How are title sequences like this one made?

[AmateurFilmmaker]

Falling cars, posing cast members on their very own billboards, buildings sprouting out of no where, road/highway signs, and moving images and graphics --how was it all done? The only thing I can presume is having each cast member pose in front of a green screen/chroma key environment, and then afterwards keying out the green screen and adding it to their billboards. The rest I don't know how to make happen. What programs are used to do these things? Final cut pro? Other ones? Have you ever had experience making anything like that? If so, how did you do it? Currently do it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrV1_OA7TLs

 

[FilmmakerJ]

After Effects is the main program that will do all of this, and this was likely made in After Effects anyway.

The cars and the buildings are all warped 2D photos or painted artwork. Though they look photographed to me, just turned to black and white.

The billboards are blackened 3D models that have had a video attached to their front and back sides, and the videos playing on them are indeed done with an actor on a green screen with a still photo of them to their side, and lens flares over text of their names.

3D models can be added into After Effects primarily with something called Element 3D, which allows you to import 3D models directly into AE's 3D environment. Otherwise, you would have to animate a 3D model in a different program, render out a video, and use that instead. Both can work, but using Element 3D is much easier now that it exists. After Effects also has its own 3D capabilities since CS5 came out (I think). But it's not nearly as realistic or versatile in the shading and movement controls departments.

 

[SixOhThree]

Agreed with FilmmakerJ, that title sequence looks like it was all made in After Effects. That software is pretty damn intimidating and I've never done anything like that sequence, but to a user who knows the software and has some time on their hands, something like that wouldn't be extremely difficult to put together.

 

[FilmmakerJ]

Making a model like that 3D billboard would take the longest of any individual part.
The rest of the sequence you could reasonably put together in about 5-8 hours I would think. If you understand AE pretty well, that is. I've been using After Effects regularly for about 5-6 years now.

 

[Guanto]

How are title sequences like this one made?

Are you actually interested in how to design, animate, render and export one of these - or are you interested in having something like it in your project?

The former takes years, passion and talent in the AE arena... the latter takes about 30 seconds and $30. It's just a customizable template (drag and drop in your own music, images, video and text) and its often how the cable networks get these things.

Revostock is just one of a hundred of these places, so go nuts: http://www.revostock.com/After-Effects-Project/1152307/4Th-Of-July-Panorama-FX.htm