In film production, the pre-credit is the section of the film which is shown before the opening or closing credits are shown. Many films will by common convention have a short scene before the credits to introduce characters who may, or may not, become crucial to the film's plot. This sequence is normally an expositional scene with either an obvious important plot point or an event which is seemingly minor but whose significance will later in the film become apparent. A characteristic of pre-credit scenes in the horror genre is a character (seemingly a main character) who is killed quickly, as a heralding "warning kill" of the antagonist. For example, ''

Cube In geometry, a cube is a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex. Viewed from a corner it is a hexagon and its net is usually depicted as a cross. The cube is the only r ...

''. The James Bond franchise has become well known for elaborate high-concept pre-credit sequences, sometimes over ten minutes in length. Television series often have a pre-credit sequence, especially ones from the mid-1960s onward. (Such series as '' Captain Kangaroo'', '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'', '' The Andy Griffith Show'', the first incarnation of '' The Twilight Zone'', ''

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning six seasons. The show starred Lucille Ball, her husband, Desi Arnaz, along with ...

'', and the Disney anthology television series did not.) One series famous for its pre-credits is ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...

''. Their famous sound effect will close the pre-credit after each episode's victim is discovered.

See also