Shooting will begin this year

The "High School Musical" gang is set to move to the big screen this October.

According to Variety, the entire "HSM" core -- stars Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Corbin Bleu and Monique Coleman -- have signed on for "High School Musical 3: Senior Year." As had long been expected, Walt Disney Pictures will give "HSM3" a theatrical release, premiering on Oct. 24.

In addition to the slew of returning stars, "HSM3" will also keep the franchise's creative team intact, with Kenny Ortega and Peter Barsocchini returning to direct and write respectively.

The trade paper says that the plot will find Troy (Efron) and Gabriella (Hudgens) dealing with the horrifying prospect of graduating from high school and going to separate colleges. OMG! To show the seriousness of this life transition, the gang stages a spring musical.

"High School Musical 2" drew more than 18 million viewers for its premiere airing last summer and the soundtrack sold roughly 6.5 million copies.

The project's stars have been branching into the feature world as well.

Efron is currently shooting "Seventeen" for New Line, while Tisdale and Hudgens both committed to big studio projects in the past week.