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Fake Film Intro - TV Tropes

  • ️Wed Dec 18 2024

Starting off a story is often a difficult task. You have to establish the setting we'll be in, the characters we'll be with, the direction the plot will be moving—and yet, all must be accomplished gracefully enough to avoid accusations of infodumping. So how does one clarify what the audience is going into without appearing clumsy or heavy-handed? Why, by utilizing an oft-overlooked aspect of your setting: the Show Within a Show!

A common format to employ is a news report. As the news aims to transmit information objectively, writers have an excuse to deliver direct exposition regarding the narrative's setting and events within an In-Universe context. Other times, a more traditional Show Within a Show—such as a movie or television series—may appear instead. These may not necessarily be expository, but can still serve the purpose of establishing the tone or themes of a work. Even if what is shown may not appear directly related to a story, it may function as a kind of Foreshadowing or Plot Parallel.

A Fake-Out Opening or Fake Action Prologue may sometimes take the form of a Show Within a Show. A Myth Prologue or Storybook Opening could be considered analog versions of this. Compare Proscenium Reveal, where a scene is revealed to be a Show Within a Show instead of the actual show, and Dream Intro. Contrast Framing Device, if the nested story is a Show Within a Show.

Examples:

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Anime & Manga 

  • Haruhi Suzumiya: The first episode of the anime adaptation is an amateurish home movie that Haruhi shanghaied the rest of the cast into making with her for the School Festival, which serves to establish the cast's personalities and foreshadows several key plot developments. The second episode (and the first chronologically) serves as a much more conventional introduction, as it starts adapting the original novels from the beginning.
  • The first episode of Pokémon the Series starts with a battle between two trainers, which Ash is watching on TV at home.
  • Ōkami-san: In the anime, there was an episode that opened with Okami, Ringo, and Ryoshi fighting against a trio of three fat, pig-like brothers, which turns out to be a movie that Ringo made that included a Forced Kiss between Ringo and Okami because Ringo was trying to invoke Girl on Girl Is Hot (and because Ringo had previously said it would be good for her if Okami learned to appreciate same-sex romance).
  • Villainess Level 99: The opening half of the anime's first episode follows Alicia as if she were the protagonist of the series, establishing a romantic comedy based on her adventures. It is actually the Gamer Chick who would reincarnate as Yumiella playing the opening of Fictional Video Game Light Magic and the Hero. The latter half of the episode has Yumiella, properly reincarnated, as the protagonist and point of view character.

Films — Animation 

  • The Incredibles begins with footage of interviews with Mr. Incredible, Elastigirl, and Frozone back in their heyday. This serves partly to introduce them and partly to establish the contrast between their attitudes at the time and their attitudes in the modern day after superheroes have been outlawed — Mr. Incredible was keen to settle down and retire, whereas Elastigirl balked at the thought. Yet, in the present day, Helen is the one content to live a normal married life, whereas Bob continually tries to relive his glory days through vigilantism.
  • Paranorman begins with Norman watching a laughably terrible horror movie, complete with wooden acting and a Visible Boom Mic.
  • Ratatouille: The film opens with a documentary on French cuisine that details who Gusteau is while also introducing the main antagonist, Anton Ego.
  • The Simpsons Movie begins with the family watching a feature-length Itchy and Scratchy cartoon in the theater. Homer interrupts to loudly object that they've paid to see something they could have watched at home on TV for free.

    Homer: If you ask me, everyone in this theater is a giant sucker — especially you! [points at the viewer as the opening credits begin]

  • Toy Story 2 opens with a scene of Buzz infiltrating Zurg's lair and ultimately getting zapped to death...right before the camera pans out to reveal that what actually happened was Rex losing a "Buzz Lightyear" video game to Hamm, due to his very short arms not allowing him to jump and fire with the controller at the same time. This scene gets recreated later in the film when toy Zurg and Utility Belt Buzz battle atop an elevator.
  • Up begins with a news film detailing explorer Charles Muntz's journey to Paradise Falls on his airship Spirit of Adventure. Muntz was accused of fabricating a giant bird skeleton for fame and plans to return to capture a live specimen. All of this is being watched by an admiring young Carl, which both sets up his motivation of wishing to travel to Paradise Falls and provides exposition on the mysterious bird and Muntz himself long before they appear in the flesh.

Films — Live-Action 

  • Austin Powers: The third film in the trilogy, Goldmember, opens with an action scene where the series' main characters have now been suspiciously recast — Austin Powers is portrayed by Tom Cruise, Dr. Evil by Kevin Spacey and Mini Me by Danny DeVito. It then cuts to a sound stage, revealing that the opening is just part of an in-universe Austin Powers movie being directed by Steven Spielberg.
  • Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid: The opening credits appear over a silent film depicting a train robbery that's interrupted by the attack of a posse. This foreshadows a similar scene in the real film.
  • Citizen Kane: After the scenes depicting Kane's death and last words, the film cuts to a newsreel summarizing Kane's life and work. This is being viewed by the newsreel team, who then send one of their reporters to find the meaning of Kane's dying word, "Rosebud".
  • Crimson Tide opens with real-life newscaster Richard Valeriani delivering a news report on a political crisis in Russia, which provides the impetus to deploy U.S.S. Alabama and kick off the plot.
  • Frankenstein 1970: The film opens with a woman being chased through a graveyard by what appears to be a Frankenstein's Monster (the camera never showing the face of the creature as he shambles through), only for it to be quickly revealed that they're on an in-universe film set. It's then established that Frankenstein 1970 takes place within the universe of Frankenstein, and the crew was making a documentary about the late Mad Scientist, reenacting the events surrounding his most mad of creations on his historical property with his descendant's (begrudged) consent.
  • Galaxy Quest opens with the Show Within a Show's last episode before the camera zooms out to reveal that this scene is being screened at a Fan Convention.
  • The opening scene of Godzilla (2014) shows footage of Operation Castle Bravo which, in real life, were a series of tests designed by the United States military devised to create more powerful atomic bombs, but in the MonsterVerse were used as a cover-up for the United States military's many attempts to try and kill Godzilla.
  • Jingle All the Way opens with footage of a low-budget B-movie starring a superhero named Turbo Man. A pullback reveals it's a movie Jamie is watching on TV while talking about how badly he wants a Turbo Man action figure for Christmas.
  • Justice League (2017) begins with footage of Superman being interviewed for a podcast. The footage ends with Superman being asked "What's your favorite thing about Earth?", cutting away just as he's about to answer and segueing into a montage of what the world looks like following his death at the end of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
  • Late Night with the Devil is framed as the lost, last episode of Night Owls with Jack Delroy, which is preceded with a documentary-style introduction to the host, and the show's reputation as a second-rate talk show chasing rating with gimmicks and shock value, as well as setting up the Church of Abraxas and the fatal police siege that left a Sole Survivor, a a young girl who has been invited on for a Sweeps Week Halloween Occult special. The intro also sets up Jack's dead wife, and connection to a shady secret society.
  • Looney Tunes: Back in Action begins with a short where Daffy gets blasted by Elmer Fudd several times, much to his chagrin which is evident when it cuts to inside the studio.
  • Men in Black II: The second film opens with a segment of a low-budget show called Mysteries in History, which features a B-movie style dramatic reenactment of a 1978 Men in Black case involving the Zarthans, a race trying to hide a powerful treasure from the evil Serleena. The segment depicts the Men in Black refusing to hide the treasure on Earth, but defeating Serleena so the Zarthans could escape to hide their Light elsewhere. This sets up Serleena's return to Earth in modern day, convinced the Light of Zartha is in fact still on Earth. A later scene has K and J watch the episode themselves, which causes K to remember he was in fact part of this case, but it went much differently than the episode describes.
  • Mortal Kombat: The Movie: Johnny Cage's introduction takes place in a location where he fights off several people. After beating up the last one — who remains standing — an exasperated Johnny says "This is where you fall down" with the guy doing this just. Johnny makes his frustration known as it's revealed they're all on a movie set.
  • Mrs. Doubtfire: The film starts with a cartoon called "Pudgy and Grudge" about a bird being chased by a cat, both characters being voiced by the film's protagonist, Daniel. The record session is ruined by Daniel improvising lines about how smoking is bad.
  • Odd Squad: World Turned Odd opens with a video explaining Oprah's feats of heroism throughout the 100 years she's been working for Odd Squad.
  • The first act of One Cut of the Dead starts with the characters making the titular horror film about a Zombie Apocalypse, not knowing that there's an actual apocalypse occurring around them. At the end of the act, the director shouts, "Cut!", revealing that it was all a Show Within a Show, with later acts revealing the behind-the-scenes of the filming and how the production team had to improvise the in-universe film's scenes due to it being The Oner.
  • The RoboCop movies open with these that set the stage for the main plot:
    • RoboCop (1987), begins with a "Media Break" news update, with the anchors the audience that the Apartheid government in South Africa is threatening to use a nuclear weapon against encroaching rebels, an envoy to the "Star-Wars" space station experienced brief gravity loss, and cuts to a commercial for the Family Heart Center adverising the numerous artificial hearts they can implant. When the commercial break ends, the anchors report on the slaying of several police officers by Bodicker and his gang.
    • RoboCop 2 starts with a commercial for the Manga Volt anti-car theft system, and then a "Media Break" telling the audience about how the ED-209 is experiencing mechanical and technical difficulties, before delving into the activities of Caine and his Nuke Cult.
    • RoboCop 3 starts with a commercial for Delta City, OCP's grand plan for Detroit, and then a "Media Break" detailing the plans to make Delta City possible, which includes escorting people to rehab camps where they'll be processed before being relocated to better ample lodgings and a well paying jobs, and the relocations are being peacefully carried out by the Rehabs, security experts brought in from the Amazon War.
    • RoboCop (2014) opens with a report by Pat Novack of the "Novack Element," a pro-OCP talking head, on "Operation: Freedom Tehran," and the demonstration of OCP's newest product, the EM-208, as it's human handler takes it on patrol of recently pacified Tehran. However things go awry when disgruntled natives attacks the convoy/media team, but once the droids neutralize the militants, a droid sees a teenage civilian holding a knife, as a result of him recently preparing meal when the attack occurred, the droid calculates the boy is treat and applies lethal force.
  • A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) begins with the opening of a film titled The Littlest Elf, about a happy-go-lucky creature frolicking in a Sugar Bowl forest full of cute animals. Suddenly, a Record Needle Scratch is heard, and the voice of Lemony Snicket sadly informs us that this is not the film the audience will be watching. Nonetheless, The Littlest Elf appears to be a Show Within a Show of sorts.
  • Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird: The cold open has Oscar the Grouch singing the "Grouch Anthem" in front of an American flag background in a parody of Patton. It ends with Oscar saying you've seen the best part of the movie, so sit back and have a "rotten time" watching the rest. Even the WB logo doesn't run until the segment is over.
  • All three entries of the Spider-Man: Home Trilogy open with some form of this:
    • Spider-Man: Homecoming opens up with a private vlog recorded by Peter Parker on his phone (the title card simply reading "A Film by Peter Parker"), documenting several events alluded to in Captain America: Civil War from his POV, from his arrival at Berlin, receiving Tony Stark's delivery of his custom Spider-Man costume, and participating in the airport fight against the other Avengers.
    • After the Cold Open, Spider-Man: Far From Home begins with a news report by students at Peter's high school. It starts with a very low-quality tribute to the fallen Avengers before transitioning to two students providing a recap of the Blip and its aftermath, delivering to the audience both a brief recap and some exposition.
    • Spider-Man: No Way Home opens with breaking news reports immediately following the end of Far From Home, covering the leak of Mysterio's (doctored) video recording declaring Spider-Man a villain, along with revealing Peter's Secret Identity to the whole world.
  • Starship Troopers begins with a recruitment ad for the military, with Mobile Infantry soldiers happily saying "I'm doing my part," and the announcer saying that enlisting guarantees citizenship. When a mouse cursor clicks on the "Top News" tab, a news clip mentions that a bug meteor was intercepted before it struck Earth, and that the invasion of Klendatu, the bugs' home planet, is underway. The news report then cuts to a live feed from Klendatu, where a correspondent is reporting as Mobile infantrymen are running away, and then the reporter gets snatched by a bug, who snaps him in half. After a squad of infantrymen kill the bug, Johnny Rico yells at the camera to "Get out of here now!". However Johnny and the cameraman are then attacked by a bug, and after the cameraman is killed, Johnny is seen screaming in agony as the transmission cuts off.
  • Tropic Thunder establishes its main characters' backgrounds by kicking off with an in-universe drink advertisement (starring the musician trying to broaden his fame to include moviegoers) and film trailers in a variety of genres (starring the veteran actors). The beginning appears to be a standard Vietnam War action sequence... until you find out it's a sequence being filmed in-universe for a based-on-the-book war flick.
  • Ultraman Gaia: The Battle In Hyperspace, the movie based on Ultraman Gaia, opens with Gamu Takayama (Gaia's human host) chasing Satanbizor's humanoid form, who then turns kaiju-sized. Gamu similarly transforms into Ultraman Gaia, a massive kaiju smackdown is about to begin... and then the whole thing is revealed to be a television screen watched by a young boy named Tsutomu who's the film's actual protagonist. The movie itself is a Real-World Episode where the Ultramen are fictional characters.
  • Who Framed Roger Rabbit begins with Roger and Baby Herman featuring in a cartoon until Roger gets hit on the head with a refrigerator and starts seeing tweeting birds. At this point, the director calls "Cut!" and begins berating Roger because he was supposed to see stars instead.
  • William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet has the prologue ("Two households, both alike in dignity...") delivered by a television news anchor, immediately establishing that this particular adaptation is set in the present day yet retains the original Shakespearean dialogue.

Literature 

  • The beginning of A Sister's All You Need features an excerpt from a very cliché and exaggerated Little Sister Heroine romantic comedy series. This works in two ways; it fakes the reader out with a scenario in line with the title of the work, and it paves the way for the real premise of the life of a light novel creator who specializes in imouto romance.
  • Back to the Future: The Novelization of the Feature Film: The novelization opens with Marty's class being shown footage of an atomic bomb test in an attempt to establish the sci-fi tone of the story. However, it has little to do with the rest of the story other than establishing the decade Marty will enter, as well as Doc's promise to build a bomb for the Libyan terrorists.

Live-Action TV 

  • The Brittas Empire:
  • CSI: NY: "Crossroads" opens with the camera panning through a dark house, accompanied by the voices of a couple arguing over whether they should turn themselves in for a murder. The girl insists it's the right thing to do, but the guy is panicked because he doesn't want to go back to jail. The shot then pans out to reveal them to be characters on a TV show that's playing.
  • Jubilee (2023) opens with a newsreel discussing the famous Bombay film studio Roy Talkies and introducing its owners, film producer Srikant Roy and his wife, Bollywood film star Sumitra Kumari. The newsreel also states that Srikant is looking for a new star for Roy Talkies's films, to be given the Stage Name "Madan Kumar".
  • The RoboCop: The Series episodes begin with a "Media Break" talking about the ongoing crises happening the world over, particularly the ongoing Amazon War, and reports on the scheme/s perpetrated by that episode's villain/s.
  • Supernatural: The episode "Changing Channels" has Sam and Dean Trapped in TV Land, with the Cold Open being a flash-forward to a reality where they're forced to act like they're in a sitcom, complete with a spoof opening in the style of Full House.
  • Torchwood: Miracle Day: "The New World" opens with a news report on the planned execution of Oswald Danes, introducing him to the audience as a child rapist and murderer with little to no remorse for his actions.
  • The Whitest Kids U' Know's skit about "The Grapist" starts with a scene of the Grapist forcefully smashing into a kid's bedroom. Then the scene is stopped to reveal that this was part of a sales pitch for a soda commercial.

Music Videos 

  • Michael Jackson's Thriller begins with a scene of Michael Jackson himself and a young woman entering the woods after running out of gas. After the woman accepts Jackson's invitation to be his girlfriend, Jackson transforms into a werecat and attacks her. This is then revealed to be merely a horror movie being watched by Jackson and his girlfriend (played by the same actress).

Theatre 

  • Starship: The musical opens on a cheesy recruiting video for the Starship Rangers, before cutting to the tragic final Captain's Log from a Starship Rangers ship that crashed on an alien planet. It is then revealed that one of those aliens, Bug, is watching the video in the wreckage of the ship, dreaming of becoming a Starship Ranger (even though he's not human).

Video Games 

  • Arcanum: The campaign's introduction (in which a luxury blimp is shot down by primitive monoplanes) is shown in the style of an early 20th-century movie, complete with TitleCards, jumping film, and whirring reel sounds.
  • Pokémon Diamond and Pearl begins with the player watching a news report about a red Gyarados, which inspires them and their Friendly Rival to explore the nearby lake.
  • Poppy Playtime: Each chapter begins with an In-Universe commercial for a toy that serves as the focus of its respective chapter. The first begins with a vintage commercial for Poppy herself, the second with a 90s commercial for Mommy Long Legs, and the third with a Merchandise-Driven cartoon for the Smiling Critters that transitions to a news report about CatNap toys being recalled en masse. Fittingly, all take a darker turn at the end.
  • Spider Man The Sinister Six: Spider-Man is webbing around town, rushing to meet his wife Mary Jane, as the woman herself is busy disarming a bomb. Actually, it's just a scene she is shooting for her soap opera, as cranky director Chip Alvarez shouts "Cut!", for the crew to stop shooting.

Visual Novels 

  • Murder by Numbers (2020): After the tutorial prologue with S.C.O.U.T., the scene switches to Honor and Becky discussing the location of the murder weapon inside the butler, before finishing off with a nice shot of them back-to-back. Then a producer shouts "cut", and the actors start casually talking to each other about the reshoot. The background of said scene also shows that it is within a filming area, although it could be missed by those doing a quick glance.

Web Videos 

  • Critters: A New Binge starts with footage of a girl brushing her teeth before getting attacked from behind by a blatantly CGI monster—this being quickly revealed to be a movie that the Critters on the ship are watching, with one of them calling to "turn this piece of shit off!".

Western Animation 

  • Animaniacs starts off with "Newsreel of the Stars", which describes the origins of the Warner Siblings and how they got into the Warner Studios Water Tower.
  • Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers: The episode "Flash The Wonder Dog" begins with the television show of the same name, starring a German shepherd superhero and his trusty sidekick, Conrad Cockatoo. They swing into action to save an heiress tied to a chair atop a pile of dynamite large enough to level a building. Dale is thoroughly enrapt in this show and believes that Flash is an actual hero.
  • Ducktales 2017: "Beware the B.U.D.D.Y. System!" opens with a surprise cameo by Darkwing Duck, stopping a team of bad guys, before zooming out to reveal it's an old TV show that Launchpad that has basically modeled his life after. Since this is the series' first Launchpad focus episode, it's appropriate to open with his main source of inspiration — "Let's get dangerous!"
  • Family Guy: "Lois Kills Stewie", the second half of a two-parter, opens with a Quahog News report with Ollie Williams recapping the previous episode in his usual loud, laconic style.
  • Futurama: "Three Hundred Big Ones" opens with a spoof of World War 2-era newsreels, describing Zapp Brannigan's victory in an off-world war, the spoils of which fund the $300 tax rebate that the episode's plot centers around.
  • The Mega Man cartoon by Ruby-Spears has this happen during the second episode, where Mega Man supposedly dies due to electrical cables getting wrapped around his body and frying his circuits. As it turns out, Wily was just doing a run-through of his latest scheme with puppets.
  • Phineas and Ferb: "The Curse of Candace" begins with Candace and Stacy watching a parody of Twilight in the theater, which anticipates the actual plot of Candace believing she's become a vampire after being attacked by a bat.
  • The Real Ghostbusters: "Poultrygeist" begins with what appears to be a werewolf attack, but it then turns out to be in a movie watched by a farmer.
  • Rugrats (1991): "Reptar 2010" begins with the eponymous film being played, which has its prehistoric setting being done in a more realistic, colored pencil-esque style. The T-Rex fades into Reptar, who is drawn in the show's usual style, as he is sent into the then-distant year of 2010, and the camera zooms out, revealing the film to be playing on the Pickles family's TV.
  • SpongeBob SquarePants:
    • "I Had an Accident" begins with Patrick apparently dying in a sporting accident, but then it turns out to be in a video game he is playing. Then, the scene cuts to him having the same accident in actuality (but not dying this time).
    • The episode "The Fry Cook Games" opens with Realistic Fish Head reporting on the titular event and the rivalry between Mr. Krabs and Plankton, before introducing SpongeBob as the new competitor representing the Krusty Krab.
  • Star Trek: Lower Decks: The episode "The Stars at Night" opens with a news report recapping the damning profile on the Cerritos that was the center of the previous episode, going into the main plot when the anchor mentions Captain Freeman, her reputation in tatters after having her daughter transferred thanks to a misunderstanding, having been called by Starfleet Command for questioning.