founded Prologue Films, with which he created such well-known title sequences as those for "The Walking Dead", "The Incredible Hulk" and "Final Destination 5". His art brought him fame with Los Angeles magazine calling him the "Da Vinci of main titles" and Creativity magazine - "one of the top 50 biggest and best creative thinkers from the last 20 years of advertising and consumer culture". Having earned seven Emmy nominations and a win on the 81st Annual Academy Awards, Kyle Cooper is highly appreciated in the media industry for his unique, bold and unexpected style of title sequences creation.

General thoughts about the style:

Cooper not only created numerous opening title sequences for fictional movies, but for TV shows, video games and advertisements as well. Watching the demo reel, I realised Cooper's works are not very similar in terms of the style, which suggests that he is valued for his ability to create unique, high quality sequences, depending on the symbolism and themes of a particular film/advert/show. His works vary from Ipod adverts, that are filled with an uplifting, light ambience to film title sequences like those for "Spider-Man", which convey suspense, action and obscurity. I'd assume, Kyle pays particular attention to the ideas, themes, plot-twists, that occur later in the movies (by reading the script, communicating with the directors, producers) in order to create a product, that summarises and represents the film through a several minute scene. In my opinion, this art is worth admiration, as this work requires exceptional talent, sense of style, ability to examine the movie from different perspectives and outstanding skills in computer design.

 

Even though, in my point of view, it is almost impossible to identify the creator of all the sequences and adverts by just comparing their styles, Cooper's works have several details in common. I, firstly, noticed that the majority of his creations are based on computer graphics and design, rather than the shots of actors. Basically, his title sequences might be a bit confusing due to the amount of action going on, the pace of their editing and the abundance of various colours, shapes and special effects. Secondly, a lot of his sequences are edited, using complex transitions that are combined at a fast rate. The titles often slide in, get crossfaded to certain shapes as well as the image itself is filled with digitally created special effects. The technology Cooper uses and the skills he has developed allow him to create sequences, which are incomparable to numerous others in the industry, crafted by other designers.  

Analysing one of Kyle Cooper's works:

The opening title sequence Kyle Cooper created for "Mission Impossible" (1996) clearly represents its designer's unique way of introducing the audience to the movie.

As previously mentioned, the shots are extremely fast paced, which sets suspense and tension within the action scene. An interesting technique, used  are zoom-ins to different characters through cuts (rather than smoothly), which makes the perception of events abrupt and not really continuous. And this is what make the sequence outstanding! Even though, a lot of characters, objects, locations and film extracts are included in the scene, the viewers don't have time to connect those bits of information into one logical sequence of events. Thus, the intrigue and mystery remains, the audience is curious to see the movie to link the separate quick shots they saw to the actual plot of the movie.

Numerous close ups on various objects are added, which link to the action genre of the film (explosives, weapons, computers etc.). Moreover, colours applied in the scene play a crucial role in making the sequence obscure yet eye-catching. Shadows contrast with bright red hues, colours (blood, red room) and unexpectedly applied x-ray filters. In combination with extreme close-ups on eyes, bombs and a match getting lit (in the very beginning of the scene), they all make the sequence flashy and suspenseful. 

Talking about the titles themselves, they glint with urgency and speed throughout the whole sequence. The credits are metal-reminiscent, written in bold italic serif type. Blurry and flashy, they match the ambience of the scene and add on to the fast pace of the editing, keeping the audience full of attention. 

To sum up, Kyle Cooper thoroughly explored "Mission Impossible" in order to design titles that match the ambience of the movie and emphasise the suspenseful and tense atmosphere.