The Art of Title Design: The Dynamic Typography of Zombieland

By Joseph Naguski

"Oh America, I wish I could tell you that this was still America. But I've come to realize you can't have a country without people. And there are no people here." -Columbus. (Fleischer, Zombieland)

Audiences get thrown right into the outrageously gory Armageddon which encapsulates Zombieland as an eerie narration takes place and the screen is attacked ferociously by a hideous zombie. Metallica’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls” blasts through the screen as dynamic typography flies throughout the screen. Designed by Ben Conrad, the outrageous antics of this title sequence really does set the tone for the hilariously scary ridiculousness of what's to come from the film.

After the savage introduction to Zombieland the audience is given a voice-over by one of the film’s main protagonists Columbus who gives a background of what is going on and then goes into a few of his rules of survival in the zombie-invested world he now lives in.  Bloody typography saying “Rule #1: Cardio, Rule #2: Double Tap…” appears on screen as we are introduced to some of the absurd scenarios which occur. This sets the tone for the rest of the film which constantly reveals these rules as they come into play in the characters’ actions. A woman soars across the road in slow motion as she is flung out of her car window after crashing into a truck as she attempts to escape from a horde of little girl zombies. This introduces the audience to Rule #4: Always wear a seat-belt. From there the Metallica begins to play and the actual title sequence starts. A man jumps off of a flight of stairs to escape a zombie, knocking away the type for of the credits “Colombia Pictures”. This transitions to a close-up of a zombie with blood spraying from its mouth, the blood blowing away more letters of credits away. A milkshake flies in the air as a woman being chased by a zombie, money escapes from a briefcase as a business man attempts to make a run from the zombies, a zombie bride tries to eat her new husband and more scenes of chaos fill the screen. No one type of person is spared in these scenes, from little girls to rich business men to criminals the zombies have no preference. This gets the audience ready for the uniqueness of the characters which are to come. The title itself is introduced with the smashing of a crowbar against the screen imitating the shattering of glass, destroying the type of the title itself as the crowbar swings down against it. More ridiculous scenes play, with the sequence ending off on the director’s credits as a zombie flies into the screen, his blood spraying against it.

Zombieland is a film which takes the horror of the popular post-apocalyptic zombie genre and gives it a comedic twist in the absurdity of the events that occur. It revolves around four survivors named after place names – a geeky college kid named Columbus, a bad ass redneck called Tallahassee, and con-artist sisters named Wichita and Little Rock. These unlikely allies come together, each with having their own goal but ultimately work with one another to find a safe haven from the horrors of the zombie apocalypse.

One of the most unique characteristics of this title sequence is how the typography of the piece interacts with the mayhem which encapsulates the environment of Zombieland. As mentioned in the sequence description, one example of this is the title itself which is shattered with a crowbar with pieces sent flying at the screen towards viewers. Not only is typography heavily present in the title sequence, but it is shown throughout the film as Columbus’s rules pop up on the screen. Ben Conrad in an interview with artofthetitle.com stated “The interactive animation of the type first started with the rules and eventually made their way into the main title sequence. We wanted to seamlessly integrate the type into the scene, making the type become another character. We were inspired by the tension between beauty and horror that the slow-motion footage created. The goal for the type was to respond to that horrific grace, to react to the movement.” The sequence was created using the adobe creative suite and the 3D computer graphics application Maya.

It is rare that type is such a prominent piece to a film, and Zombieland utilizes it in such a unique way as a means to punctuate the screen with Columbus’s sometimes helpful and sometimes mundane rules which are scattered throughout the film. “For Whom the Bell Tolls” is an obvious musical choice that really captures the state of society in the film. The dynamism which surrounds Zombieland’s title sequence makes it an intriguing and engaging piece that really shows audiences the journey they are in store for.

Work Cited
Ulloa, Alexander. “Zombieland.” Art of the Title, 5 Apr. 2010, www.artofthetitle.com/title/zombieland/.
Zombieland. Directed by Ruben Fleischer, Columbia Pictures, Relativity Media 2 Oct. 2009.