Opening sequence to 'Princess Diaries'

Princess Diaries (U)

Opening Sequence:                                     

The first image shown is of a blue sky with writing presented by ‘Walt Disney’, this immediately connoted to me that this was a happy film with a fantasy story behind it. The font used for the credits in the opening is italics, almost in stereotypical diary handwriting, suggesting we will be following someone’s diary.

The music at the very beginning is orchestral, with strings playing mellow and peacefully contrasting to the mise-en-scene of a busy city with sounds of cars and sirens suggesting things may not be as peaceful as they seem. The shots are of a high angle to get the full scene of where the film is set with fades from each cut. The music fades quickly into a more upbeat tempo and modern feel as the camera zooms in through the window of a teenage girl. This is a contrast suggesting how we have hit the reality of the film.

The first character we see is a teenage girl with uniform on, suggesting her age. There is a mid-long shot of her looking out the window connoting she’s a daydreamer or is wishing for something with the mise-en-scene of her bedroom which is like any other school girls room. The character seems like an ordinary girl, in an ordinary house and living a pretty ordinary life. The camera tracks the character as she is walking to her front door ready to leave for school. We see a high angled shot from the characters point of view looking down at her Mum tracking her as she moves closer. The Mum is generally chatting to her and talking to her about school. We just get the feel of a stereotypical morning for a schoolgirl, as though nothing special will happen. There is a long shot a tracking movement of her riding her scooter to school and hitting a bin connoting she's a clumsy character. All these clues of how ordinary everything seem, makes the audience foreshadow later that something special could happen to this character.

The mood at the beginning is happy with a fantasy feel leading into a reality of a typical schoolgirl’s life. The theme shows friendship, when she meets her friend walking to school and a school life. 

From the opening the genre of the film seemed like a rom-com family film.   

•  First 2-3 minutes