March 22, Baltimore.
Baltimore is located on the west coast of the Atlantic, on the western side of the Chesapeake Bay, about 60 kilometers from Washington, D.C., and less than 280 kilometers from New York City. It's Maryland's largest city and a famous seaport with beautiful scenery.
Baltimore is also a major cultural hub on the East Coast, home to many universities, including Johns Hopkins University, Morgan State University, and the University of Maryland.
The main filming location for Step Up is the Maryland Institute College of Art, the most renowned art school in Baltimore.
The Maryland Institute College of Art is situated in Baltimore's Midtown cultural district, near the Baltimore Penn Station.
Around noon, Luca walked out of the train station, arriving at his destination, the Maryland Institute College of Art, in less than ten minutes on foot. The campus boasted a strong cultural atmosphere.
"Hey, Luca, you're finally here!"
Mr. Ross waved at him from the steps in front of the school's main entrance.
Luca smirked. He had only spent a few months in Brazil, but this was always the greeting when they saw each other again.
"Hey, Mr. Ross, how have you been?"
Luca gave him a brief hug.
"Not good!"
Ross shook his head.
"What's going on?"
"I'll explain later."
Ross motioned for him to walk inside as they spoke. "I saw in the news you were in New York last week. Why are you only getting to the set today?"
Did I arrive last week?
Oh, maybe I did!
But what did I do last week? Where did all my time go?
Luca quietly tallied his schedule. He had spent seven days and nights with Kate, Lima, and Britney. In between, he attended little Jessica's birthday party and signed the Fifty Shades of Grey contract. He also squeezed in three commercials, two interviews, and talk shows.
Man, time flew by so fast.
"Mr. Ross, with you here on set, I'm not worried. Does it really matter if I'm around or not?" Luca laughed.
"Quit joking! You're off gallivanting while dumping this mess on me, an old man. Doesn't your conscience hurt?" Ross huffed angrily.
Luca paused for a moment. Nope, no guilt at all.
"Mr. Ross, the crew is fully staffed. With you, Billy, and Annie around, how is it a mess? Besides, I asked you here for another reason—Baltimore's scenery is beautiful, so I thought you could have a little vacation."
"Vacation?! What vacation? I've been swamped with work, it's been exhausting! And you have the nerve to call this a vacation?"
Ross's eyes turned red with frustration.
Luca raised his eyebrows. "Mr. Ross, you're the producer. You're in charge of overseeing things, not doing the grunt work. What's there to be stressed about?"
"Ugh, it's a long story," Ross sighed, then began explaining his troubles.
In early February, as the weather warmed up, the crew arrived in Baltimore to start filming. Ross served as the project's producer, overseeing finances, daily expenses, and the shooting schedule.
Billy was the director, handling the filming, actors, and musical aspects. Annie Fletcher was the supervising producer, responsible for overseeing all aspects of the production while also serving as the artistic director.
At first, everything was running smoothly, with everyone doing their jobs. But after a week, tensions arose between Billy and Annie. They had different opinions about the storyline and the way scenes should be filmed. Initially, they tried to discuss things calmly, but their differences were too vast, and they couldn't find common ground. Now, whenever they saw each other, they would argue, making it impossible to work together.
Ross had to play the mediator, trying to keep the peace between them, but after more than half a month, he was mentally and physically exhausted.
"How did it come to this?"
Luca furrowed his brows. Annie was Billy's long-time collaborator, and they got along well. He had even worried that they might team up against him, which is why he placed Ross on set. But now, those two were the ones falling out.
So much for his dream team—it was more like a fragile alliance.
How was he supposed to fix this?
"Mr. Ross, the director and Ms. Annie are arguing again."
Henry Scott, the production assistant, rushed out.
"Again?" Luca and Ross hurried upstairs.
On the way, Henry explained the situation. They were filming scene 23 at the school, where the male and female leads were practicing dance in the rehearsal room.
The female lead, Nora, is a talented ballet prodigy from a privileged background and a star student at the art school, preparing for the school's most prestigious dance competition. Unfortunately, her partner was injured before the competition, leaving her without a dance partner.
After searching for a long time, Nora discovered that the male lead, Tyler, had impressive dance skills.
Tyler is a street kid and breakdancer, sentenced by the court to perform community service at the school after vandalizing its property.
Nora notices his talent and invites him to be her partner.
Tyler loves dance, is drawn to the school, and is also quite taken with Nora, so he agrees.
However, their different backgrounds and approaches to dance cause a lot of friction during training.
Today, they were filming the scene where the male and female leads practice together for the first time. The scene needed to highlight their contrasting personalities—Nora is serious and disciplined, while Tyler is carefree and spontaneous.
But how could the differences between the two be best portrayed?
This was where Billy and Annie's disagreement arose.
"Mr. Ross, whose opinion do you think is better?" Luca asked as they walked.
Ross thought for a moment. "In areas of expertise, we should trust the professionals. I don't know which approach is better, but Annie is more experienced with dance."
Luca nodded, feeling a bit relieved. It's not unusual for a team to have conflicts, but what's important is that the third person mediates instead of avoiding the issue. Ross had done a good job in this respect.
"Annie, I'm the director. This way, the scene will look better on film!" Billy, the director, said loudly, his face flushed with frustration.
"But it undermines their contrast and affects the overall tone. This is a lighthearted musical, and each scene needs to fit into that framework. Your shots are too serious," Annie said calmly, her arms crossed.
Billy, in his forties, and Annie, in her thirties, were having a heated argument, while the production was at a standstill. The lead actors, Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan, as well as the cinematographer Michael Seresin and over forty other crew members, stood by awkwardly, unsure of what to do.
When Ross arrived, everyone looked to him for help.
Ross shook his head and glanced at Luca, signaling for him to solve the issue.
Luca frowned. How was he supposed to fix this?