The Art of Film Titles

Horizontal and diagonal lines collide to form names. Waves crash and pages are turned. Memorable film title sequences hook us at the outset and build anticipation for the movie we are about to experience. For iconic fims like Goldfinger, Se7en, and more, the artistry of the title sequence is as celebrated as the film itself. In this special online afternoon lecture on Zoom, co-presented with New Plaza Cinema, film historian Max Alvarez will give us a stylish look at stunning title sequences designed by such masters as Saul and Elaine Bass, Richard Williams, Robert Brownjohn, and Dan Perri.

Ticket purchasers will receive an email confirmation. Please follow the link under “Important Information” to complete your registration with Zoom.

 List of films to be discussed (subject to change):   

Carmen Jones (1954; Saul Bass) 
The Man With the Golden Arm (1955; Saul Bass) 
Vertigo (1958; Saul Bass) 
North by Northwest (1959; Saul Bass) 
A Woman is a Woman (1961; Jean-Luc Godard) 
Goldfinger (1965; Robert Brownjohn) 
Fahrenheit 451 (1966; François Truffaut) 
The Age of Innocence (1993; Saul & Elaine Bass) 
The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968; Richard Williams) 
The Return of the Pink Panther (1975; Richard Williams) 
Taxi Driver (1976; Dan Perri) 
Raging Bull (1980; Dan Perri) 
One From the Heart (1982) 
Se7en (1994; Kyle Cooper)

About Max Alvarez 

Author, film historian, and public speaker Max Alvarez is a former visiting scholar and guest lecturer for the Smithsonian Institution and previously film curator at National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. His partnerships have included University of California, Los Angeles and Berkeley; Museum of the Moving Image, New Plaza Cinema, Library of Congress, and the National Gallery of Art in D.C. Alvarez’s lecture topics range from the Cold War and political blacklisting to depictions of elections and the US presidency in Hollywood movies, immigration on film, China during the 20th century, European women artists, censorship history, 20th century Jewish culture, and the British and American theater. Author of The Crime Films of Anthony Mann and a major contributor to Thornton Wilder/New Perspectives, his latest book is The Cinéphile’s Guide to the Great Age of Cinema.