Existing Product Research - Juno

The establishing shot in Juno secures the primary character straight away, as a close-up of her face depicts her facial expression, and therefore, some of her personality as well. The shot then cuts to a dolly shot, which follows Juno as she walks. 

As the dolly shot tracks her movement, non-diegetic country music begins to fade in, the only sound that the audience can actually hear. It is carefree and cheerful, contrasting with the expression on her face and her personality. Music in movies usually must be in sync with the genre and other components in the production, and therefore, the music in this opening is in sync with the genre of comedy, reinforcing to the audience that this is, in fact, a comedy.

From the positioning of the character, placing her at the start of the film, we immediately know that she is the protagonist in the film since they are usually the first to appear in the frame.

At the beginning of the clip, you can see that she is dressed down, with a slightly slicked back ponytail and drinking out of a 'Sunny D' jug. Her expression is laid-back and sluggish. These features combined together, portray her to be a carefree, low-key and low-maintenance individual. Her clothing indicates that she rejects the expectations of women in society or doesn't care how society views her, subverting from the stereotype of women in films. The setting in the first shot is outdoors, perhaps a park or front yard. However, the rest of the opening is set throughout the town she lives in as she wonders around, before entering a shop. The fact that she is wearing red, could symbolize love or perhaps, suggest that the movie focuses around the theme of love. Through mise-en-scene, hints at the storyline are slowly introduced. For example, her back is to the camera in one shot and she is slouching, showing her body language to be quite masculine. This masculinity is seen throughout the shots through the positioning of the character as she walks with her arms dropped down by her side and swinging carelessly as she carries the bottle of 'Sunny D'. This adds to the comedy of the film, and it shows what type of character she is as it reinforces the idea of her being a carefree individual, and doesn't feel the pressure of stress as much as other teenagers her age do. 

The first shot has no special effects, and is more realistic, however as she walks, the scenery and character becomes animated, which hint that she is a daydreamer, who is trying to figure who she is as a person and wants to be somewhere or someone else. This may be due to the fact that she feels her life is boring and wants to change, which is suggested through how she is half-animated as well.