THE NUMBER ONE STAR IN THE INTERSTELLAR ERA [BL] - Chapter 471

WHEN Astrid and Ellis walked inside the private box, three people were already there. Director Hale, the writer, One Leaf, and a man who seemed to be the writer’s agent. The director was sitting at the head of the table, while the other two were sitting on one side.

“Astrid, it’s been a while,” Director Hale greeted.

“It’s nice to see you again, Director,” Astrid greeted back as he and Elli sat down opposite One Leaf and her agent.

The director grinned at that. The other was still sporting a rocker chick look—short dark purple hair with blue highlights and smoky make-up.

He thought that since she was now moving from music videos and ads to movies, she would have changed her style. Like looking more professional or something. After all, some directors would try to act that way to appear ‘respectable’.

Seeing that that wasn’t the case made Astrid smile. Because it only showed that the director highly valued individuality more than what other’s opinion of her. Which meant that she wouldn’t be the type to be swayed easily. Even if she was put under pressure, she would probably still choose to do what she thought was best for the movie.

And that’s a big plus for Astrid.

While the director and Ellis exchanged some pleasantries, he turned his attention to One Leaf.

“It’s nice to see you again as well, Writer Leaf,” he said to the other with a smile.

One Leaf turned red as soon as Astrid smiled at her. Then she timidly glanced away, avoiding his gaze. “Y-yes. Nice to see you again as well.”

Astrid could tell that the other wasn’t blushing like that because she had a crush on him or something. She was being like that simply because she was just inherently shy. He had already observed that when they first met. So, he wouldn’t be narcissistic enough to think that he’s the reason why the other was blushing.

“Thank you for meeting us today,” the agent—Theo, said. “Our writer was really happy when she heard that you will accept the role of Jace in [Serendipitous Summer].”

Fiona, who heard what Theo said, raised her head abruptly. “Y-yes! I’m very happy! T-thank you for accepting the role.”

Theo glanced at his writer and almost shook his head. After Fiona met this rookie actor, she had since been acting like a fangirl. Watching everything Astrid Townsend appeared in. Not to mention that one time when she readily defended the other during the whole Nadia Beck situation. Something that’s very uncharacteristic of her who hated any kind of confrontation.

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Her agreeing to make a live action adaptation of one of her works was probably the only good thing that came out of her meeting this teenager. It probably helped that Astrid Townsend perfectly embodied the image of ‘Jace’ Fiona had in mind.

That image most likely solidified in the coming days that she watched shows where Astrid appeared in. But what truly sealed the deal was when Astrid’s EMMA ad spread all over [Cyberspace]. Just after watching that, Fiona quickly decided that she would allow a live action adaptation as long as Astrid was the one who would play the lead role.

Even if Fiona was the writer of the original material, that selection could pose a problem considering that Astrid was only a newcomer and not many directors would probably have him as their first choice.

Thankfully, the director who approached them first and wanted to adapt Fiona’s novel had already worked with Astrid before. So, when they mentioned that condition, the other didn’t really show any negative reactions and readily agreed. Which meant that she had confidence in Astrid’s acting skills.

Contacting Ellis Payne after that was quite easy, since the two of them already established some form of camaraderie after the whole Nadia Beck situation. And now, after just a few days, here they were.

“No, I should be the one to thank the writer for thinking of me for this role,” Astrid immediately said. “After I read the script, I immediately read your novel, and I loved it. So, I feel really honored that you think I fit the role of ‘Jace’.”

And he was not saying that just for lip service. He really liked and enjoyed the novel. The freshness of youth, the importance of friendship, as well as the nostalgia and magic of first love—they were the prevailing themes of the novel. But those were just the surface. Underneath all that was a complexity that wasn’t easily noticeable unless one truly immersed themselves in the story.

And that’s why he liked the novel. It was a simple story of first love on the surface, but underneath, it was much more than that. If the director, as well as the actors, fully brought out the potential of this story, then it’s going to be a hit.

“No, no, without you, I- I would never have allowed this movie adaptation,” One Leaf said with bright red cheeks.

Director Hale clapped her hands to get the attention of everyone. Who knew when these two would stop thanking each other?

“I’m glad that we’re all happy with this result,” she said. “Now let’s talk about some important matters regarding the film first.”

Everyone agreed to that.

“As you know, I was the one who approached Writer One Leaf first, asking if I could adapt one of her novels to a movie,” the director started. “It took a while, but I’m glad that she finally agreed. I’m also more than happy that the lead actor the writer chose was Astrid. I agree that he definitely fit the image of ‘Jace’ I have in mind.”

Then the director talked about the film studio that would be involved in production and distribution of the movie—Whale Studio. They’re a small studio known for producing small budgeted but still of high-quality films.

That’s why most of the movies they produced were simple ones that didn’t need much special effects and most starred by newcomers, or at least actors and actresses who still hadn’t made a name for themselves.

The meeting continued on with that as a start.