THE SESSIONS
SERVICES: opening title sequence, design & animation
CLIENT: Amazon Studios
PRODUCTION: Engine Room
DIRECTION: Katherine Weber
DESIGN/ANIMATION: Katherine Weber, Mark Brown
In the first episode of The Sessions, NBA star Draymond Green says “the physical is the easiest part...learning to deal with the mental and emotional is tougher.” Designing an opening sequence for this groundbreaking series, which follows the spiritual and emotional journeys of elite athletes, required a balancing act. Our visuals had to convey both the in-your-face spectacle of professional sports and the subtle, complex, often overlooked inner lives of the players. Read on to discover our process and the view the end result.
INITIAL CONCEPTS
Concept A
Concept B
Concept C
We explored several different concepts for the look of the piece, from light-soaked footage that we layered for a dreamlike effect, to several rougher, handmade scrapbook styles.
STORYBOARDING
In the end, the chosen concept was somewhere in between, combining ephemeral lighting effects with a multilayered collage of images. Tight, intimate shots keeps the focus on the player, rather than the game. The kinetic movement - images constantly being magnified, divided and annotated - creates a balance between the energy of the arena and the mental focus required to compete at the highest levels.
FINAL SHOW OPEN