digital kitchen: true blood opener.

I still remember exactly where I was when I watched the first episode of “Six Feet Under”. I sat on the couch and didn’t move, barely breathed, and had that wash of tingles feeling you only get when seeing some revelatory and entirely new. “Six Feet Under” is the best show that’s ever graced a TV. Relentlessly and fearlessly different, it constantly broke outside the mold of what we expected TV to be. That trail-blazing included its breathtaking opening sequence, created by the amazing Digital Kitchen. I know I post this up every time I get a chance, but it’s just so crazy brilliant. I can’t stop myself. It never gets old… so click here to watch it again.

This week, “Six Feet Under” creator Alan Ball’s next series, “True Blood”, finally debuted on HBO. I’ll run out of superlatives if I try to describe it, but suffice it to say “True Blood” is a must-watch. He hasn’t tried to re-create “Six Feet Under” in another form, but he’s taken the core of what he does best and translated it into an entirely different world. A sweaty, lusty, dusty, southern, forgotten town… where there happen to be vampires. Genius.

Clearly a very clever man, Ball also knows that if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. So he headed back to Digital Kitchen for the opening sequence to “True Blood”. The perfect turn away from the austere, medicinal, and haunting feel of the “Six Feet Under” opening, this new work goes right down south – mixing images of the bayou, bloodlust, religious fervour, animal instinct, sex for sale, heat, and roadkill. It actually makes my eyes feel burnt and spicy. Watch the “True Blood” Opening right now.

My fave image is this one. What a brilliant word-play on that sort of bible-belt religious zealot craziness and the characters of the show. It’s otherworldy, weird, and on-topic all at the same time.

Via Motionographer

UPDATE! Today I was emailed a post from Lifting Faces with some interesting comparisons that Digital Kitchen’s work might not be as original as I once thought. Check out the post and decide for yourself…