Taglines: See the music. Hear the dance.
High Strung movie storyline. Ruby is a dancer who goes to a Performing Arts School in Manhattan. She meets a violinist named Johnnie who performs in the subway. When his attention is distracted his violin is taken. She tries to help him and she learns he is an illegal alien. She learns that there’s competition wherein a dancer performs with a string musician and the winner gets scholarship which can get him a student visa. He initially balks at it but later decides to give it a try and he brings in a dance crew he knows to help them.
High Strung is a 2016 American drama film directed by Michael Damian and written by Janeen Damian and Michael Damian. The film stars Keenan Kampa, Nicholas Galitzine, Jane Seymour, Sonoya Mizuno, Richard Southgate, and Paul Freeman. The film was released on April 8, 2016, by Paladin. A sequel High Strung: Free Dance was released in 2019.
About the Story
Ruby is a classical ballet dancer who earns a scholarship to the Manhattan Conservatory of the Arts. She meets an edgy, British, moody young violinist named Johnnie who performs in the New York City Subway. While watching him play, two groups of hip hop dancers start a dance off, and Ruby gets pushed and she falls down. Johnnie gets distracted while helping her, and his violin and the rent money he earned busking are stolen.
He gets very upset, stating the violin was given to him by his grandfather, who he seemed to have been close with, since he had a tattoo of his grandfather’s death date on his bicep. Later, she tries to help him with a loaner violin from the Conservatory, but he tells her he doesn’t want charity and seems to be accusing her of being a rich, entitled snob because she attends the Conservatory, not knowing she’s on scholarship.
She learns he is illegally living in the USA, which is why he didn’t report the theft to the police or ask them for help to retrieve his violin. She also learns that there is a competition where a dancer performs with a string musician, and the winner gets a scholarship, which could qualify Johnnie for a student visa, and earn him 25 grand.
Ruby’s scholarship is on the line because she is failing a mandatory contemporary dance class so she and Johnnie must find a way to save Ruby’s scholarship and keep Johnnie from being deported. Ruby’s friend and roommate Jasmine “Jazzy” is also at risk of facing expulsion because she is repeatedly late for her classes because of partying late with her boyfriend. The two have a struggle with friendship over Jazzy’s situation, and Jazzy ends up calling Ruby “you bitch!” Jazzy realizes her mistake, and starts to improve her dancing and habits.
Meanwhile, Johnnie had paid an immigration attorney to help him get a green card but the attorney turns out to be a fraud. The situation is made more complicated by the rivalry of some other students (April and Kyle) entering the competition, one of which has a particular jealousy of Johnnie’s talent, Kyle Endeca. Meanwhile, Johnnie makes up with Ruby after going into a violin competition at a gala with Kyle earlier, and the two kiss, starting a relationship. With the help of a hip hop dance crew living a floor beneath Johnnie, they must find a common ground while preparing for a competition that could change their lives forever.
High Strung (2016)
Directed by: Michael Damian
Starring: Keenan Kampa, Nicholas Galitzine, Sonoya Mizuno, Jane Seymour, Richard Southgate, Paul Freeman, Marcus Emanuel Mitchell, Maia Morgenstern, Anabel Kutay, John Silver, Ian Eastwood
Screenplay by: Janeen Damian, Michael Damian
Production Design by: Mihai Dorobantu
Cinematography by: Viorel Sergovici
Film Editing by: Peter CabadaHagan, Janeen Damian, Michael Damian, Byron Speight
Set Decoration by: Dan Toader
Art Direction by: Eugen Anghelescu
Music by: Nathan Lanier
MPAA Rating: PG for some thematic elements and mild language.
Distributed by: The Orchard (United States)
Release Date: April 8, 2016
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