Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"Um...ah" Ronald and Antonia kissed each other deeply and said goodbye. Watching Antonia walk to the famous set.

Antonia worked very hard and insisted on going to the gym every morning to practice during the filming period.

In addition to picking up Antonia every day, Ronald was sorting out what he had earned during this time. Today he made an appointment with his agent Eddie to discuss the agent contract.

Turning the car around, Ronald went to help Eddie's office.

"Ah, Ronald, I heard that you have been very popular recently. Not only do you have a lot of influence on Alan Parker's crew, but you have also been appreciated by Woody Allen. How about it? I am lucky enough to sign you as a high-quality customer. "After receiving the notification from the front desk, Eddie came out in person to welcome Ronald into his office.

"I wrote two lyrics for the movie, and then I signed the script. I also got the pay stub for the extras. Well... I am also the lowest-level member of the Directors Guild. So you can act as my screenwriter and lyricist, Are you an actor or a director?”

"Wait, wait a minute." Eddie didn't understand Ronald's long list of economic transactions. "When did you start composing lyrics again? And became an actor?"

Ronald laughed, he had indeed done a lot of work in the past few months. He told Eddie about his experiences on the set for several months.

"Ronnie, you haven't signed with an agent before, have you?" Eddie thought for a while and asked a question.

"Yes, this is my first time signing with an agent."

"You know, although they are all called agents, the work content of agents in different industries is actually very different."

"Huh? I thought they were all agents."

"No, no, Ronnie. Let's put it this way, the main job of a screenwriter's agent is to sell the client's script to the producer, or to accept the work of revising the script from the producer to the client. So their main job every day is Calling the people on the producer list one after another.”

Ronald nodded in understanding.

"I mainly represent actors and models, and my main job is to find audition opportunities for them. I will keep in close contact with the casting director, and will also attend various social occasions to find out news about new films and new commercial shootings."

No wonder he had a good relationship with Julia Taylor at the casting studio.

"The director's manager mainly looks for opportunities for them to direct planned films from the eight major studios. Or they take the script in the director's hand and go to investors."

"So you see, even though they are all called agents, their work content and social networks are very different. Generally, people in the industry who span multiple fields will find multiple agents to represent different businesses."

Ronald nodded, "Then what kind of business would you like to be my agent?"

Eddie sat behind the desk and laughed, "I'm just waiting for your words, Ronnie. I'm willing to represent your directing business. I have some models and I'm often called to audition for TV commercials, so I work with various The commercial advertising departments of major TV stations are very familiar with it. They are always interested in young people who are willing to direct TV commercials. "

"TV commercials? That's okay. It's better than directing without anything." Ronald thought he could give it a try. He was not well-known in the industry. Being an advertising director would not only exercise his directing skills, but also make money. "

"Give me the contract and I'll let my lawyer take a look at it." Ronald agreed.

"So Lindsay Dole is your personal lawyer? My friend Bobby, the boss of Lindsay's firm, is very satisfied with her and has brought a lot of new business to the law firm."

"Yes, she has solved a lot of problems for me. My qualifications to join the Writers Guild are all due to her efforts."

As he spoke, Ronald reached for the agency contract in Eddie's hand.

"Wait a minute," Eddie retracted his hand before Ronald got the contract, "When you become a TV director, you must choose more of my actors."

"Of course it's no problem. Under the same conditions, I will definitely choose your person first." Ronald took the contract that Eddie handed over again and sent it to lawyer Ms. Lindsay Dole via fax machine.

It seems that Lindsay has brought a lot of new business to the law firm, and there are no more phone calls being unavailable. After receiving the revised contract from the lawyer, Ronald and Eddie read it without objection and signed it. Ronald officially became Eddie Cohen's director client for a period of one year, after which the contract can be renewed for another three years.

Cohen had a typically Jewish last name, and Ronald asked Eddie if he was Jewish.

"You can say yes, but I don't go to synagogue very much anymore." Eddie is considered a liberal Jew. He retains his identity, but he is far away from traditional Jewish customs.

"As long as you retain your Jewish shrewdness, I'm satisfied."

"Hey, you're labeling people." Eddie protested jokingly.

"Then when will I get the job of advertising director?" Ronald couldn't wait.

"Relax, my friend. You haven't officially enrolled at NYU yet. Once you do, you can add another line of competitive qualifications to your resume."

"I've seen Rock High School that you participated in. Please recall which sections were directed by you. I will mark it and send it to the advertising production directors on Madison Street for review."

Ronald nodded and began to recall his directorial moments in the released version of the film. Then write them down and let Eddie run them.

"Actually, your most promising career is as a pop music lyricist, Ronnie." Eddie said after reading all his information.

"Michael Gore thinks highly of you. I still remember his sister Leslie, the top-ranked female singer back then. His evaluation will not deviate too much from the actual level. If you take this opportunity to enter the industry, you will have a good start."

"No, my dream is to be a movie director, you know, Eddie." Ronald shook his head. He just copied the lyrics in his dream. He didn't know when he would dream of a new movie next time. Being a lyricist is completely unreliable.

"Well, the entertainment industry does need to focus. You know? Rock High School is very popular now. Since the two film critics from PBS Chicago praised Rock High School on a TV show two days ago, this movie is now popular among teenagers in Chicago."

"I haven't seen it yet. Do film critics have TV shows?" Ronald didn't expect someone to help him make Rock High School popular in New York. It seems that his dividends are expected.

"Yes, they are from the Chicago Herald Tribune. They have a column called Sneak Preview on PBS Chicago. They review movies every week and the ratings are good. PBS is going to start broadcasting this column at its partners across the country.

If PBS wasn't a public educational station, the ratings of this program would be even higher. It would have become a national syndicated program long ago."

"You probably haven't seen it yet? I have my secretary record it every week. It's a good column to observe the word-of-mouth trend in the film review circle." Eddie told Ronald some common sense in the circle.

"I'll ask my secretary to make a copy for you. You can take it back and watch it yourself. By the way, do you have a VHS video recorder? The program recorded by VHS is longer than the Betaax tape. Go buy one. It will be useful when you go to college."

Taking the JVC VHS video recorder bought at the electronics store, Ronald connected the wires according to the instructions and put the video tape given by Eddie in. After a snowflake, there was a piece of music accompanied by the two program hosts.

The first person to appear on the screen was a bald host, who began to popularize what cult movies are to the audience: "There is a unique type of movie, we call it a cult movie. When they are first released, the box office is often not good. But as time goes by, they are sought after by a certain audience, often young people. They will occupy the midnight movie, and they will be shown for a long time for several years, and the accumulated total box office is quite considerable."

"I recommend this Rock High School to everyone. It has all the characteristics of a cult movie, rock music, beautiful girls, and finally the school is blown up. This is simply the dream of all American high school students. This movie has a bit of Grease's temperament, but it is closer to life than Grease. It is a good choice for you to watch a midnight movie."

Then the camera swept to another fat man with glasses, "Sisko expressed his opinion and recommended Rock High School. I can only say that it was a little bit away from my recommendation. I like this movie very much. It makes me very excited. I especially like the heroine."

"Sauls, PJ Sauls is the name of the heroine, Albert." Sisko reminded his partner.

"PJ Soules acted very well, and the whole movie was full of energy. He will never let you fall asleep. In addition, I have to remind the audience of a detail. At the end of the movie, the subtitles specially thanked a man named Ronald Lee. According to my confirmation with Roger Corman, the boss of New World Productions, he was the sleepy Ronald who fell asleep during the screening of "The Deer Hunter". He participated in the directing, performance, and post-editing of the film."

"Audience friends, please pay attention. There is a scene in the film where a man proposes to his girlfriend in a phone booth. The man who proposed is Sleepy Ronald."

"Although he fell asleep while watching "The Deer Hunter", it seems that the movies made by Sleepy Ronald never make people feel sleepy. Because of his contribution, I changed my view of Rock High School. I decided to recommend this movie. Children in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and even the whole country should go to the midnight show. You will be satisfied."

Speaking, the fat man with glasses named Albert and the bald man named Cisco both gave a thumbs up to recommend Rock High School.

"Fortunately this show isn't broadcast simultaneously, otherwise the nickname would have spread everywhere." Ronald thought, "It seems to have received good reviews?"