Movies

Choreographer Dave Scott takes Hollywood to the dance floor

Small-town Utah isn’t usually where star choreographers are discovered, but that’s where Dave Scott had his first dance with destiny.

The then-19-year-old was attending Weber State University in tiny Ogden on a basketball scholarship. Like many college kids, he decided to unwind by hitting a dance floor and doing what he did best: popping, locking and showing off all the moves he’d taught himself by watching entertainers like Michael Jackson and movies such as “Beat Street” and “Breakin’.”

Unbeknownst to Scott, a manager for Rob Base — one of hip-hop’s earliest mainstream stars of the ’80s — was in the crowd. Base was on tour, and as fate would have it, one of his dancers had just dropped out. Scott was tapped to fill in.

Dancers show off choreographer Dave Scott’s B-boy steps in “Battle of the Year,” in theaters this Friday.

“I learned the choreography in two days,” recalls the Compton, Calif., native, now living in Los Angeles. “I left school and finished the tour.”

Scott soon realized he could make a living off his dance hobby — and there was no turning back.

He’s been the brains and feet behind a spate of recent urban-dance movies, choreographing “You Got Served,” “Step Up 2: The Streets,” “Stomp the Yard” and the new “Battle of the Year” — in theaters Friday.

The first flick he worked on, 2004’s “You Got Served,” grossed more than $40 million and has become Scott’s calling card for its innovative mix of classic steps and breakdancing.

“It was the first time on film you were seeing a mix of B-boys and choreographed dancing in a battle mode,” says Scott.

His signature epic dance-battle scenes, in which one large group faces off against another, often appear to be spontaneously improvised by the performers. In reality, they require weeks of rehearsal.

“I can go out there and freestyle, but when I do one little move, you count to four, and then someone else joins in — now we have the choreography,” he explains.

In “Battle of the Year,” Scott’s creative moves feature dancers using their hands to mimic complicated footwork. It’s a high-level breakdancing skill that he had to teach the film’s star, Chris Brown.

“Chris was real humbled when we showed him what we were working on,” says Scott, who first worked with Brown on “Stomp The Yard.” “These are the most difficult moves you will ever see in a feature film.”

Despite making a successful leap from pop-locking in clubs to choreographing dance-battle scenes on the silver screen, Scott’s biggest struggle is trying to outdo himself: “Each movie has something different; I want them to all be revolutionary.”