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Green Screen

• Green screen is the use of a green backdrop during shoot, which is edited in post with a new backdrop/new footage in post.
• Green screen is a type of chroma key, which is a technique used to layer two images/video streams based on colour range (aka chroma range).
• The first instance of chroma key was in the 1930s, but instead of a blue backdrop they used a blue one. The first use of a proper blue screen process was in the film The Thief of Bagdad (1940), the end result left areas around the actor where it was obviously edited but because it was such a new technique at the time it was yet to be made flawless every time.
• The reason this method is used is because the green colour is furthest away from any skin tone, and actors are less likely to wear that shade of green on set (unless it's for CGI)
• It's mostly used in the film, newscasting, and video game industries, to replace the background (the green screen) with separately filmed footage by making it transparent. 
• One film that uses this technique is Spiderman Homecoming, mostly when Spiderman is climbing high rise buildings or exploring the city. In these scenes, the actor does the stunts with the props in front of a green screen, and then separate footage of the city is edited in afterwards.

Mattes & Matte Painting

• Matte painting is a method of VFX made before the digital era, where the cameraman and an artist work together to paint the rest of an unfinished scene onto a sheet of glass. The finished painting is placed in front of the camera to make it seem as if it's actually part of the scene/set
• Matte paintings are usually done on a large sheet of glass held up by a frame, with acrylic/oil paints or pastels
• Digital matte paintings are often made with softwares such as Photoshop and Adobe Sketch-up, using normal painting, photo textures, and sometimes 3D models for a more realistic effect. The lighting of the scene is often mimicked into the painting, or added after the painting's been added to thew film. The Wolf of Wall Street uses a lot of matte painting and green screen to completely change the setting, turning a half built house into a mansion, or transporting the wedding scene from in front of a lodge with a bit of sand to a tropical island with a lot of (edited in) palm trees. 
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• The first known matte painting was used in the film Missions of California (1907), where they were used to make the illusion that California was crumbling to the ground
• In the mid 1980s, digital matte paintings were making their way into films thanks to the advancements in technology. The first digital matte painting used was in the film Young Sherlock Holmes (1985). Despite this, traditional matte paintings are still used alongside 3D, one example being Die Hard 2 (1990)

 

Rotoscoping

• Rotoscoping was made by Polish-American animator Max Fleischer in 1915, and it has two different uses/applications
• Rotoscoping can be used to both transfer footage from one film too another, or to remove part of the footage by creating a 'mask'
• Rotoscoping is used to create the glowing light saber effect in the original Star Wars films by making the actor hold a glow stick and editing it, before CGI took over in the digital age

 

• The first ever rotoscoping device (also created by Fleischer) projected a single film frame onto a transparent canvas/easel for the artist to trace over. Once computers became more prominent, different softwares such as Photoshop and After Effects made this process a lot easier
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• The most noticable examples of Fleischer using his own technique is in his Popeye and Betty Boop cartoons in the early 1930s, in which he referenced the famous jazz performer Cab Calloway to pull of intricate dance moves for his characters.

Sources: Wikipedia, Google (for images), Youtube

Poirot Opening

The opening to this show starts off with a dark background and some eerie jazz music to match the era in which this show is set, followed by a transition which resembles broken glass to show the main character. The reason why this is a good opening for the show is because it immediately starts off by showing the tone and setting of the show, and then showing the viewer the focus of the show immediately after.

0:00 - Opening, jazz music with mysterious mist like background

0:12 - Shattered glass effect, Poirot appears

0:25 - Painting/animation of a train, shows key character element

0:30 - Name of show

0:32 - More (semi)animated elements, tells us about show + main character

0:40 - Full name of show + original author

0:49 - Shattered glass again, Poirot appears

0:55 - Credits

Hannibal Opening

This opening jumps into a major plot point right at the start, with the red water/blood(?) demonstrating the gorey elements of the show and the main character's personality and tendencies. The blood forming the shape of the main characters (0:07) gives us a brief look at all of the key personalities in the show, with the credits next to them to show who they're played by. The ending, with Hannibal's face and the text slowly revealing his name (0:15) clearly shows that he's the main focus of the story, whilst adding some mystery to his character.

Star Wars Opening

The text at the start of the opening, as well as the dramatic music, help to immerse the viewer into the story heavy universe of the film before it has even begun. Having the 'A long time ago, in a galaxy far away...' text clearly stating the time and setting of the film helps to avoid confusion, as well as having the wide shot of space and the spacecrafts (2:01) come into view once the text has faded. The background music throughout the entire opening helps to illustrate the action that is commonly seen throughout the film.