Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"Damn it, she ran away again. This person didn't resign that day and just disappeared from the crew." When Niceta got the news brought by Richard, he immediately suspended everything he was doing and used all his resources. Resources track down the woman who secretly took away the inside information and leaked it to everyone in Hollywood.

However, this secretary obviously knew that he had been exposed. After seeing Ronald arrive on the set of "Above the Law", he disappeared that day.

"Who do you think is targeting us?" Ronald asked Niceta as he knocked on the table with his hand.

"Honestly, I don't know. The inside of CAA is like a colosseum, and everyone may be my enemy. It's not impossible for external agents. Every move we make is watched, just like when I was in William Morris also has some inside information, but I still abide by the rules and don’t do anything like this to break the rules and leak secrets.”

Niceta hired me instead of us. In this matter, there is no benefit in offending a director with continuous commercial success. The person who spread the news was more aimed at Niceta and Richard's two agents, rather than Ronald himself.

"Our interests are the same. I will never forget that you signed me when I had no screenwriting work, and you stood by me in all the movie disputes. And... they messed up like this, which made me very passive, I don't like it very much. Whether you are an insider of CAA or an outsider of WMA or ICM, if you do this, you are my enemy."

Ronald hated this unconventional approach. The reason why Niceta and Richard got along with him was largely because they were not Eastern European Jews and they valued mutual trust when doing things. A habit of winning his underwear.

When cooperating with such people, there can be conflicts of interest and bargaining. In the end, everyone can cooperate rationally and based on long-term interests.

But the Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern Europe, whether adversaries or allies, will win until they can no longer win. Doing business with them always feels like there are poisonous snakes lurking around you, and you don't know when you will be sold by them.

Niceta and Richard were obviously relieved after hearing what Ronald said. When this happens to many celebrity clients, the most common approach is to take the opportunity to terminate the contract with the agent and find a cheaper one. Fortunately, Ronald had no such idea of ​​taking advantage.

"I will continue to investigate and I will not stop until I find out." Niceta expressed her determination.

"Don't look at the evidence, just look at who can benefit from it. Who do you think may have instigated it?" After Ronald stated that he and his agent stood together, he wanted to know who they suspected.

Being plotted like this,

It feels very bad not knowing who the other person is yet. Ronald felt as if he knew there were cockroaches in the room, but couldn't find them. He held his slippers and was so angry that he didn't know where to shoot them.

So Ronald would rather accuse others wrongly than he needs to guide the suspect. When he asked, he pointed towards the office of CAA President Michael Ovitz.

"Let's go find an Italian restaurant for dinner. I heard that a new one has opened in Beverly Park at the foot of Beverly Hills..." Niceta stood up and put on her coat. This kind of thing is not appropriate to talk about in the office.

When they arrived at the restaurant, they found a table with no one around. After the waiter served the food, Niceta started talking, "What Ovitz made people do is very impossible, the height is impossible..."

He felt that it was impossible for Ovitz to instruct his secretary to do such a thing. It's not that he won't put spies into the offices of his subordinates, but it's just that blatantly destroying the balance between the different factions of agents within CAA. As the boss, doing this is not conducive to the company as a whole.

"So it's your enemy in CAA? Or who has a grudge against me?" Ronald asked for the names of several suspects, and then slowly investigated.

"There is such a person who meets all the conditions. He has conflicts with me, Richard, you, and Paula. And he can benefit from leaking the secret." Niceta lowered her voice and said.

"who is it?"

"Jake Rapke."

"Who?" Ronald felt that the name was a bit familiar, as if it happened a long time ago, but he couldn't remember it.

Niceta looked towards Richard, as if she wanted Richard to explain.

"Ahem..." Richard took out a handkerchief from his pocket, took off his glasses and began to wipe them. "Do you still remember the first script you wrote after we signed you?"

"My brother's protector?" Ronald said, as if the past seven or eight years ago were gradually emerging from the ocean of memory.

At that time, "My Brother's Keeper" was spotted by Ovitz. In order to sign Jane Fonda's agent contract, he bought it for $250,000 and gave it to Columbia and Jane Fonda. Director James Bridges was hired to direct.

This James Bridges is also a client of CAA, and his main agent is Jack Rapke.

For his own benefit, Rupke gave James Bridges the bad idea to find a suitor to write another edition and remove Ronald's signature. When the conspiracy was finally discovered, Niceta and Richard had a huge quarrel with him about it, which went all the way to Ovitz.

In the end, Ovitz got together, retained Ronald's signature, bought out the script, and let James Bridges direct.

In addition to Ronald's affairs, Jack Lapke also had a personal grudge against Niceta and Richard.

When Richard Lovett first joined CAA, he was still an assistant agent. He spent his spare time reading scripts for Jack Rapke in exchange for Jack Rapke's recommendation, allowing him to enter the fast track and be promoted to a full agent.

Who would have known that Jack Lapke used the script that Richard had read for nearly half a year for free, and then when it came time to recommend a formal agent, Richard's name was not mentioned, but the daughter of a well-connected person was recommended.

Richard was swayed and almost missed the formal promotion channel and was kicked out of CAA. Fortunately, Niceta took him in, and Richard worked for Niceta for another six months before he got the chance to become a full-time employee.

As for Niceta, Paula and his wife, and Jack Rapke, it was mainly competition between customers.

Rapke is an Ashkenazi Jew from Eastern Europe and is actually a graduate of New York University’s Tisch College. He has a natural advantage over the majority of Jewish actors and directors in the industry.

He represents the famous British director Ridley Scott, and he also has several stars, who happen to be competitors with Tom Cruise and others. They have fought against each other many times, and it is not just once or twice that they have brought trouble to each other.

This time, the news of Ronald's intention to become a "working girl" was released, and many of his male and female stars were now eligible to participate in auditions. The resources for "working girls" were no longer the mom-and-pop shop of Niceta and Paula. Exclusively available. Relying on his identity as an Eastern European Jew within CAA, he has a high possibility of landing one or two roles.

"Is there any way to confirm?" Ronald asked Niceta.

"I will find a way, and the private detective you recommended, Frank McPike, can also be of great help."

"Isn't he looking for that Pitt kid?" Ronald didn't understand how the investigation of Brad Pitt could help pinpoint who was behind it.

"The rise of actors like Brad Pitt is something that often happens in Hollywood. In the end, they only know how to please women and are experts in picking up girls. I have a list of all the actresses represented by Jack Lapke... …”

Ronald understood immediately, and both sides confirmed each other that as long as this line was connected, it was most likely Jack Lapke who was doing something wrong.

He thought for a while and said, "Does Jack Lapke represent singers? Don't forget about Cher and his little boyfriend."

"I'll add it to the list right away"

Several people arranged things, and finally Richard was put in charge of summarizing all the investigation progress. He had the deepest grudge with Jack Lapke and was almost kicked out of CAA as an agent. So if you leave it to him to keep an eye on, you must be careful and meticulous.

…

After finishing this work, Ronald asked script assistant David Simkins to find a screenwriter and the result was achieved. A few years ago, a martial artist named Frank Dukes happened to brag to a screenwriter, Sheldon Lettich, about a "personal experience" he had.

He said that he was once a member of the CIA, and also learned Tanaka-ryu katana fighting techniques and Kyokushin karate in Japan, and performed well in the CIA's special operations.

One day he suddenly received an invitation to participate in a competition representing the highest level of fighting in the world - the World Martial Arts Conference.

This competition is unlimited, which means that participants must sign a life and death certificate, and they will not be held responsible for injuries or deaths during the competition.

In the end, Frank Dukes went through all kinds of hardships and went to a small island in the Caribbean to compete. He won 62 games in the knockout round, and finally defeated the defending champion and won the World Martial Arts Championship.

This kind of plot looked like bragging in a bar, but it aroused great interest in Sheldon Lettich. This story is similar to the Bruce Lee movie he watched when he was young, and the popular TV series "Kung Fu" at the time.

Sheldon Lettich was originally a fan of martial arts movies and TV dramas, so he wrote him into a story, registered it with the Writers Guild, and then promoted it everywhere.

David Simkins, who was looking for an action movie with a martial arts plot, came across the script.

This script called "Fighting Fights the World" is just right for Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, with the traditional costumes of various schools of fighting skills and the plot of multiple arena fights. Such a fighting expert doesn't need any particularly good acting skills for this kind of ring movie anyway.

Ronald looked at Sheldon Lettich and asked him, "This archetypal character you're talking about that he insists is his own experience?"

"Yes, Frank Dukes is his real name, and it is also the name of the male protagonist. He told me that he was a former employee of CIA and participated in the World Martial Arts Conference. He also introduced me to a martial artist friend, that I was sworn to have been to a martial arts tournament, and everything Frank Dukes said was true."

"Then what do you think?" Ronald asked again. He didn't want such a liar to participate in the movie, which might cause a lot of trouble after the movie is released.

"Dukes and I often go to bars, and he tells me a lot of nonsense stories. Among these absurd stories, I think this martial arts tournament story is the most suitable to be made into a movie."

"Hahaha, let the legal department handle everything..." Seeing that the screenwriter knew the rules, Ronald asked Daydream to contact barrister Mickey Kanter to eliminate the possibility of Dukes causing trouble in the contract.

"Find someone to translate it into Chinese, and then courier a copy to Xiangjiang for Jackie Chan to read." Ronald bought the filming rights of the script and asked David Simkins to send it to Xiangjiang for professionals to submit. Comments.

"Who are you going to let star?" David Simkins will also serve as the executive producer of this "Fighting World". He doesn't know what Ronald is thinking. What is Jean Claude Van? Dan, or Lundgren as this martial artist named Frank Dukes?

"This film still requires some acting skills, let me take a closer look." Ronald felt that not to mention the acting requirements in normal scenes, at least in the ring scenes, it requires a lot of smiling for close-ups and how to execute the movements. wonderful skills.

Anyway, neither of them are famous, so let’s decide based on their level.

…

"Where are we going?"

Jean-Claude and Lundgren were taken by Ronald again to the studio in Burbank. Jean Claude was more curious and asked Ronald halfway.

"This time I will take you to the editing room. If you want to be an actor, you must be familiar with all aspects of film shooting."

The place Ronald took them to was Walter Murch's editing room.

"Hey, Walter, how's your cut of 'Love in Prague' going?" Ronald saw that editor Walter Murch's beard was longer than the last time he saw it.

"There are still about two weeks to go. This movie is like simmering sauce for spaghetti, slowly reducing the juice over low heat. It's really meticulous work."

Walter Murch hadn't communicated with anyone for a long time, and director Philip Kaufman completely let him go for the final adjustments. At the end of the day, it was all small adjustments, maybe two or three cuts a day. Now that Ronald came to see him, he was quite happy to have an expert to chat with.

"Great, this way you can catch up with my new movie. I plan to try some new ideas in this movie. Without you coming to the set to check it for me in the early stage, I'm still not sure..."

Ronald's new film "Working Girl", based on the scene in the dream, has two super long shots. Ronald only had a rough idea. He was not sure whether it would be realized on the editing table, so he had to pull Walter. Murch intervened during filming, and if there were editing difficulties, reshoots could be done on set.

"Actually, you're fine. You just don't have experience shooting this kind of lens. I think you can get it if you try it a few more times." Walter Murch loved Ronald very much and didn't want him to rely too much on him. , if the director himself explores innovative filming methods for the film, he will definitely gain more valuable experience than what he, an expert, suggests.

"I know, but this is a commercial production, and I want to add a layer of insurance." Ronald didn't want to make it like this "Love in Prague", where all kinds of experimental ideas were put in, and in the end Walter Murch was like this The master still had to spend months tinkering on the editing table.

"Well, your compensation is always generous. My oldest child is about to go to college and I have to save some money for his tuition."

"Then it's settled. Don't take any vacation after you finish here. Let's go to New York together to see the scenery."

"Excuse me, what is the principle of this? Put the films on both sides together in this way, and then use this machine to connect them together?"

Jean-Claude Van Damme, who was overly curious, entered the editing room and began to look around at the various machines used for editing.

"Ah ha, yes, put a piece of tape here that I invented, then press it, press it again, and the sample will be connected." Walter Murch was very friendly to actors who were interested in editing.

"Is this your actor?" he asked Ronald. Many actors entered the editing room and just wanted to keep more close-ups of themselves. People like Jean Claude who were really interested in the principle and eager to try it were not not much.

"They are all real fighters, European karate champions. You may not believe it, but they also served as my bodyguards..." Ronald introduced their backgrounds, "My small production company, Now we are collecting scripts suitable for them. They are all the material to be the male protagonists, and this time it is also an eye-opener for them.”

"So it's like this. In fact, those shots on your set have to go through the editing room before they can finally be created into the star image you see on the screen." Murch began to tell the two some common sense about editing.

"This is really interesting. Can I study here?" Jean-Claude Van Dam was very fascinated by the magic of editing and immediately proposed to study here.

"If Mr. Murch agrees, you can study here. What about you? Duf, do you want to come?" Ronald greeted Walter Murch and agreed to let Jean Claude study here.

"I also have acting courses..." Longger was not very interested in these technical details. He wanted to hone his acting skills and how to become a star.

"Very good, then it's settled." Ronald also had an idea about the positioning of the two of them.

In fact, if a person wants to be a star, the most cost-effective investment is to learn some editing knowledge. Many times, the key to stealing the scene is to understand why the director shot the scene. Seizing good positions in scenes that the director cannot possibly edit out is the key to leaving a deep impression on the audience on the screen.

Many directors are always bullied by stars on the set, asking them to shoot a lot of scenes that highlight the image of the stars. The director may have given in temporarily at that time, but when he finally entered the editing room and had the power to guide editing, Hollywood had not yet opened it up to stars, so it was still a restricted area for directors and editors.

The fate of many celebrities who spent a lot of effort and even unreasonable efforts to capture shots in the editing room is that during the first rough cut, they were clicked off, dropped on the floor, and put away by the editor's assistant number. , and then never see the light of day.

For a movie like "Fist Fighter" with many action scenes, knowing some editing will greatly promote the performance.

Whether Jean-Claude has broad interests and curiosity, or he has an innate understanding of the final creation of a film in the editing room, Ronald's inner balance has begun to tilt in his favor.