To analyse opening sequences i chose the opening to Shameless series 3 as i feel it follows many of the conventions you would expect to see.
Firstly, within the opening sequence you will discover the main character that is going to be in the program. This main character is quite obviously Frank Gallagher, as he is doing the commentary to introduce you to his family and friends. From the opening sequence, you can tell this character and the majority of the people he has gone through and named are going to be important in the program, and going to play a vital role, without even watching the program itself.
Secondly, mise-en-scene is used to exaggerate the genre of the drama and make it clear to the audience what should be expected. For example, when Karl, Franks son, is shown you see him holding a condom. From this prop you can presume that the program is maybe going to be a bit rude and explicit, but also quite humerous at the same time. Furthermore, you see Debbie in daylight stealing something. The way its shown in daylight automatically shows she is not bothered about getting caught and is going to be quite mischevious - this is then followed when she gets stopped by the police in full uniform and doesnt seem to phased by the fact she has been caught. Similarly, at the end of the sequence you see a lot of people with a police car, this use of props and costume implies that the drama is going to contain a lot of crime and maybe some violence.
In most opening sequences, you tend to also get a recap of the previous episode. However, as this is the opening to a brand new series it is slightly different but still following a similar convention. As some people may of forgot what happened in the previous series, Frank is running through what each character is doing at the moment and 'where they stand' within the program. This is useful as it helps people put the characters into perspective and to remind them of what is going in within the story line to help welcome them into the new series.
Also, there is a theme tune, which is common within all TV Dramas. This makes the audience automatically know that the programme is about to start, or if you were in another room it would be an interpellation - therefore grabbing our attention. However, it is not as distinct in this opening as Frank is doing a voice over, but it is still there and would be recognisable to any Shameless watcher.
And, as with near enough all TV dramas the name of the programme is shown within the opening titles. SHAMELESS is in big letters at the very end with the name of the creater underneath - which is another common convention. Normally, there would be some directors, producers or actors/actresses names, but that may be because there's been a lot of talking and a lot to take in from the opening credits, so they have kept it simply by just using the creators name to finalise the titles.
