From Script to Screen

The creative ideas for Dexter came from the idea of crime scene photographs; they contextualise mundane things and make them appear sinister, they then began examining normal everyday things and  seeing how they could contextualise them to make them seem horrific or sinister.

 This fit in with the idea of Dexter as a character because on the surface these objects look normal and mundane but if you change them slightly you can find something strange and sinister, this applies to Dexter as a character as well, on the surface he seems like a normal man but underneath he is actually a serial killer. This is also how the style of the name came about, most of the letter look the same if you turn them upside down, it wasn't massively changed, but you could tell it was slightly wrong, like Dexter when he becomes the killer.

In the opening sequence of Dexter there are lots of extreme close-ups, this makes the normal activities of shaving and eating breakfast seem quite threatening and sinister, there is something twisted and violent about these normal, mundane activities .

The use of noir lighting gave the sequence a dark and twisted look, it connotes danger and suspicion, also the shallow depth of field gives the objects a slightly odd, unfocused look, this shows the audience that Dexter is about twisting and changing normal things to make them seem different and violent.

The Xploding Plastix track made the sequence seem too dark and sinister, it didn't properly connote the meaning of Dexter: it isn't all about violence, Dexter is, at times, a normal person. The other track connoted this well because it contrasted what was happening on the screen. The filming shows violence but the music suggests something more upbeat and interesting. This contrast portrays the two different sides of Dexter himself.