Instagram: @milainachanel
For Milaina Chanel who grew up watching The Next Step, being a part of Season 5 as a series regular was a full circle experience. She was cast as Zara, a shy dancer who also excelled in math.
“I was over the moon when I got to audition, because it was my favorite show,” she said.
Her first day on set was attending an acting class with the cast and doing icebreakers to meet each other. They were doing an exercise where each had to say their name and something they liked. Myles Erlick mentioned he liked to wear Zara.
“I didn’t know Zara was a clothing brand. I was very confused until he mentioned it was a brand. That was my first very awkward interaction with Myles... definitely a moment I will never forget. We all started laughing and it was a great bonding moment.” she said.
Milaina Chanel on set of the Next Step Season 5 with the rest of the cast. /Instagram: @milainachanel
The Next Step is known for its choreography which showcases each dancers’ strengths and unique performance styles. Casting chooses professional dancers for the main roles, a very important detail when filming is fast paced and half of the scenes involve choreography. Chanel remembers a typical rehearsal was four to eight hours at most.
Milaina shooting a scene of the Next Step with Briar Nolet, Jessica Lord, and Myles Erlick./Instagram: @milainachanel
Her favorite on set memory with A Troupe was performing to Stand Up, the Next Step’s theme song. One of her personal favorite moments was filming her last scene of the season with Dylan Ratzlaff who played Jackie.
“We auditioned at the same time. We got to know each other and spent the whole summer together. I think it was just the icing on the cake to end the season off with my best friend,” she said.
Along with the rest of the cast, Chanel had the chance to perform live and meet fans at the Big Ticket Concert, a summer music festival in Canada. From the fans cheering to the adrenaline from being on stage, it was a surreal experience for her.
“Honestly I felt like a kid there. I was the talent but I was just so happy to be there,” she said.
Milaina Chanel has been dancing since she was old enough to walk, starting with baby ballet and tap. In fact, she told her mom she would be a professional dancer at four years old. Since the Next Step, she has been featured in multiple TV shows and films, taught for Pure Dance Convention and explored her skills as a choreographer.
When it comes to her choreography process, she doesn’t overthink it. She likes to come up with choreography on the spot, and see what looks best on her dancers. Her concept video filmed during quarantine, “Like Real People Do” began as class choreography in April 2020.
“I was setting it on my dancers who I was teaching at my studio virtually. I wanted to make them dance with just their upper body because there are different ways to dance. You don’t have to dance with your full body all the time and I fell in love with my choreography,” she said.
Within three hours, Chanel coordinated who would dance in it, who would edit it, how she would film it, even the colors for wardrobe and scenery.
“I made a storyboard. Those first inspirations are not all the time when they happen they’re magical. I got to have some of my best friends (be a part) because I did it virtually. It is very near and dear to my heart because it was the first concept video I solely directed,” she said.
Milaina Chanel as one of the Isle kids in Disney Descendants 3. /Instagram: @milainachanel
Chanel loved working with director Kenny Ortega for Disney's Descendants 3. She described it as a dream having been a fan of the High School Musical franchise. She pointed out his vision as a director allows him to know exactly what he wants and how to get there for a scene.
“He takes the time to get to know you. He’ll always come up to you and just say good job,” she said.
She also got to work with choreographer Jamal Sims, who portrayed Dr. Facilier, on the Descendants set. He is no stranger to Disney projects having choreographed Aladdin and Hannah Montana the Movie previously.
Milaina Chanel with Descendants 3 Choreographer Jamal Sims./Instagram: @milainachanel
“Jamal Sims is a lovely human being, so nice, so kind, so funny,” she said.
The most challenging dance number for her to film was Break It Down, due to the fact that they had to shoot both the Isle and Auradon scenes with the same set. They shot the entire movie with one side and redecorated the set for the rest of the scenes which meant performing numbers multiple times on different sides.
“The bridge was done with a green screen all the way around and they had cameras. It was definitely the longest and most difficult to shoot because there were so many moving parts to it,” she said.
Descendants 3 was her first big job in Vancouver and Chanel remembers being very reserved. Her biggest takeaway from that experience was to not be afraid to ask questions, interact with other people and introduce yourself.
“I learned in this industry that there is room for everyone and your time will come...what’s for you won’t pass you,” she said.
She also got to return to the set of Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist for Season 2. Working with Emmy award winner and La La Land choreographer, Mandy Moore has definitely been a career highlight for Chanel. Moore, Jeffrey Mortensen and Jillian Meyers make up Team Dance on Zoey’s Playlist and are responsible for the choreography in each episode.
She noted Moore is “hilarious and takes the time to get to know everyone’s name by having the dancers wear name tags.” A thoughtful gesture when the show has multiple dance numbers and dancers going in and out.
“How (Moore) thinks and the things that come out of her mind are a dream. From wardrobe to lighting to producers, directors, they’re all so nice and make the dancers feel so welcome every time they’re on that set.” she said.
As for her future goals, Chanel would love to have a role in a police or lawyer show since those are her favorite to watch. She wants to still love her job 10 years from now and not lose her passion for it.
“That’s the reason that I am in this industry. I chose it because I love it and I wanted to love what I do. I didn’t want to be doing a 9-5 job that I don’t like,” she said.
Her advice for dancers who would like to pursue acting is to start sooner rather than later and train in as many different dance styles as possible. The more versatile you are the more you can fit into different molds for roles. When it comes to acting, she says don’t take yourself too seriously.
Chanel attributes her success to a saying she learned from her mom: say yes and then figure it out later.
“I wouldn’t have done the Next Step if I wouldn't have done that. I wouldn't have done Descendants if I wouldn’t have done that because I was still in school when I did those jobs. I had to move away from home to Toronto and Vancouver. Don’t be afraid to take those risks and leaps.”
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