How film openings attract audiences:

Film openings use different styles when trying to attract viewers to watch the rest of their film. Some are more serious than others; here are a couple of examples from films I have already looked at:
Suspense
Some film openings leave the viewer in suspense when finishing the opening, or on a cliff-hanger. This makes the viewer want to watch more to find out what has happened and want to watch the rest of the film - attracting them to the rest of the film.
- An example of a suspenseful film opening would be a film I have already looked at, (SCREAM), as it keeps the film viewers feeling tense for the opening 10 minutes and makes the viewer want to watch on. Here is a small clip from the opening that shows the way the viewer is held in suspense.

Cliff-Hanger

A cliff-hanger film opening is one that ends with a shocking or disturbing theme that needs to be further explained, however hasn't been and makes the viewer want to continue watching on to find out what happened and why. This kind of film opening often has the title sequence or title name after the 'cliff-hanger' to leave the viewer in further suspense. 

- An example of a cliff-hanger film opening is another film that I have already studied (Children Of Men). This is a fantastic example of a cliff-hanger opening as the opening ends right after an explosion and leave viewers asking 'why' and wanting to watch on to find out what happens - keeping the viewer attracted to the film. This type of film opening is most likely what our group will base our film opening around as a cliff-hanger is a fun way to keep viewers wanting more. Here is the opening again:

Entertainment

This is part of the Uses & Gratification theory and is watched out of enjoyment. The viewer watches the opening / rest of the film because they want to watch it and it is enjoyable to them. The film opening often doesn't have to work as hard to keep viewers watching (unlike a cliff-hanger or a suspenseful opening) because the viewer wants to watch the film for fun, however the film opening does have to keep the viewer watching. This is often done through humour / comedy or just warm-hearted fun. A good example of this, continuing using the films I have already looked at, would be Superbad as it does not have a lot going on in terms of the story line of the film, however it is enjoyable to watch as it is a lot of fun. 

- Another example of this film opening would be Forest Gump. Although it is less fun, it still has a more enjoyable watch to it than a serious storyline opening.