01

INTRODUCTION

Marvel Studios approached our team at Perception and asked us to design the main on end title sequence for one of their most anticipated films to date, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. This film follows Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) as he explores the multiverse after casting a forbidden spell. In order to close out this dark and epic film, we were tasked with creating a title sequence to help finish this film in a vibrant way.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Main On End Title Sequence

02

A VIBRANT SEQUENCE

As the final edit of the film was coming together, Director Sam Raimi decided that the title sequence should both compliment and contrast the film. We worked closely with Sam Raimi to decide the best way to execute this. Since the movie ends on a dark note, we believed that creating a sequence full of vibrant colors and imagery of madness was how we would accomplish this. As we honed in on our final direction, we started crafting different color tests and development shots to help figure out the perfect color palette to use.

03

AN INTENSE SCORE

Before we began designing these titles, Marvel Studios provided us with the musical track that would be used for the sequence. This haunting Danny Elfman score sets the perfect chilling and thriller tone. With a score as menacing as Danny Elfman’s, we began crafting a sequence that provided equally haunting visuals to match.

04

INK BLOTS

With a film as unique as Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, we really wanted to focus on the idea of madness. We worked closely with Director Sam Raimi and we decided to embody the madness of the film through Rorschach ink blot tests. For this interesting concept, we took to After Effects to begin our design work.

There are a lot of visual implications to ink blot tests. The Rorschach test is a familiar symbol that is closely associated with the mind’s interpretations of reality. After studying ink blots and how they’re used in these tests, we chose to use ink blots as the groundwork for everything we put together, while not being so literal to the test. Using it as the visual cue to get into this world of madness, we pulled imagery and elements from the film to retell the story and revisit moments from the film to fly through this multiverse of ink tunnels.

In the creation process of this sequence, our team members began seeing different visuals in the ink blots we were crafting. With everyone seeing something new, we began crafting the ink blots to serve as a secondary visual for those paying close attention. As we travel through this multiverse of ink blot tunnels, the ink can slowly begin to become reminiscent of smoke or blood splatters.

05

CONSTANT MOVEMENT

A unique feature of this sequence is that it is a constantly moving sequence, following one continuous stream through this tunnel of ink blots. Reflecting the themes of the film, we aimed to make this sequence both visually beautiful and disorienting. We wanted the audience to feel a slight unease that linked to the darkness of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. By having a continuously moving sequence, the audience can never truly grasp onto any particular ink blot or hidden image, raising that feeling of unease.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Main on End Title Sequence Textless

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THE MIRRORING EFFECT

Similar to the film itself, this sequence was designed to be incredibly lucid and psychological. The Rorschach test inherently contains these traits, both through its visuals and with what it represents. As we studied ink blots, we found that they had a natural mirroring and kaleidoscope effect. This plays perfectly into the reflective themes of the multiverse seen in the film.

To further reference the reflective themes of the multiverse, we included mirroring images hidden in the ink blots. Some of these images, such as the characters seen in the actor credits, are subtle nods to the existence of the original character, along with their variants, that appear in the movie.

07

FLEXIBILITY

Our priority was to design a sequence that would have an unprecedented flexibility built into it for optimal interactivity with the filmmakers. We built a project that, in theory, could be changed to fit the film. It could adapt to the project. The concept and the technical structure of the project was built to survive an unprecedented level of creative flexibility.

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CONCLUSION

It was an honor to collaborate with Marvel Studios on the main on end title sequence for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness!

Our team also designed various tech features for this film as well! Learn more about that in our Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Technology Design case study!