The Slipper Still Fits

There’s a reason why the Disney Company calls Cinderella their most beloved princess of all time, winning popularity contests over the likes of Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and the Little Memaid. “It’s because of who she is, what kind of character she is and how she acts and reacts to things,” says Cinderella III director Frank Nissen, who was a story man for Dinosaur, Tarzan and Treasure Planet before directing Pooh’s Heffalump Movie in 2005. “I was very concerned about the urge to contemporize the story and characters, because Cinderella is loved today as much as she was 50 years ago.”

In the straight-to-DVD release of Cinderella III: A Twist in Time, evil stepmother Lady Tremaine gets a hold of the Fairy Godmother’s magic wand, turns back time and makes the glass slipper fit the foot of Cinderella’s stepsister, Anastasia. While Anastasia is smitten by the Prince, sibling Drizella and Tremaine pursue their sinister plans to orchestrate the royal wedding before Cinderella and her animal friends can stop them.

Regardless of the new twist of events, Nissen tried to stay true to the original characters. “We watched the first movie over and over again, observing what she did with her body, what she did with her face, how she reacted to things, so I could really get that instilled in me to guide the story people and the animators.”

Despite a rushed three-year schedule from start to finish, and a relatively tight budget, the film touts a higher quality in art and story than most other straight-to-DVD sequels. One method was by limiting ancillary characters, so Jaq and Gus are the only two mice we see in the film. “It was important to make sure Gus and Jaq were clearly differentiated in their character relationships,” says Nissen. “Equally important was making sure they really help Cinderella in tangible ways that make a difference to our story. I wanted to make sure all the characters had stuff to do, so I told the story people to think about what the scene is about, and what the characters could be doing while they are saying their lines. I think that’s part of what gives the film a feeling of richness and activity.”

A specific rich element is the character of the Prince. “In the first movie he’s really little more than a dancing partner for Cinderella,” adds Nissen. “But he figures much more in the mechanism of our story, so we had to create a personality for him. We couldn’t just build on what was in the first movie, because there’s hardly anything there, and we couldn’t just make him a simple-minded saccharine hero. We tried to think about Hugh Grant and other young modern romantic figures and look at their mannerisms, styles of speech and sense of humor.

Of all characters to get a makeover, the most drastic was Anastasia, who becomes a protagonist in this outing. “In the original movie, the stepsisters really are one-note characters, so we were thinking of things we could give her to do and react to that tell us she’s got a softer heart inside.” Nissen explains that a pivotal scene was a rehearsal dance before the wedding, in which the Prince is convinced that he danced with Anastasia at the ball, and her infatuation cannot compensate for her stepping on his toes. “By having her act genuine in her discomfort and contriteness as she says, ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry,’ and by playing it absolutely straight, you look at her expressions and your heart really goes out to her. But we had to carefully modulate how sympathetic she was throughout the whole middle of the story so when it comes time for her to say ‘I do’ at the final wedding scene, we’d have a little bit of ambiguity about whether she’d go through with it.”

Although the film is princess-themed, it tested well with boys and parents as well, which Nissen chalks up to the movie’s emotional core. “I think in a lot of projects, people are afraid to deal with strong emotions, particularly love. It’s either treated lightly or made fun of, and I didn’t want to do that. This is a wonderfully romantic property. It has a special place in a lot of people’s hearts, and I really wanted to respect that. There’s plenty of fun in it, but what Cinderella feels, and what the prince feels, it was really important to treat that sincerely. I think that’s what people responded to.”