Press Release

yU + co designed and produced the main-on-end title sequence for Sony
Pictures current smash hit Memoirs of a Geisha,
delivering a gorgeous, thought-provoking sequence that sums up the film
with simple poignancy.
In a break with recent Hollywood tradition, the main credits for Geisha
appear at the end, rather than the beginning, of the film, but yU + co
gives audiences ample reason to remain in their seats. Conceived by the
studio’s founder Garson Yu, the sequence picks up on two of the film’s
main visual themes, water and the kimono. The initial credits appear
over an abstract background of shimmering light, but as the sequence
proceeds, the background gradually comes into focus and reveals itself
to be a stunningly beautiful kimono reflected in a pool of rippling
water.
“Water is an important element of the film; in particular it plays an
important role at the very beginning and at the very end of the story,”
explained Yu. “The film ends with Sayuri walking along a pool in a
garden and that provided a natural bridge to end title sequence.”
Water, as a theme, represents the flow of life and the determination of
the human spirit, added Yu. That sense of flow is echoed by the
typography which animates gracefully through the frame as if carried
along by a languid stream.
“Placing the title sequence at the end of the film was the appropriate
choice,” said Yu. “The film begins with a very emotional scene where
Sayuri is turned out by her mother and Rob Marshall did not want
anything to disturb the mood.
“Additionally, this film is called a ‘memoir’ and by placing this
beautiful undulating imagery at the end, we are offering the audience a
chance to take it all in and reflect on what they have just seen.”
Placing the titles at the end of the film also served another purpose
of director Rob Marshall, according to yU + co executive producer
Claire O’Brien. “Rob has a background in the theater and wanted the
titles to appear at the end of the film to give the actors a chance to
‘take a bow,'” said O’Brien. Each actor’s name is accompanied by a
representative frame from the film.
Yu shot the background for the sequence on a special effects stage in
Hollywood. The kimono that was used was specially selected by Marshall
from the more than a thousand silk garments employed in the film. The
kimono was suspended from a scaffold above a black pool. “We brought in
a team of special effects experts to stir and rake the water,”
explained O’Brien. “That allowed us to choreograph the movement with a
great deal of precision.”
yU + co also recently completed title sequences for Aeon
Flux and Brokeback Mountain.
Credits for yU + co go to Garson Yu, Creative Director/Designer; Claire
O’Brien, Executive Producer; Ryan “Reno” Robertson, Associate Producer;
Synderela Peng and Yolanda Santosa, Designers; Scott Pagano, Etsuko Uji
and Johnny Wong, 2D Animators; Zachary Scheuren, Editor/Inferno Artist.