I haven’t managed to see “High School Musical 3” yet (but I promise, I will).
Nevertheless I want to call your attention to an interview NPR conducted with Kenny Ortega, director of the “High School Musical” movies.
Confronted with the question what he’s thinking about all this “High School Musical” franchise (backpacks, bedclothes, key fobs, underwear, you name it …), he replied with a long, thoughtful sigh before he said:
Well, you know, that’s a tough one for me, you know. Those are the folks that give us the money to make the movies. And I would just say that it’s, you know, the parents just have to like … be the ones in charge. Disney’s gonna put out whatever they can put out. There’s a hunger for the merchandise, but I also think that, you know, at a certain point, it would be unhealthy to allow too much of it into an individual’s life.
I think his approach might have annoyed Disney as well as many parents, who have to explain to their children why they can’t have the HSM lunch box as well. But his approach seems pretty honest to me.