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Coneheads (1993)

Coneheads
We come from France.
—Beldar Conehead
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In the opening scene of Steve Barron's 1993 film Coneheads, the US National Guard is confused by a spaceship and shoots at it, sending the craft into the waters of Upper New York Bay.

The titles, designed by Nina Saxon and featuring music composed by David Newman, set the tone of the film in an immediate and simple way. Superimposed on the live-action sequence is a curious set of lettering, a custom Coneheads typeface with rotund and elongated upper sections. The typeface, like Beldar and his life mate Prymaat, is both friendly and strange, taking the familiar and stretching it beyond its known limits.

The film is a feature based on a series of 11 Saturday Night Live sketches performed between 1977 and 1979 developed by Dan Aykroyd and featuring Aykroyd and Jane Curtin in the primary roles. Its plot is similar to that of The Coneheads, an animated short created by Rankin/Bass in 1983 and featuring the voices of Aykroyd and Curtin. 

IMAGE: Coneheads with magazines

Beldar Conehead (Dan Aykroyd), Connie Conehead (Michelle Burke), and Prymaat Conehead (Jane Curtin) check out some publications

  • Credits

Title Design: Nina Saxon Film Design
Titles and Opticals by: Cinema Research Corporation

Original Score: David Newman

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Title sequence

  • Production Studio

    Nina Saxon Film Design
  • Title Designer

    Nina Saxon
  • Category

    Film
  • Styles

    1990s, live action, main title, opening scene, type over scene
Coneheads
  • Film Director

    Steve Barron
  • Release Date

    July 23, 1993
  • Aspect Ratio

    1.78:1
  • Studio

    Paramount Pictures
  • Country

    USA
  • Language

    English
  • Reviews

    Reviews on Letterboxd
  • IMDb has full details

Article

  • Writer

    Lola Landekic
  • Published

    September 16, 2015

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