Back with the much-awaited second series, Netflix’s Stranger Things is steeped with classic 80’s references and this goes for the opening titles too. Not only do the titles set the tone of the show but it is also inspired by the era. It got me thinking what are the influences behind the Stranger Things retro title sequence?
Firstly, if you haven’t seen Stranger Things have look at the opening titles below.
When thinking of 80’s sci-fi and horror classics titles such as E.T the extra-terrestrial, Aliens, Poltergeist and Nightmare on Elm Street as well as The Shining, Carrie and The Mist by Stephen King spring to mind.
So, what was the inspiration for the shows creators Matt and Ross Duffer? Christophe Haubursin post for Vox takes a closer look.
The logo itself was designed by content agency Contend taking inspiration form horror novel covers such as Nick Sharman’s The Cats to Stephen King’s The Dead Zone that Matt and Ross had collected. The final logo uses ITC Benguiat typeface, which appears on the Smiths 1987 album Strangeways, Here We Come.
The actual title sequence was created by production studio Imaginary Forces who produce title and promo sequences for a number of films, TV shows and events like Transformers, Mad Men and the MTV VMA’s.
The animation of the logo first went through an old school technique called Kodalith, a photographic printing process that results in high contrast imagery. The image was then filmed with light shining through the letters, which illuminates the grain and imperfections of the image. Finally the sequence was animated digitally keeping the rough and organic essence of the piece.
For me personally it’s good to know that there’s still work being created in analogue even if the final piece is aided by digital. Reminds of apiece I created to celebrate the 1969 Moon Landing where I emulated Neil Armstrong’s moon footprint.