"Encanto" and "Aladdin" Choreographer Jamal Sims Will Direct 20th Century Studios' "Major" Movie

Accomplished choreographer Jamal Sims, a veteran of several Disney projects, will make his feature film directorial debut with 20th Century Studios' Major.

What's Happening:

• The news comes via Deadline, who reports that Major is written by Lauren Ashley Smith (A Black Lady Sketch Show) and produced by H.E.R., Oprah Winfrey, Scott Sanders, Carla Gardini and Mara Jacobs.
• Major is described as following "A ballet prodigy who bristles at the rigidity of the form and her parents’ draining expectations. She finds a new outlet when she defies their wishes and enrolls in a fictional Historically Black College in Atlanta. She joins the school’s struggling majorette dance squad. After some culture shock, she becomes determined to help the competitive dance squad return to past glory."
• Sims extensive background as a choreographer includes Encanto -- a great reminder that even animated characters need a real person to give them their dance moves! -- along with the live-action version of Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration. He also served as choreographer for Girls Trip, the Step Up franchise, the Footloose remake, Hairspray, 17 Again, and much more.
• Though Major will be his first feature film, Sims already has several directing credits, including Disney's Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl special. He also directed the 2018 documentary When the Beat Drops and an episode of Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies (a series he also did the choreography for).
• On top of all of that, Sims is well known to fans of RuPaul’s Drag Race, having worked as both a choreographer and frequent guest judge on both the original series and its spinoffs.

What They're Saying:

• Jamal Sims told Deadline: “This is a 360 moment for me. I took a chance on myself, shooting the first 15 minutes of that documentary [When the Beat Drops] with money out of my pocket, and when I showed it to World of Wonder, they jumped into it. I thought it was my ticket to be able to direct a narrative feature, after the documentary won all these awards. I started out as a dancer, and made the transition to choreographer, not really knowing how to do that. People in the business tended to see me as a dancer, even though I have always thought of myself as a storyteller, one who could tell stories through dance. I proved myself as a choreographer, but it has been harder to make this next transition. Finally, I’ve gotten my chance to show that, whether it’s through dialogue or movement, this is all about storytelling.”