The series follows a young peasant girl named Sofia, voiced by Ariel Winter, who becomes a princess after her mother marries the King of Enchancia.
Episodes focus on her adventures and bonds with others, including her animal friends, with whom she communicates through an amulet that blesses and curses her based upon the goodness of her actions.
When creating the series, Gerber aimed to employ relatable situations in a fantasy world; he stated Sofia's position as a child of a single mother allowed the team to explore themes of adaptation and connect to modern children.
She also bonds with her new family, including her twin step-siblings Amber and James, and settles into her new royal school, where Flora, Fauna and Merryweather from Sleeping Beauty are headmistresses.
Roland gives Sofia a powerful artifact called the Amulet of Avalor, which blesses her for good deeds and curses her for wrongdoings.
For five years, Disney writers, child-development and early-education experts and storytelling consultants worked to create a television show that would bypass stereotypes of evil stepmothers and girls requiring princes to save them.
Though excited to conceive a fantasy world and Princess fairy tale, Gerber wanted the show to be both entertaining and educational, teaching children how to be better people and solutions to social problems.
In the hopes the show could be a "magic mirror" for his son, Gerber employed relatable situations into the fantasy world, which became the genesis for Princess Sofia.
Decades later, while attempting to lend a contemporary viewpoint to a fairy tale world, he had an epiphany: He considered the possibilities if Sofia was not born a princess and instead married into a royal family.
However, having a mixed royal family that included both a father and a mother appeared to be a prime opportunity to convey stories to which modern children could connect.
The score draws upon the sounds of previous Disney films, since the producers hoped to avoid "typical cartoon music".
[10] Similarly, in the original songs, Gerber and the composer included aspects of Motown, jazz, and hip-hop music, rather than "cloying kiddie sounds".
[15] The second season premiered on March 7, 2014, and concluded on August 12, 2015,[16] with a primetime special, titled "The Curse of Princess Ivy", airing on November 23, 2014.
[20][21] The series premiere episode, titled "Just One of the Princes", was made available on several platforms, including Disney Channel SVOD and iTunes, on January 4, 2013, a week before its airdate.
[31] Matt Villano, who writes for Today, enjoyed the titular character's villager friends, whom he believe emulate real-life modern teenagers.
[31][32] According to Dade Hayes, the executive editor of trade publication Broadcasting & Cable, the show was deemed "risky", as it mostly aims to entertain rather than educate.
[33] Sofia the First: Once Upon a Princess premiered on Disney Channel on November 18, 2012, garnering 8.17 million viewers (when the Live+7 ratings were tabulated), which made it the number one cable TV telecast of all time for kids 2–5 and girls 2–5.
[34] The January 2013 series premiere was watched by 2.7 million people, making it the second highest-rated weekday preschool cable debut since August 2000.
[58] In January 2013, Disney Press published a hardcover picture book based on the series, which entered The New York Times Best Seller list, with approximately 450,000 copies sold.