Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"a!"

"What is this person doing here?"

"Come and see our factory."

…

When they arrived in the town of Seymour, Connecticut, Rachel Talalay, who had come to do the preparations in advance, had already done all the trivial things.

let

By the afternoon, Gregory Peck had rested, and everything was ready for actual shooting.

This section is from the movie

Before

The shots in New York are all dirty, modern, and hurried, while the shots in Rhode Island are quiet, ancient, and slow with fallen leaves. When the editing is done together, the audience can feel that the bustling Wall Street and this cable factory with a history of more than 80 years belong to two different worlds. No wonder there will be conflicts.

Workers at the cable factory in the town of Seymour also began taking vacation for filming, and the furnaces they used for production also happened to be shut down for maintenance. For this reason, Ronald's crew also paid a high fee to cover the wages of these workers, allowing them to act as extras during the shutdown. They could also have lunch when they had nothing to do, and those with families would also give it to their wives and children. Free lunch provided.

This favor made these workers very grateful to Ronald. The unionists who originally wanted to cause trouble were just barely enough. In addition, there was no good cinema in the town, so these workers were most familiar with the actors on the crew. , is Oscar winner Gregory Peck.

This also made them respect the crew very much. As long as there was a scene where Parker appeared, they would watch quietly and not cause trouble.

"What's the problem? He's a shareholder..." Gregory Pike wore a light-colored windbreaker, a yellow sweater, light gray trousers, brown leather shoes, white hair, and a carved mouth. The pipe made of ex-briar roots is like an antique stuck in decades ago, but at the same time it is elegant and makes people feel familiar.

"It's not that simple, Jorgen. This man is well known on Wall Street. He is engaged in mergers and acquisitions." The person who answered Jorgensen was Bill, the deputy manager of the factory. This man was truly responsible for keeping the factory running smoothly. Jorgensen also agreed to hand over the management of the factory to him after his retirement and gave some shares to the management headed by him.

The two of them meandered along, avoiding the cables stacked on pillars in the factory, the forklifts transporting materials and finished products, and the pillars erected in the middle of the factory that were unique to ancient factories.

"Haha, my father founded this factory eighty-one years ago, and I took it over twenty-eight years ago. I control this factory, and no one can acquire ours." Gregory Pike also patted Dean Jones, the actor who plays Carl.

This is also a typical old-school actor. He was born on Broadway. He can dance, sing, and act in TV series and movies. His most famous appearance is in the Disney film series "Bugs".

"cut!"

It's a long shot, and Ronald stays behind the camera track, retreating with the camera that keeps retreating. It stopped when Gregory Peck slapped Dean Jones on the shoulder.

Dean Jones's clothing and appearance are similar to Jorgensen's. He is an old employee of the factory, so he has to dress up to suit the chairman's aesthetics.

The staff came up to move chairs for the two actors, especially Pike, who needed to rest at any time.

"Hmm..." Ronald touched his chin. This scene was good, but it seemed to be missing some information. Carl is a talented person with no direction. There are no other companies in Rhode Island that he can choose to work for. But Jorgensen didn't quite agree with what he promised.

This is not to say that he does not trust Jorgensen's promise, but that the company's main business, the cable factory, is experiencing operating difficulties. If we continue to follow Jorgensen’s philosophy of sustainable management and inclusive communities, the factory will probably be insolvent and bankrupt in two years.

And when that time comes, how much the stocks in his hands will still be worth is a question worth thinking about. Garfield comes with bad intentions, but one thing is for sure, he has to make a bid!

The momentum and status between the two people was not fully expressed in this scene. Jorgensen felt that he still had something to give Carl, and that was a conscience for running the business. Karl felt that Jorgensen was an old man who was stuck in the past, but their long-term positions prevented him from arguing too much with his boss.

"What do you think?" Ronald looked at Ang Lee aside, "The time window left for me to explain the relationship between the two is very small. Is there a way to show it in this footage?"

This is not an issue that ordinary directors consider, but a high-level expression that can only be considered when they have a high level of control over the crew. Ang Lee admires this very much. If he were to direct, each of these people must have their own ideas. It is impossible to suppress everyone's little thoughts like Ronald.

However, Ang Lee can still make suggestions. In the culture he comes from, drama attaches great importance to this method of using spatial position to express the emotions of characters.

"You can ask Gregory Pike not to change his route when passing that pillar, so that Jones' route will be squeezed. He must make adjustments on his own while maintaining the boss's walking route, and he will be disturbed by the pillar. Embarrassing."

"What a good idea..." Ronald's eyes lit up. This is where movies are more powerful than dramas. People are very sensitive to other people's expressions and actions. This directly gives an image of a middle-aged man being squeezed by his boss and almost hitting a pillar, which is much more efficient than any voiceover or performance.

"Director, can this be used?" Pike sat on a chair, drinking coffee, looking relaxed. He received physical therapy from a masseur before starting work and is now in good condition. But age is not forgiving after all.

"We need one more thing," Ronald explained Ang Lee's opinion to him.

"Okay, let's finish it..." Gregory Pike stood up and hammered his waist, "I'm old..."

"Aha, you are still very young and handsome." Ronald's crew assistant, Sandra Bullock, did a lot of odd jobs on the crew. There were live performances by veteran actors and famous directors, and she gradually felt that she A bit enlightened.

"Well... no, Jimmy Stelter told me that once a person passes away, he needs to be patched all over his body..."

Actors trained in old Hollywood and Broadway are very professional. Professionalism means that any requirement can be expressed quickly and perfectly.

The two of them cooperated tacitly, and there was no hint of acting in this reshoot. Jones, in particular, played the image of a manager who carefully communicates with his boss very naturally.

arrive

This kind of precise expression of the intention of the script requires long-term drama training and continuous practice on the shooting scene, as well as the subtle coordination of temperament between the character and the actor.

This was very common in the era of big studios, where actors belonged to studios and many movies were shot every year, and the image of the star's role was relatively fixed. For example, Ingrid Bergman once joked that her co-star Humphrey Bogart in The Spies of North Africa wore the same trench coat no matter which movie he was in.

In this era where stars have become the most important element in film production, it is not easy to recreate this scene. Stars only film one or two movies a year, and their ability to grasp different roles is not as good as previous stars.

Many times, stars make a good film, and then the rapidly rising salary makes it difficult for them to recruit the most suitable actors to film the next film. It is very common now that one film is good and the other is bad.

Although box office figures rebounded throughout the 1980s, the number of moviegoers remained at a relatively stable level. The movie-watching crowd is also concentrated on young people in love. In addition, the system has resulted in abnormally high salaries for stars (for example, Ronald felt that Stallone’s acting skills were worth about five million, and fifteen million was really too much), and the types of movies were also shrinking.

The original low-cost movies produced by Baiqifang and the mid-budget movies produced by various capable artists are now less profitable than spending 20 million first and then raising two stars.

"Congratulations, Ronald. You have successfully brought back my memories of making movies. This is what I remember about making movies..."

Ronald was not very happy. Judging from the quality of the practitioners, it was actually not as good as the older generation of actors. There are mainly two types of movies that are currently selling well at the box office. One is a movie with special effects and big scenes that the audience has never seen before, and the other is a movie that can use social issues and word-of-mouth to attract adults who don't usually watch movies to enter the theater.

"What's wrong, we should be happy. When I work with Elia Kazan or William Wyler, and we take a shot like this, we also have to open champagne to celebrate."

"Hahaha..." Ronald also felt that he could not spoil the fun. He waved his hand and asked his assistant Sandra to get a bottle of champagne, and everyone toasted to celebrate.

…

"This is James Shamus, this is..."

When work ended at night, Ang Lee finally waited for the young man who wanted to help him as a producer, James Shamus. He is the founder of Good Machine Production Company, but he has no money at all, so he only wants to make money with nothing.

"Director Ronald Lee needs no introduction. Although my company is not in Hollywood, if you don't even know me, you are not qualified to be in the film industry."

Shams went around the corner to flatter Ronald. Ronald looked at his nose and knew that he was a Jew with such an acting style.

"Can I ask, why did you agree to ang lee this time? When the Information Bureau selected the winning script, I called you and you refused." Shams also said something to ang lee. , he wanted to show his vision in front of Ronald. I liked this script earlier than you did.

"Really?" Ang Lee thought for a while, maybe he was too happy with the results at that time and didn't remember it. He replied, "Now that Ronald has agreed to provide an additional $800,000 in investment, I think we will have enough money to make a proper movie."

"That's great. I was very optimistic about you. With your talent, you can actually shoot for 400,000 yuan. Now it's even better." Shamus spoke very pleasantly.

"Let me ask, how did you make this movie with 400,000 yuan?" Ronald was also a little curious. 400,000 yuan was really too little.

"Although Lee is very talented, I think he lacks experience. My idea is that when shooting such a low-cost movie, we have no room for mistakes, so preparation is the most important. What I originally thought was to use more free actors, and Venue. Then be sure to set it up the night before

"Do you know Roger Coleman?" Ronald felt that this technique was too familiar.

"Hahaha, I know what you are going to say. In fact, in New York, our low-cost filming is not worse than his, or even better." Shams had certainly heard of the title of the king of B-level movies, but New York filmmakers might be a little more miserable than Corman. If Roger Corman made a low-cost movie, they might have to make a no-cost movie.

Otherwise, they wouldn't even come to the door to recommend a movie with a budget of $400,000 and a director who had never made a feature film.

"However, with your investment, we can do better in the details, and even our marketing plan to impact the three major European film festivals has more guarantees. I like this script very much and I trust Ang Lee's ability."

After Shams said this, Ronald also felt that talent was rare, and took a look at the marketing plan of the Good Machine Production Company.

James Shams had no money, but his experience and knowledge of European film festivals was far above those in Hollywood. The New York film industry is actually also accepting funds and actors from European films.

Ronald appreciated Shams's shrewdness. He set up a personnel framework and hired the Jewish man as a producer, who was also responsible for marketing, participating in competitions, and distribution.

"How much is your company worth? I want to invest in you..."

Shams was originally happy that he had received extra funds for the project, but was suddenly shocked by Ronald's request.

"Talents are rare. I am investing in you and Lee. Why, you don't accept the investment?"

"Of course, I mean of course I accept." Shams himself was still sharing an office with others and only rented two tables in total. When he heard that a big boss in the industry like Ronald took a fancy to him, he was really happy. ”

On the spot, he signed the memorandum prepared by Ronald's private lawyer, indicating that further negotiations would follow.

"Hehehe..." Ronald smiled and asked Lindsay Doer to take the trouble to come to Connecticut to complete the contract. Such people are rare. Investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange for a little share is a good relationship. Even if the movie loses everything, it is a good deal to be able to pull this person into his own production system.

"Hehehe... er..." Shams, who was still laughing when he went out, suddenly realized why I was fooled into accepting his investment?

"Hey, Ronald's business ability is indeed not inferior to his directing ability."

The filming went smoothly from then on. Soon a week passed, and Ronald had finished half of the scenes in the cable factory.

Seymour's cable factory employees were very cooperative, and a few lucky children got the star's autograph. It was the weekend again. Ronald was planning to rest with Diane in Connecticut, but Richard called him again.

"Ronald, someone is stealing the publicity of Dances with Wolves and taking advantage of our ride."

"Huh? This doesn't matter..." Ronald knew that in fact, there would always be people who would take advantage of the popularity of movies that were popular and caused heated discussions in society.

When his own The Karate Kid was a hit, many karate clubs made a fortune. Later, when Dirty Dancing was filmed, a number of Latin dance centers also made a fortune. As a director, it is impossible to pursue everything. This is not a Disney cartoon character, and it is not certain that he will win the lawsuit.

"It seems a bit bad. They are suspected of insulting the Indians in the movie..."