Hollywood Production - Chapter 24

The crew is composed of individuals, each of whom has their own ideas and interests, which leads to a lot of disputes. The contract they signed is the best constraint. Don’t expect to win over people with your personal charm in this arena of fame and fortune. That’s the most naïve and stupid idea. Power and contracts with legal force are far more direct and effective than winning over people’s hearts, which is unreliable.

Duke knows very well that this is a circle full of lies and opportunism, and he is on the road to success. If he stops because of some inexplicable small problems, that is a loss.

“Props?”

Duke stood on the sliding platform behind the director’s camera and asked into the loudspeaker, “Camera?”

“OK!”

“Stunts?”

“OK…”

“All departments prepare…” He put a Los Angeles Dodgers hat on his head and said, “Scene 25, Take 133, begin!”

He sat behind the camera as a car’s engine started to rumble. A bus came speeding from the distance and, because it didn’t slow down or turn, collided with several cars that were driving. These cars then hit other cars, and the ejector seat launched, sending several cars flipping through the air…

The car doors, the fenders and the broken car glass, like a downpour, poured on the nearby road.

“CUT!”

Standing up from behind the camera, Duke vigorously waved his fist, “Great!”

The medical and rescue personnel who had been waiting by the side of the road swarmed to the ‘car accident’ scene and pulled out several stunt drivers from the car. Thanks to the safety measures in place, they were not injured.

“Take a break for half an hour!”

After such an exciting scene, Duke also let the crew relax for a while.

“Duke …” Sofia Coppola quickly walked over, “Someone came to visit you.”

Leaving the camera, Duke pointed to himself, “for me?”

Then, he saw the two people behind Sophia, with a sincere smile on his tired face, he strode over to them and embraced them both lightly. “Mom, I’m so glad you could come!”

“I’ve heard you’re doing well.” Mrs. Leah stepped back. “So I came to see.”

Duke turned to the other guest and shook Lucas’ outstretched hand, “Uncle George… well, George, I didn’t expect you to come too.”

“I’ve seen all of the footage you’ve shot.” George Lucas said seriously, “You’re even better than I imagined!”

This was not the place to talk, Duke took his mother and Lucas back to his director’s trailer, but just as he started talking to them, Sophia came to inform him that the stunt group were looking for him, so Duke had to leave in a hurry.

“Sophia…” George Lucas shouted to the assistant director who was also preparing to leave, “Find Robin for me, please.”

A few minutes later, Robin walked into the trailer, presumably having already heard that Lucas was coming. He didn’t seem surprised to see the two of them.

“Duke still doesn’t know you invested $10 million in the film!” Robin said when Leah Rosenberg asked him.

“Don’t let him know before the film is finished.” Leah simply said, “From Duke’s face, you can’t see anything, but he’s actually under a lot of pressure. He has been sleeping badly recently, which will only increase his pressure. I don’t want the heavy burden to overwhelm his young shoulders, even if his ability to bear burdens is very strong.”

“Robin, tell me.” George Lucas asked, “How is Duke’s performance?”

“In the beginning he was very immature, and lacked experience. In the first week of shooting, the entire crew was in a state of disorder. If it were not for the fact that all departments were old hands who often worked with Lucasfilm, and if Duke had not changed all the planned shots to temporary actors, the crew’s contradictions would have been likely erupted.”

Robin said it all, “But Duke’s ability to adjust is very strong. It took only ten days for him to lead the crew through the most difficult period of adaptation. He obviously studied Hollywood’s production model deeply and fully entered the role of director. And his concentration on work is surprising. He not only conveyed his ideas to the crew, but also found that he was no longer a novice when he was in a state of work. He not only conveyed his ideas to the crew, but also drove the state of other people through his own work. After a month of shooting, the crew gradually showed some of the rhythms of a Hollywood’s mature team.

“Most importantly, Duke is very clear about what he wants or what he should do. There are many people in the crew who doubt him, but Duke can ignore these prejudices and use work to temporarily knead the complex crew into a ball. For a young man, this is a very rare quality!”

“The next thing is professional ability. No matter how strong a director’s other abilities are, he must prove himself through his lenses and works. “Speed” has not been completed, and I can’t talk about the work. I can only say that the shots that have been taken so far, Duke has a keen sense of capture for car crashes, explosions and other large-scale scenes, and can use the lens to record the most wonderful parts.”

“In my opinion, even if Duke can’t tell the story of ‘Speed’ well, the film’s suspense and excitement are definitely not a problem. I can imagine that when they are presented on the big screen, they will be full of shocking visual impact!”

—