Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"The box office of "et aliens exceeded 200 million US dollars, and continues to set the record for the fastest box office in the United States."

Ronald watched the weekend movie box office recaps on TV. Et Aliens, which has been released for more than two months, still has a weekly box office of more than 10,000 US dollars in a single hall, and the screened theaters have expanded to more than 1,700.

"Fast-paced Richmond High School" came in second, but it was getting farther and farther from the et aliens.

Family portrait movies have a lot more box-office potential than teen-based movies.

"Ronnie, when are we going to the U.S. Open? Did your friend make it to the main match? Who did he play in the first round?" Helen Slater asked Ronald from the inside, who had just come from her mother. Come over there, talking with cousin Donna.

"Yes, he made it to Wimbledon in June, and this time the US Open is hometown," Ronald replied.

Vincent van Patten, the hero of "High School of Rock", has been on the rise since entering professional tennis and is now a frequent visitor to the atp challenge.

He also beat compatriot John McEnroe, the world number one, to win the Seiko Challenge in Tokyo before. This time, he and McEnroe ranked in the same half of the US Open. Ronald is going to cheer on old friends.

Able is omnipotent, this Vincent brother, in addition to being a handsome actor who can play the leading role in a movie, did not expect tennis to be a real professional level.

"High School Rock" heroine pj Sowers has called to get Ronald to cheer on Van Patten's third-round rematch against McEnroe.

Ronald knew she also wanted to find a chance for her husband Dennis Quaid, who had been in the wrong in several of her films and was missing a starring opportunity.

I am very willing to help these old friends, but a character is a character after all. Ronald couldn't have given such a big opportunity for nothing.

"Ring bell ring bell..." Ronald answered the phone and called to Donna, "Donna, the telescope you ordered has arrived. Little Douglas is calling."

"Really? Let's go get it. I heard that astronomy enthusiasts all over the world are looking for traces of Halley's Comet. It is said that there have been unconfirmed sighting reports. It would be great if I could see it first. "

Donna ran out happily. Her high school focused on the cultivation of scientific knowledge. Donna became interested in astronomy and wanted to buy an astronomical telescope to see the stars.

Ronald looked for a few but couldn't buy it.

Few people buy this kind of stuff, and neither does Macy's.

Still a good friend of the high school wrestling club, when Staten Island landlord Douglas Hansen Jr. visited, he learned about Donna's hobby and boasted that he must buy it for her.

"He said he would bring it to you."

"Doug, are you really in stock?" Donna took the phone and chatted with Doug.

After a while, little Douglas delivered the astronomical telescope that Donna wanted to buy to his home.

"Donna, you are getting better and better, and you still observe comets? I am most interested in comets."

"Of course, did you know that a comet that returned recently split, and the original comet became two very close to each other. According to the return cycle, Halley's Comet will pass through perihelion in 1986, and this year is August In two years, the second half of the year should be able to be seen by the telescopes of astronomy enthusiasts."

Ronald looked at Donna's serious look and found it interesting. Many of America's key middle schools are like this. They offer many elective courses for talented high school students. As long as you are interested, you will cultivate this knowledge.

Helen hugged Donald, who was sitting watching TV, from behind. "Let's find something to do too?"

Ronald touched Helen's arm, knowing that she was helpless recently. Agents introduced by her father often screened out one round with Gerald without her knowledge before recommending audition opportunities. The agent introduced by my mother was from a star scout and did not have much industry connections.

Helen has only acted in one TV series now, and has not tasted the taste of a movie actor.

Ronald thought he might be able to help Helen fulfill this wish.

It's time to start preparing for the next movie. Richard has amassed a ton of teenage exploits invites, but no particularly good synopsis.

Hollywood is reluctant to change the formula for success. Since the fast-paced hit, Ronald has been getting sexually awkward, adult, high school, or valley girl-themed books.

This made him a little helpless. Fast-paced success isn't necessarily because of these superficial elements. Can the elements of a blockbuster be taken apart and then pinched together to replicate a successful film?

If you continue to make this kind of film yourself, you may not be able to meet the box office expectations given to you by the big studios. Why "Fast-Paced Richmond High School" can be so popular, Ronald can't tell.

This has something to do with the fact that I happened to meet a few good actors, the script was interesting, the popularity of Brooke Xiaosi helped, and there was no competitive similar movie when it was released.

Ronald began to seriously consider whether to get Roger Coleman to do a different kind of low-budget production first. Now that he has just been proven to be able to make youth comedy films, I am afraid that the seven major studios will not give him the opportunity to practice other types of films.

Only a boss like Roger Coleman would give the green light to Ronald's small production. In this way, Helen can be given a role and let her go to make exploitative films to expose the scene, but I don't want it.

It's a pity that there haven't been any signs of dreaming about a new movie recently.

"Let's practice meditation later." Helen thought about something to do.

Ronald and Helen have been practicing meditation recently, which is very popular among middle-class families in New York, or in the artist circle.

Since the last time he practiced Jane Fonda's aerobics and dreamed of the movie "Outdoor Urchin", Ronald is often not afraid of being laughed at by others, and has practiced women's aerobics himself. But it didn't trigger any dreams after that.

After thinking about it carefully, he felt that it might be the dream caused by the last exercise, cross-legged and deep breathing.

So after seeing Helen's meditation posture, she felt that it was similar to Jane Fonda's final posture and breathing rhythm, and she began to practice.

But other than the numbness of the legs, there is no effect.

"No, I'm going to the screening club at NYU, and some old friends invited me to meet."

"Then let me go together." Helen and Ronald just didn't want to part very much recently.

"Okay, let's go together," Ronald replied, "Spike Lee, who shot your commercial last time, and Catherine Bigelow are here, and their screening club organized a symposium tonight and invited me to come. chat."

"Then let me go too. I'm most interested in movies." Hearing that Catherine Bigelow was also returning, Little Douglas immediately expressed that he would go to see one or two together.

The three drove to the screening club of New York University, where Spike, Bigelow, and the Chinese graduate student Li Ang were waiting for Ronald and others at the door.

A year later, Ronald took the first step and the movie was released in theaters.

After entering the club, there are many new students, waiting for Ronald to talk to them.

"It can't be said that Coppola is still America's first and most capable director. His 'old love and new love' is that the audience doesn't know how to appreciate it."

"I watched your movie and didn't like it. It's too Hollywood. Movies are not just a tool to make money, but also an art that leads the direction of social thought."

"Why did you make such an exploitative film?"

Ronald did not expect that these NYU classmates, instead of congratulating their alumni for their success, began to accuse him of his Hollywood tendencies.

"I'd love to make the kind of movie you're talking about, but the movie market isn't doing well right now. The only way to continue in this business is to find a film director who can sell well.

If you don't believe me, you can ask Spike, Catherine and them. "

"I don't think that Stacey shot should have been shot like this..."

"Why didn't you take a long shot at the beginning?"

Next came some technical questions, which Ronald also answered one by one.

In many cases, it's not that the director doesn't want to shoot good-looking shots, but that the budget and the shooting time limit are limited, and they can only be shot in a fast way. The long shot is one of the director's best ways to show off his skills, but it is very difficult to shoot, and a small mistake has to be retaken.

Actors who shoot long shots are also under a lot of pressure, for fear that one mistake will delay the overall progress.

For a small production of more than three million dollars, keeping the number of shots on time and on schedule is the most important thing.

This answer based on reality made the students of NYU Di Shi College unsatisfied. A blockbuster director who doesn't have a lot of artistic creation and is full of schedule and budget is nothing like a Hollywood producer.

With a wry smile, Ronald finished answering the question and sent his classmates away.

Only a few close friends such as Spike Lee, Ang Lee, Katherine Bigelow, etc., understand the difficulty of Ronald being able to complete a theatrical film.

They also gave Ronald some technical advice, but we are all people who have made movies and know that filming is constrained by many artistic unexpected factors, and many times the director has no room to play.

Therefore, the suggestions of these confidants and friends are all from a feasible point of view.

Everyone exchanged their skills and experience in directing actors' performances for a while, and they all gained something.

Film director may be one of the few occupations in the world. It is also a blessing for Ronald to be able to criticize each other's works with several directors in the circle. A lot of times other directors, out of hat or jealousy, don't speak to each other like a few young directors in New York.

And those students who haven't made a film are full of art, and can't make any feasible suggestions for the director's craft.

"I used to be like them, my mind was full of art. I knew it when I shot a graduation feature film myself. Finding money, shooting, and then negotiating with distributors is the most time-consuming job for a director."

Spike Lee recently received a little more money from the Black Charity Fund. His graduation film has been shooting on and off for more than two years. It has recently started shooting again and is expected to be finished by the end of the year.

Li Ang also began to work as an assistant director for him, while preparing his own works. He also seems to be able to apply for some official funding from the Exchange Society to start writing scripts.

Catherine Bigelow was the worst. The first feature film "The Loveless", which finally got investment, no one cared about it after the filming, and no distributor was willing to release it.

The negatives of the movie are in the warehouse, and I don't know when they will see the light of day again.

"Maybe I'll just have to try my luck at the film festival," Ronald said.

"Maybe, I've been to two small film festivals and no buyers are willing to try their luck." Bigelow could only shrug and leave everything to God.

"I'll take care of you." Little Douglas still hopes to help Bigelow's movie come out.

Ronald took out his tapes of Burger King commercials, put them on the VCR, and showed them to a few friends.

"This is a commercial I shot recently. You can help me shoot some if you have time. My agent Eddie often has this kind of business."

"Oh, you're still playing with these simple close-ups." Spike laughed when he saw another ad featuring a girl speaking to the close-up.

Ronald still prefers to play simple and straightforward.

"This actor is good." Bigelow commented.

"I don't know how my acting skills are. I heard from the teacher in the acting class that people's expressions will be magnified on the big screen, which is a special test of acting skills. Many performances that are not flawed on TV will appear on the big screen. question."

Since acting as an acting teacher in a high school specializing in acting, he has played the role of a teacher in "Famous in the World", and he has a deeper understanding of the acting skills of movie actors. Helen also chose his course to learn acting skills.

Helen accompanied Ronald and went home together. She heard Katherine Bigelow praise Leigh Thompson's acting skills, and she also had some comparisons in her heart. If she could be in this advertisement, she should be no worse than her.

"I watched the TV series you made for abc TV, and there is no problem with acting on the big screen." Ronald comforted.

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