High School Musical
Kenny Ortega is the Director, Producer and Supervising Choreographer of the Disney Channel franchise High School Musical. The original made-for-television musical film made its debut in 2006 on the Disney Channel to a record high 7.7 million viewers in the U.S. Globally, the production has been viewed by 225 million people.
The film is about two high school juniors, Troy Bolton (played by Zac Efron) who is a popular basketball star, and Gabriella Montez, the new girl/school nerd (played by Vanessa Hudgens). When they both try out for the high school musical, they challenge high school stereotypes. This inspires others to not “stick to the status quo.” In the process of pursuing their dreams of being in the high school musical, they have to thwart some rivalries and objections, especially by Drama Club co-president siblings Ryan (played by Lucas Grabeel) and Sharpay (played by Ashley Tisdale) Evans . In the meantime, a romance brews between the lead characers Troy and Gabriella, and they are awarded the lead parts in the musical which conflicts with the other activities they are involved in.
High School Musical has catapulted the careers of the young actors involved in the production, and has turned into a phenonomenon amongst young viewers. It has spun off into a concert tour, stage musical, ice tour, book series, and video games. The soundtrack has become certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA. There has also been numerous sequels: High School Musical 2, andHigh School Musical 3: Senior Year.
Awards:
- 2006 Billboard Music Awards: Soundtrack Album of the Year
- 2006 Emmy Award: Outstanding Choreography (Kenny Ortega, Bonnie Story, & Charles Klaplow) & Outstanding Children’s Program
- 2006 Teen Choice Award: Television – Choice Breakout Star (Zac Efron) & Television – Choice Chemistry (Zac Efron & Vanessa Hudgens) & TV – Choice Comedy/Musical Show
- 2007 ALMA Award: Outstanding Director (Kenny Ortega)
- 2006 Casting Society of America, USA: Best Children’s TV Programming
- 2007 Director’s Guild of America: Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Children’s Programs
- 2007 Motion Picture Sound Editors, USA: Best Sound Editing in Music for Television – Long Form (Michael Dittrick & Carli Barber)
- 2006 Television Critics Association Award: Outstanding Achievement in Children’s Programming
Accolades:
- Most successful movie produced by Disney Channel Original Movie
- The film’s soundtrack was the best-selling album in the United States for 2006
- First Disney Channel Original Movie to have a theatrical sequel.
Reviews & Articles:
Official High School Musical Website
Official High School Musical DVD Website
High School Musical on Internet Movie Database
High School Musical on Wikipedia
