The Greatest Showman - Chapter 117

“Buried’”

Renly was a bit surprised. Andy had visited three times today, clearly driven by the Emmy Awards, much like Fischer. However, Andy didn’t immediately bring up the Emmy Awards but focused instead on ‘Buried.’ This was certainly an unconventional approach, but it was also one of the reasons Renly had chosen Andy.

Renly began talking about his latest project ‘Buried,’ and Andy listened attentively, even asking detailed questions about the script and some of the filming specifics. Then, he crossed his hands over his stomach, resembling the Buddha Maitreya, and fell into deep thought. Even as he pondered, that ever-present smile lingered on his face as if it was a habit of his.

“So, to summarize: this is an independent film, a complete one-man show where you occupy 99% of the screen time. Throughout the shoot, you continuously challenged yourself, and the difficulty of the performance even surpassed ‘The Pacific.’ Is that correct?” Andy concluded. Renly nodded in affirmation. “I have nothing to add.”

“Oh, right, how long was the shooting period?”

“Eight days.”

Andy mulled this over again. Renly wasn’t particularly curious about these details since they were his agent’s expertise. Now that he had hired an agent, leaving the professional and tedious tasks to the expert made sense. However, this was the early stage of their collaboration, so they needed to develop a rapport, get to know each other, and build trust. Otherwise, the next time Renly wanted to take on a similar independent film like ‘Buried,’ how could he be sure that Andy would fully commit to securing the role for him?

“What are your thoughts on this project?” Renly cut to the chase without beating around the bush.

Andy looked up but didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he nodded slightly. “Good news, or to be precise, great news. The situation is far better than I expected.”

At this moment, Andy was somewhat relieved that Renly had signed with him instead of Fischer. When it came to choosing projects and career planning, Renly was decisive and wise. While working with someone like him might be more challenging—since you couldn’t simply market him as a “pretty face”—if the collaboration succeeded, the ultimate result would be worth anticipating.

“Do you remember our conversation during our last meeting? I suggested you start with independent films to establish a reputation for being an excellent actor, then aim for an award nomination. Afterwards, we can explore some unique commercial scripts and experiment with different possibilities.” Andy’s words flowed smoothly, as though he had Renly’s career path mapped out in his mind long ago, even though Renly had only agreed to sign with him today.

This underlying confidence subtly revealed his sharp edge—he had always been certain that Renly would sign with him.

Andy flashed a big smile. “So, here we are now. You’ve secured an Emmy nomination and then starred in an independent film that showcases your acting skills to the fullest. My God, we couldn’t ask for a better situation.” Up until now, Andy’s understanding of Renly had been largely based on speculation and guesswork. But after hearing the details of ‘Buried,’ he finally confirmed his thoughts and his plan.

“Next, barring any surprises, ‘Buried’ should make it to Toronto—at least, let’s hope the final product meets that level of quality. Afterwards, we’ll head to Telluride, and then see about New York, Rome, and other smaller European film festivals. Oh, right, you’re British, aren’t you? Maybe we can even head to London…”

In Andy’s simple words, there was an overwhelming amount of information. The cities he mentioned all hosted film festivals, and each one was a celebration for film lovers. Among them, the Telluride Film Festival was one that Renly had always dreamed of attending, even surpassing the Sundance and Venice film festivals—the former being the premier stage for independent films, and the latter being the oldest festival in history. Renly’s yearning for Telluride was evident; just imagining himself participating made his blood boil with excitement.

Unlike most festivals, the Telluride Film Festival is a true celebration for film enthusiasts. The committee doesn’t award any prizes or hold red carpets, leaving the festival entirely open to film lovers, allowing cinephiles to fully enjoy the beauty of film in this small town.

For Renly, this was a sacred place worthy of worship. In his previous life, he had watched thousands of films but had never found a group of dedicated, passionate film lovers to engage with. Telluride, with its rejection of commercial promotion, professional authority, and viewing barriers, handing over the decision-making power to the general public, was the ultimate realization of his dream.

“If by December we have enough momentum, we might even see your first Golden Globe nomination. After that, your choices will be drastically different.” The ambition revealed in these words was striking, especially coming from a face that constantly wore a smile. It created a sense of contrast that felt slightly off.

Andy deliberately cut his sentence short, leaving it at that. He knew it was too early to celebrate. The annual awards season is a chaotic battlefield, where countless competitors swarm in, and until the very end, no one can predict the outcome. Moreover, the quality of “Buried” and the level of Renly’s performance were still unknown factors.

Andy then shifted the conversation. “Let’s leave the future to time. First, we need to start with Toronto.” If “Buried” couldn’t even make the competition list in Toronto, all the plans they had just discussed would be nothing more than wishful thinking. “Actually, no, let’s start with the director. Give me the director’s contact information. He’s also the producer, right? We need to have a thorough conversation and plan things out.”

By now, Renly had regained his composure. In his previous life, “Buried” didn’t receive any recognition during the awards season, not even getting a single nomination. It practically disappeared without a trace. So, how things would unfold this time around remained a huge unknown.

“I didn’t know an actor’s agent usually interferes with the film’s distribution,” Renly joked, smiling as he regained his calm.

Andy responded with a calm expression, “If it’s an independent film, and especially one where my actor is the sole lead, then yes, I’ll involve myself in the distribution and promotion. Maybe I won’t directly manage those aspects, but at the very least, I can use my connections and help them find a more reliable distribution company.”

The network of an agent was beyond imagination, and the influence of a top agent was even more unimaginable.

“Before Toronto, we have another major task to take care of.” Andy organized his thoughts. Having just taken over Renly’s contract, everything needed to be built from the ground up, and both “The Pacific” and the potential of “Buried” had long-term value that required careful planning. Andy knew that the remaining months of the year were going to be incredibly busy, which was a good sign.

“The Emmy Awards.”

Renly smiled and nodded. It had only been a few hours since he learned of his Emmy nomination, and it still didn’t feel entirely real. “I just heard the news this afternoon myself.”

“‘The Pacific’ is definitely stealing the spotlight,” Andy summarized in one sentence. It was through his explanation that Renly finally understood the Emmy nomination landscape this year.

In the miniseries and TV movie categories where “The Pacific” was competing, the competition was somewhat imbalanced. The miniseries category wasn’t competitive at all—only “The Pacific” and “Cranford“ were nominated. However, the TV movie category was fiercely contested, with six nominees: “Temple Grandin,” “You Don’t Know Jack,” “The Special Relationship,” “Moonshot,” “Endgame,” and “Georgia O’Keeffe.”

As a result, in overall and technical categories, “The Pacific” had an absolute advantage, far ahead of its competitors. However, for the combined categories like Best Director, Best Screenplay, and acting awards, which grouped miniseries and TV movies together, “The Pacific” would face a truly tough competition.

Nevertheless, thanks to its overwhelming dominance in the technical departments, “The Pacific” secured 24 nominations in total, including double nominations in categories like Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, and Best Visual Effects. In the Best Sound Mixing category, it claimed four out of the five nomination slots. Based purely on the number of nominations, “The Pacific” even surpassed “Band of Brothers,” setting a new high.

However, the biggest breakthrough for “The Pacific” was undoubtedly the nomination for “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series”. Renly’s nomination stood out alongside Judi Dench from “Cranford,” making them the pillars of this year’s miniseries acting categories—where out of 20 acting nomination slots, miniseries claimed only two, while TV movies swept the remaining 18.

Even among the 20 nominees, Renly was the most eye-catching anomaly. At just 20 years old, in his debut role, and in a war-heavy miniseries with ensemble scenes as the focus, Renly had managed to impress the judges with his nuanced, profound, and deeply resonant performance. He had secured his first career nomination in stunning fashion.

A true breakout moment.

“When you attend the award ceremony, you’ll undoubtedly be the centre of attention. Before this, you were a nobody, an insignificant figure whose name no one knew; but now, you have the privilege to compete alongside Al Pacino and Jeff Bridges. Regardless of the final result, you’ve already succeeded.”

Andy didn’t hold back his words of admiration. As he looked at Renly who was sitting in front of him, a thought suddenly struck him, and he casually asked, “Do you want to win it?”

“Yes,” Renly responded without hesitation—quick, direct, and with no trace of ambiguity. Even faced with four veteran actors and four Oscar-level performers, each long-established with storied careers, and with this being his debut nomination, Renly showed no signs of retreat or doubt.

Andy smiled, his grin reaching his eyes, and nodded instinctively. “Then we’d better start by choosing the right suit. The red carpet is where everything begins.”

T/N – What do you think, will Renly win his first award?

T/N – BTW, every award in Emmys has a similar name to the name of the award for the best actor but I didn’t want to bore you with all those long names like for example – “Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series” and if I am not wrong I think the author also went with just Best Director, still when the time for awards is going to come, I will use full names…

T/N – Also, the final thought or I guess a question, do you want to put after the chapter some basic information about movies or some movie or filming stuff the author casually mentions without explaining it? Like for example he mentioned two Woody Allan movies, I thought at first he was talking about a place Manhattan, not a movie (lol), so I can really give you some basic information about it (and some other filming stuff) after every chapter (if the author doesn’t explain it)

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