‘Step Up’ creator Holly Sorensen cries Naya Rivera, shares stories – Deadline

Four days after Naya Rivera’s body was found in Piru Lake, her family, friends and admirers are still recovering from the sudden loss. When Rivera made the fateful boat trip on July 8 with her young son, she was preparing to go into production at Starz’s. Increase, a reinvented new installment of the series inspired by the popular dance movie franchise, which aired on YouTube for two seasons. I was going to meet her Increase Television family, including creator / executive producer Holly Sorensen, who has been guiding the writing of new scripts, the Adam Shankman EP, and the cast.

In a moving tribute, Sorenson offers Rivera an intimate look as a person, leader, mentor, and supermom, sharing various stories from the actress’s time. Step up: high water. Sorenson talks about Rivera’s cast on the show, about his ultimate professionalism on set and his deep off-camera compassion, as well as his vulnerability; Rivera was only 4 years old when, as a child actor in The Royal Family, He witnessed how the star Redd Foxx suffers a massive heart attack and dies. Sorenson also remembers his final conversation with Rivera and shares a sweet personal story from Increase cast member Terrence Green on how the Joy Student transformed from a terrifying presence for promising artists on the show due to her star power to her greatest champion, loved and respected by all.

Here is Sorensen’s memory:

There is a painful hole in the soul of the Increase family. Naya Rivera was more than a cast member for us. She was a leader, a creative wonder, a professional, and a rude. Each show is, of course, a family, but there are many types of families. the Increase Fortunately, the family is the type we all long for: loving, caring, hilarious, and committed, and this is due in large part to Naya’s beautiful energy, which makes this loss unconscionable.

Collette’s role was one of the last to be cast. Interestingly, Naya’s name did not appear instantly. When she did, executive producer Adam Shankman, in my office, as we were talking on the loudspeaker to broadcast while the offer was being made, perked up and said, “She’s a friend, I’ll call her!” And he took his phone and did it. (I’m convinced Adam has everyone’s digits, from Dude Perfect to Anthony Hopkins on his phone.) They chatted, he handed me the phone, I told him about the paper and the show and there were none of the fake eager tenor. that can sometimes accompany this type of conversation. It was instantly like talking to a good girlfriend. Open, present and real.

Our young cast, who came of age with the brilliant JoyThey were excited but scared to meet her. The terror was real when he crossed our stage all black on black, shirt, sunglasses and that incredible hair flying in the Atlanta heat. Because we chose dancers and then had them read, many of our team had little acting experience. Naya, of course, had a lifetime, exponentially more than the entire cast combined. But instead of turning to their trailers and their people, the top two on the call sheet, Ne-Yo and Naya (I am suddenly struck by the similarities in their names and their beautiful souls), both were instantly integrated into the team. Both of them became one more member of our happy family without nonsense, but as experienced professionals, they managed to guide and advise the rest of the cast simultaneously on everything: the show, the trade, the career and life. It was very generous of him, both taking his ego and his position out of the equation, and continuing to lead silently in the most meaningful way. They didn’t need a position on a call sheet to gain the love and respect of the cast and crew, they exuded love, grace, professionalism and care.

Terrence Green, who plays Rigo on the show, was among those who initially terrified her. On the first day of filming, she plucked up the courage to tell her that everyone was afraid to talk to her, to break the ice. She laughed, happy that some ice had broken. According to Terrance, “A couple of days later, he asked, ‘Why is everyone still nervous about me?’ And he replied, ‘Well, you have the A-list superstar, from the truck to the superstar’s black clothes and glasses.’ She said, “You mean my San Laurent?” And I laughed and said, ‘Seeee! I can’t even pronounce that yet. But I know that one day I will wear something from St. Laurent, and that’s when I know Ima’s superstar like you! “

The next day, Naya asked Terrence to go to her trailer. She took the glasses and asked him to put them on. Terrence assumed he wanted to take a photo. But as he remembers: “She looked at me and asked, ‘Do you feel different?’ And I said, ‘No.’ And she said, ‘Exactly, because you’re already a superstar, I’ve seen how you behave, I’ve seen how you treat me and everyone on set. You will be a great blessing to this industry as long as Stay true to yourself. Keep these glasses as a reminder that it was never about Yves Saint Laurent, it is always about who you are on the inside. You are the real superstar. And then he handed her the glasses to keep. The value for Terrance was enormous. As he said: “Since then, my walk was different, my self-esteem improved, I valued my gift more, I valued my presence and I will always see myself as more than a talented ghetto boy, everything thanks to Naya. “

This was not unusual. The actors share how she lifted them up on tough days, the directors who were new to the set told me how Naya worked to make them comfortable, the writers on the set tell their funny pranks, like keeping a constant list of tasks off the hook But Naya’s greatest source of power and love was, of course, Josey, whom we could see growing up on set. She was a brave and extraordinary mother. She allowed him to be who he was and his life was an adventure. Naya teamed up with many crew members about motherhood, sharing her natural superpower. She randomly texted them, encouraging them to “tell your baby she is amazing.” That she does not fulfill this natural and powerful gift of being a mother is too difficult to bear.

For his working life and because Joy made her a bona fide star, she deserved the Diva card. She could have constantly pulled that out, but she used it in a very discriminatory way, enough to keep her status active. She only got nervous, seemingly inexplicable, when we were filming finals. Late one night, filming an ending, I sat with her in a golf cart, wondering what was going on. She began sharing details of her extraordinary professional life, including watching Redd Foxx die at her feet when she was four years old. And I instantly sensed that for someone who grew up on set, knowing nothing but that world, endings could represent the end of her life as she knew it. They were devastating. And as graceful and fresh as a grown woman, the sweet vulnerability beat like a little heart, right there in that golf cart. She did not want our precious family to end.

He is knowledgeable what a professional Naya was, how she hit each brand, and was able to get it to work when newbies couldn’t find theirs. How she delivered great speeches in one take. How could you make a lazy scene work brilliantly by intuiting the point, even if it wasn’t on the page. How she was exquisite both dramatic and comic. It is unimaginable that we, and her many deeply loyal and respectful fans (I think it says something about you when you have a good fan base), will not see her as Collette and will not see her work in the future, which I know would have been varied. and brilliant. I think naturally I would have taken on more leadership roles, entrepreneurship, philanthropy. But the most painful thing is, of course, leaving behind her beloved Josey, an incredibly special boy. We cry for all her family, they will remain in our prayers.

I spoke to Naya very recently, and she was also part of a wonderful cast and crew video for my birthday the day before her disappearance. She was exuberant and happy. The cast has shared texts about how excited she was for this season of Increase, more excited than ever for a television season. While we are so happy that our latest images of her are of a glowing light, we regret that it is extinct. Rest in power, dear Naya. One of the coolest and most beautiful people we will ever meet and never forget.