'Bring It On' Takes on New Spirit as Principal Photography Begins on Latest Installment of Mega-Hit Franchise

'Bring It On' Takes on New Spirit as Principal Photography Begins on Latest Installment of Mega-Hit Franchise

Teen Stars Hayden Panettiere and Solange Knowles Smith Head Up a Talented New Cast That Also Includes Special Guest Star Rihanna

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif., Nov. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- "Bring It On 3" (WORKING TITLE), the highly anticipated third installment of the wildly successful Universal Pictures film franchise about status and rivalry in the cheerleading world, began principal photography on Monday, October 24th in the Los Angeles area. Universal Studios Home Entertainment Family Productions and Beacon Pictures present "Bring It On 3," a Universal DVD Original(TM) slated for release in 2006.

Following the tremendous success of its ever-popular predecessors, "Bring It On 3" marks the latest effort from Universal's newly established DVD Original strategy to aggressively develop, produce or acquire superior family-branded fare for the explosive made-for-DVD market.

"Bring It On 3" stars talented young performers Hayden Panettiere ("Ice Princess," "Raising Helen," "Racing Stripes") and Solange Knowles Smith ("Johnson Family Vacation," "The Proud Family") and features gifted newcomers Gus Carr, Marcy Rylan, Cindy Chiu, Giovonnie Samuels, Francia Almendarez, Gary Leroi Gray, Danielle Savre and Jessie Fife. Also on board in a special appearance is Def Jam Records music sensation Rihanna, whose smash dance hit "Pon de Replay" from her debut album "Music Of The Sun" dominated the charts this summer.

"Bring It On 3" is directed by Steve Rash ("American Pie Presents Band Camp," "Can't Buy Me Love") from a screenplay by Alyson Fouse ("Scary Movie 2," UPN's "Everybody Hates Chris") and produced by David Roessell ("The Lizzie McGuire Movie," "Inspector Gadget 2"). Jon Kuyper ("Tremors 4: The Legend Begins," "Happy Endings") serves as line producer and unit production manager. The film is executive produced by Armyan Bernstein, Charlie Lyons and Zanne Devine.

The filmmakers have assembled a top production team for "Bring It On 3," including veteran director of photography Victor J. Kemper ("Dog Day Afternoon," "The Jerk," "Pee-wee's Big Adventure"), production designer Simon Dobbin ("Slipstream," "Kingdom Come"), costume designer Shawn Barton ("Soul Plane," "A Man Apart") and editor Danny Saphire ("Good Advice," "American Pie Presents Band Camp").

The team also includes some of the country's most accomplished choreographers who collaborate with the filmmakers and cast to present state-of-the art cheer/dance segments, including Tony Gonzalez ("Bring It On Again," "The Hot Chick," "Haunted Mansion," numerous music videos) Eric Little (acclaimed cheer choreographer), Tanisha Scott (music videos for Sean Paul, the Pussycat Dolls, NAS) and the Emmy(R)-nominated team, Richmond Talauega & Tone Talauega ("RIZE" -- Producers/Music Producers; MTV Video Award nominees for Jennifer Lopez' "Get Right").

Shake your pom poms! "Bring It On 3" is a sassy and spirited production with new moves, new music and eye-popping dance sequences. Britney Allen (Hayden Panettiere) is living the dream -- the cheerleader's dream. At the elite seaside campus of Pacific Vista High School, Britney is captain of the cheerleading squad and the envy of everyone at school -- including one overly-ambitious teammate. When Britney hears about a forthcoming audition for a top cheer squad to appear in recording star Rihanna's upcoming television special, she is determined that her Pirates cheer squad will capture the coveted spot.

But Britney's life turns from cheer-topia to cheer-tastrophe when her father's job takes her family to Crenshaw Heights, a multi-ethnic working-class neighborhood east of Los Angeles. At her new school, Britney is viewed with suspicion by most of the students, especially by Camille (Solange Knowles Smith), the overly confident and acerbic leader of the Crenshaw Heights Warriors cheerleading squad. No one is more surprised than Camille, however, when Britney proves herself and secures a spot on the Warriors' cheer squad. Britney and her new teammates work feverishly to prepare for the audition for Rihanna, incorporating some edgy new moves into their performance. Now the pressure is on, as the Warriors find themselves locked in a high-stakes cheer-off with Pacific Vista, Britney's old school! During the climactic, no-holds-barred fight to the finish, friendships, loyalties and talents are tested -- but only one team can come out on top.

Hayden Panettiere stars in "Bring It On 3" as Britney, the captain of Pacific Vista High cheerleading squad. The current spokesperson for Neutrogena, Panettiere recently appeared as a competitive ice skater in the film "Ice Princess," and she also recorded the ballad "I Fly" for the film's soundtrack and closing credits. Panettiere had a lead role in the Garry Marshall-directed comedy "Raising Helen," opposite Kate Hudson, and recently completed two independent films: "All Fall Down" for HDNet opposite Anthony LaPaglia and Isabella Rosselini; and "Mr. Gibb" for Kevin Spacey's company Triggerstreet, co-starring Bill Sadler and Tim Daly. Panettiere's other credits include "Racing Stripes," "The Affair of the Necklace," "Remember The Titans," "Message In A Bottle," "The Object of My Affection," "Dinosaurs" (as the voice of "Suri") and "A Bug's Life" (in which she provided the voice of the character "Princess Dot"). Panettiere received a Grammy nomination for Best Spoken Word Album and a nomination for The Hollywood Reporter's Young Star Award for her recording work in "A Bug's Life Read-A-Long."

Solange Knowles Smith stars as Camille, the captain of the Crenshaw Heights cheer squad, who initially regards Britney with utter disdain. Knowles Smith co-starred in Fox Searchlight's comedy film "Johnson Family Vacation" opposite Cedric the Entertainer, Vanessa Williams, Shannon Elizabeth and Steve Harvey. For television, she guest starred in episodes of UPN's comedy series "One on One," the animated Disney Channel series "The Proud Family" and on the CBS sitcom "Listen Up," starring Jason Alexander. Knowles Smith is an accomplished recording artist, songwriter and producer whose debut album, "Solo Star," received critical acclaim and featured collaborations with the Neptunes ("Crush") and Timbaland ("Get Together"). Previously, Knowles Smith toured the world as a key dancer with Destiny's Child, the Grammy-winning vocal act led by her older sister Beyonce. A student of dance and theatre from an early age, she first performed in public at the age of 4, as a member of Houston children's dance troupe, and she made her public singing debut at age 5 at a local amusement park.

"Bring It On 3" also features a talented supporting cast. Pacific Vista High's cheer team includes Marcy Rylan as Winnie, Cindy Chiu as Amber, Danielle Savre as Brianna and Jessie Fife as Sierra. Jake McDorman is Brad, Britney's football player boyfriend. At Crenshaw Heights High, the cheer team includes Gus Carr as Jesse, Gary Leroi Gray as Tyson, Giovonnie Samuels as Kirresha and Francia Almendarez as Leti.

Universal Studios Home Entertainment is a unit of Universal Pictures, a division of Universal Studios (www.universalstudios.com). Universal Studios is a part of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Formed in May 2004 through the combining of NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and Entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, and world-renowned theme parks. NBC Universal is 80%-owned by General Electric, with 20% controlled by Vivendi Universal.

CONTACTS

Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Vivian Mayer
Senior Vice President, Publicity
(818) 777-3594

Lea Porteneuve
Vice President, Publicity
(818) 777-1391

Craig Radow
Sr. Manager, Publicity
(818) 777-4572

Source: Universal Studios Home Entertainment

CONTACT: Vivian Mayer, Senior Vice President, Publicity,
+1-818-777-3594, or Lea Porteneuve, Vice President, Publicity,
+1-818-777-1391, or Craig Radow, Sr. Manager, Publicity, +1-818-777-4572, all
of Universal Studios Home Entertainment

Web site: http://www.universalstudios.com/

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