SO YOU THINIK YOU CAN DANCE: (L-R) Stacey Tookey, Tyce Diorio, Mary Murphy, Nigel Lythgoe, Mia Michaels, Adam Shankman and Kenny Ortega ©2010 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: Frank Micelotta/FOX

While at the So You Think You Can Dance finals, film auteur Kenny Ortega told HollywoodOutbreak that his hit Broadway musical, In The Heights has been carefully prepared for a film version, and after a year it may be close to a brokered deal.  It’s interesting that even a very bankable producer like Ortega still has to scratch and claw to get the attention of studio gatekeepers to green light a project.  While backstage with the SYTYCD dancers, Ortega was doing some eye-casting, saying that there were plenty of “pretty dark-haired girls that would fit right into Washington Heights.”

Click onto video to see film-stage legend Kenny Ortega’s enthusiasm with the preparation of In The Heights screenplay and the casting of the girls who might fill those roles.