def start_session(self):
        """
            Starts a session against Crunchyroll's server.
            Is recommended that you call this method before making any other calls
            to make sure you have a valid session against the server.
        """
        params = {}
        if self.auth:
            params["auth"] = self.auth
        self.session_id = self._api_call("start_session", params, schema=_session_schema)
        log.debug("Session created with ID: {0}".format(self.session_id))
        return self.session_id