Exploiting Hollywood 1980

Holding Cher's contract in his hand, Ronald felt as if he had bought something from a TV shopping program, and when he received the goods by mail, he found that the goods were not the same as the ones in the pictures.

It was impossible to terminate the contract. Not to mention that Cher was the protagonist in the dream, because of something in other movies, he had to terminate the contract with the actors of another movie, and he didn't have the capital to be so willful.

But no matter what, he still had to prepare in advance. It was very troublesome when the stars acted like big names.

The drama between the actors of "The Witches of East Town" was more exciting than the story of the movie. If such a thing happened in his own crew, it would be... better not to happen.

Since Ronald started to direct and shoot films, most of the actors he chose were newcomers who had just debuted. In order to gain a place in the industry, these people would basically try their best to do whatever he asked them to do.

But it seems that celebrity actors who already have fame and status are not so easy to deal with.

For the sake of her acting career, Cher deliberately chose a role in a movie that would make her more famous. In order to let her participate, the director and producer actually agreed to her privately regardless of the fact that they had promised the role to someone else before.

At the same time, they were afraid that the original actress Susan Sarandon would quit the role after her role was snatched away. So they deliberately didn't tell her and attacked her suddenly when the filming started.

The schedule had been confirmed, and unless she admitted it, the schedule would be wasted. Sarandon had no choice but to play another female role.

How to deal with these stars, he had no experience, Ronald wanted to talk to familiar directors and learn some Hollywood tricks.

So Ronald didn't return to Los Angeles immediately, but came to New York to meet his college teacher, Martin Scorsese.

Scorsese was revising the script in his studio and was very surprised to see Ronald.

"Why are you here, Ronald?"

"I have something to ask you." Ronald handed the high-end red wine prepared by his agent to a lady, "Barbara, hello."

This lady was Scorsese's new wife, Barbara Fenna. She looked weak and bookish, but she was actually a strong woman and the producer of Scorsese's new film "The Color of Money".

"Hello, Ronald." Barbara accepted the red wine and prepared some coffee for them. She also sat down and wanted to join the conversation. Her voice was also very delicate.

"What script are you revising, Marty?" Ronald took a look and saw a name "Mary Magdalene" on the paper.

"It's the movie I've been planning to shoot for a long time. Fortunately, with the help of Barbara and CAA, we can start shooting soon."

"Oh, congratulations." Ronald had heard of this movie and it was Scorsese's favorite script.

"The current actor's salary has increased unreasonably. My original male lead Aidan Quinn postponed his schedule because I was filming "The Color of Money", so he raised his salary. I can only find a new actor."

"The salary of stars has increased a lot recently. Everyone is jealous of the huge salary that Stallone received. Even Stallone can get so much, why can't I."

"I can only choose him, William Dafoe." Scorsese took out a photo, which was the actor who played the villain in Diane's "Rage Streets".

"Do you know him? How's his acting? Have you seen his performance on the set?" Scorsese saw that Ronald seemed to know Dafoe, so he asked Ronald.

"I've seen his performance on the set of 'Rage Streets', and he's probably the only actor with acting skills. Stone, Oliver Stone used him in that new movie, and he asked me before filming. You can give him a call."

"Marty..." Barbara winked at Scorsese. Ronald came here for something, why did he just talk about his own business.

"Ronald and I are old friends, we don't need to be polite when we talk," Scorsese smiled and turned the topic back to Ronald's purpose, "What are you here for? You said on the phone that you have questions for me."

"I have signed the heroine Cher for my new film. This is my first time directing a star actor. I have seen some not-so-good phenomena and I am a little worried. I want to ask you how to deal with big stars on the set."

"Hahaha, how can you have such an idea? I don't know how to deal with big stars either." Scorsese laughed. After he got married again, he was much better physically and mentally than before.

"Didn't you find Paul Newman for your last movie, The Color of Money?"

"Paul is different." Barbara Finna interrupted.

"Yes, Paul Newman is the most professional among all the stars, and he is also the one who pursues acting the most. So when dealing with him, just treat him as an actor who is very popular with the audience.

If there is anything you should pay attention to, it is not to delve into his private parts. If your role is similar to the star's own experience, you should be careful to handle some scenes that expose the star's privacy and not get involved." Scorsese talked about his experience of working with Paul Newman in general.

Ronald didn't understand this, "What do you mean by Paul is different?" He turned to Barbara, the producer's wife, and maybe it would be better to ask the producer who deals with stars more.

"Ronald, you have made many movies. When you shoot dialogue scenes, when you use an over-the-shoulder camera to shoot front and back, the actor behind the camera who is talking to the actor you are filming needs to be present. You're the one doing the acting yourself, right?"

"Yes, if the actor is not behind the camera and plays against the opponent actor who is filming the frontal shot, the other actor will not be able to enter the scene." Ronald didn't know why.

"Have you ever experienced a stand-in?"

"Of course, some high-profile actors, when arranging lighting and positioning, will ask a stand-in of similar height and weight to take their place while they prepare for the role."

"It seems that you have never directed a real star. Generally, stars will not shoot scenes opposite another actor. When shooting an over-the-shoulder shot of a dialogue scene, the one who talks to the actor behind the camera is specially Conversation stand-in.”

"Huh? Is this the case?"

Whether Ronald was working as a studio assistant or as an assistant director, he had never encountered a big star participating in the film.

Tom Cruise, the biggest actor I have ever worked with, would not use this so-called dialogue double on the set. Maybe Cruise is selling himself out to save face, or maybe he is more dedicated?

As for the filming of the second part of The Dragon King, Ralph Marzio and Noriyuki Morita, who are already stars, are a little afraid of themselves. After all, he made their debut in the first part, so maybe they will not. How dare you do this on the set of Longwei Boy.

"Very common." Barbara nodded affirmatively.

"Did Paul Newman do the same thing in The Color of Money?" Ronald asked Scorsese.

"No, that's why I say that Paul is different. When he is behind the camera, he is very dedicated and personally cooperates with Tom Cruise, who is filming the opposite scene. Of course, the reverse is also the case. ”

"So Paul Newman was a special case?"

“Do you remember that movie ‘Hell’s End’ I showed you in college?” Scorsese told the story.

"Of course, it was a classic hard-boiled detective movie. A masterpiece from the sixties."

"Do you still remember that there was a scene in the movie where Robert Wagner, who played the bad guy, couldn't help but cry because the woman he loved was slandered by the detective played by Paul?"

"Crying, ah... I remember. Wagner's acting skills are good, and his true feelings are revealed." Ronald thought for a while, and this was the scene in the movie that he still remembered. Robert Wagner was obviously really crying, and his emotions were obvious in the close-up. , definitely not fake crying replaced by eye drops.

"Do you know why he cried so much? Because Paul Newman was opposite him. Newman was already a big star at the time, and he was still behind the camera opposite the unknown Wagner, but he was moved to tears."

"Huh? What should I do if a real star performs a dialogue scene like this and hires a stand-in to read the lines?" Ronald was worried. Do directors and stars depend on luck? What if it's a star with good artistic ethics like Paul Newman?

However, looking at Cher's behavior of competing for roles on the set, she is definitely not a kind person like Newman.

"You probably have two ideas." Seeing Ronald's worried look, producer Barbara gave him some advice, "either to conquer them artistically and make the star feel that he can make a difference in art or star status with the help of the movie. Breakthrough, they will deign to film some important scenes themselves as per your request.

Or, you just accept the fact that stars don't film opposite each other. Or find a dialogue double with good acting skills so that the actor playing the opposite role will not be unable to enter the scene.

Either find an actor with excellent acting skills to play the supporting role of the star, the kind of actor who can perform the feeling you need even with a puppet. "

"It seems that I have to do both," Ronald thanked the Scorseses.

The first thing is to find a good casting director. In the script, the heroine Loretta has many opposite roles, including her father, mother, fiancé Johnny, lover Ronnie, as well as uncles and aunts, and the whole family.

All of these require strong actors.

The second thing is to find a way to give Cher an impression. She will get a lot of benefits by participating in this movie.

If the box office can be satisfactory, or if film critics can praise her performance, she can be paid higher for future films, receive better scripts, or be able to have more leadership in future crews.

In short, it is to make Cher feel that by temporarily giving up the privilege of playing a big name on the set of "Moonlight", she can play a bigger name on the set in the future.

After thinking of a countermeasure, Ronald called his agent Niceta.

"Hello, Ronald." Niceta was not in Hollywood. His secretary called him, and Niceta called Ronald back.

"It's me." Ronald told Niceta some of his thoughts and asked him to help recommend some actors with excellent acting skills. In addition, he also helped him think of some ideas to convince Cher.

"Your ideas are very good and valuable. Ronald, you always surprise me. How long will you stay in New York? We can meet in New York or in Los Angeles. It's best to talk about this matter in person."

"Are you in New York? I have to wait for the release of Diane's new film "The Monster in Chinatown". I promised the leading actor Kurt Russell and the director John Carpenter."

"I'm in New York. When I finish my work here, I'll go to your hotel tonight to talk in person. Tomorrow I'll take you to meet those good actors on Broadway. Broadway actors are the most suitable for the acting skills you need."

"Where are you now? How about I find you?" Ronald couldn't wait any longer.

"I'm helping a client of CAA solve a problem. He has a little conflict with the distributor Orion because of the marketing and promotion of the new film. I'm helping to solve it."

"Give me your address and I'll find you."

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