Black Swan Opening Sequence

 Black Swan Opening Sequence Analysis 

Sound: 

The Opening Sequence starts with the slow paced non diegetic music played when the protagonist character is dancing. The Classical music is from the ballet swan lake. By using this music it creates an effective opening sequence and sets the tone to the film.  The music consists of a full orchestra including stringed instruments which isn't the typical sort of music you would expect to hear in a thriller and therefore puzzles the audience of why this non-diegetic music isn't more sinister.  Later on in the opening sequence we see a man dressed in a black costume enter, however the classical music continues, but volume and pace increases. We can hear the diegetic sound of Nina reached for air  showing to the audience the panic she is having towards this man . We hear a layer of a deeper base note adding a layer to the classical music creating a more eerie atmosphere. This suddenly changes the feel of the narrative to a lot more tension and suspense. This leaves the audience feeling un-eased  of who this man is and what is going on in this nightmare-ish dance. We are left to believe that the female ballerina is the protagonist character, and the man the antagonist which is typical for a thriller. The non-dietetic sound of the wings flapping from the Black Swan are used to reinforce Nina's transition into the White Swan. As the camera zooms away and the black swan exits the music becomes calmer and quieter and much more slow paced. 

Mise en scene: 

At the beginning of the opening sequence the lighting is low-key and is used to portray the lighting you would see on stage at the theatre. The protagonist character Nina is in a dark room but the audience don't know why she is in the black room. This adds suspicion and eeriness . The action code of the darkness is a typical convention of a thriller. The darkness makes it harder for the watcher to identity the characters and figure out what is around them and where they are there. The darkness of the room could be a symbolic representation of all the bad things that are about to happen and the ‘dark events to come’. 

In the Mis en scene we can also see the contrast in the costumes the female ballet dancer is wearing a white tutu that creates a very graceful look when she dances. The colour white has a connotation for innocence and purity this could be suggesting to the audience that she is an innocent girl whom in no way could be assumed evil. However, the man who appears mid way through the opening sequence is wearing a black feather outfit. This contrast between the two characters could be showing the two sides to somebody the evil and the good, the id and the super ego.  His black make up creates a sinister and evil appearance. We can see that his movement is very different to the female ballerina punctuating each move creating a more violent and demanding piece of choreography. This supports how the mood of the opening sequence changes. However, at the end of the opening sequence we can see how Nina's costume changes to a white rich looking Feather costume,  highlighting Nina's transformation into the White Swan . 

Camera and editing: 

The first thing we see in the opening sequence is a long shot of Nina in a position with a side spotlight, centre stage. The use of the long shot creates a mysterious feel. Due to the lack of lighting we can only see part of the character leaving her still unidentified to us. The long shot creates the atmosphere of the piece and allows the audience to see her full body language and her costume which implies information about the character. By just having a singular dim spotlight on her it highlights the importance of this protagonists character. We then see a close-up shot of the ballerinas feet.  This is showing to us her perfect technique implying she is a high up dancer. After this the camera follows Ninas feet in a low angle shot creating a journey that the audience are taken on, like the story of her life. The camera then cuts to a medium shot of her gracefully sitting on the floor ending part of her dance routine. We then see a long shot of a man in a dark costume coming behind Nina however the spot stays on Nina backing the evidence of her being the protagonist character and him being the antagonist character. We then see a close-up shot of Nina gasping towards the camera with shocked and terrified facial expressions. By having a close-up shot it allows us to see her facial expressions especially as it's in the dark. The camera follows the man in the dark costume spinning around having a costume change, transforming into this evil scary looking devil. Nina then spins around with the camera making a 360 around her, presenting the audience with her new transformation into the white swan. After this the music dies down and the camera slowly zooms out of Nina leaving her centre stage and use seeing her whole body streamline waving her arms like a swan, supporting the transformation of her turning into the white swan. 

Editing: 

In terms of the editing it was used very effectively.  The editing in the opening sequence is fairly minimal however this creates the effect that we are on stage with the dancers being in the same room to them. This heightens the experience of the audience and creates a connection between the characters with the audience.