I'm in Hollywood Chapter 319

Chapter 319: Interested #

Quickly glanced at the detailed information below, Stan Winston Studio was established in 1972 and has taken on special effects production for many films, including the famous Terminator and Alien, and even won an Oscar for Best Visual Effects in 1986. Stan Winston, the owner of the studio, is also a well-known visual effects master in Hollywood.
In addition, Eric also recalled some information from his past life. In his previous life, he and Industrial Light & Magic and Peter Jackson’s Wētā Workshop were competing in the digital field together with Stan Winston and the famous James Cameron. This studio was even more powerful in some aspects of movie CG technology than Industrial Light & Magic.
However, the digital field does not have the strong technological accumulation of Industrial Light & Magic, nor the various policy support enjoyed by Weta Digital Studio because of its location in New Zealand. Moreover, with Cameron’s departure, the founder’s departure, and Stan Winston’s passing away, the studio eventually fell into bankruptcy without any leadership.
“Alan, help me contact Mr. Stan Winston,” Eric handed the information about Stan Winston Studio to Alan and said, “as soon as possible. You know, the time for ‘Ghost Love’ is very tight. New York has already finished shooting, and I only lack the female lead. The most important thing now is to solve the special effects issue.”
Alan nodded after looking at the information, but said, “Eric, I think if we hand over the special effects to Industrial Light & Magic, the movie can definitely be completed on time. But if we do it ourselves, the effects and time will be hard to determine.”
Eric fell silent for a moment before saying, “I have a sense of measure. Please contact Mr. Stan Winston as soon as possible.”
“I understand,” Alan nodded and was about to leave when the office door was knocked. After receiving permission, the female secretary poked her head in and said, “Mr. Williams. They’re here.”
“Let them in,” Eric said. Alan had just heard the content of Eric’s phone call with the front desk, and tactfully turned and left.
Tim Lester and Jennifer Connelly soon walked in one after the other.
“Hello, Mr. Williams,” Tim Lester extended his hand and shook hands with Eric who emerged from behind his desk.
“Hello, Tim,” Eric smiled and let go of his hand. He then looked at Jennifer Connelly, who lowered her head slightly in discomfort, but quickly raised it again, trying to show a gracious smile, but her expression seemed uneasy no matter how you looked at it.
“Jenny, long time no see,” Eric whispered.
“Yes…yes,” the girl nodded, feeling a little uneasy. She wanted to say something more, but Eric had already pointed to the lounge area: “Let’s talk there.”
The three of them sat down on the sofa, and the secretary brought them coffee. Eric sat opposite, openly scrutinizing the girl in front of him.
Jennifer Connelly met Eric’s gaze, but quickly looked away in panic, as the aggressiveness in the man’s eyes was almost identical to that of a year ago.
“What have you been up to this year, Jenny?” Eric took the initiative to ask.
“I…” the girl hesitated, not knowing what to say. Should she talk about her audition failures and being neglected by her agent? Tim Rester was right here. Even if the agent wasn’t here, she couldn’t say that.
Seeing the awkward look on the girl’s face, Tim Rester quickly said, “Mr. Williams, Jenny spent most of her time at Stanford University this year, as you know. She’s still young and it’s never a bad thing to learn more.”
Eric nodded noncommittally, looking at the girl and asking, “Is that so?”
Jennifer Connelly bit her lip and nodded, “Uh-huh.”
Eric continued, “By the way, last night I was with that…sorry, I forgot the other person’s name, it seems to be Brent…”
“Tony Brandt,” Tim Rester reminded him courteously.
Eric nodded, “Yes, it was Tony Brandt. I had a conflict with him and messed up your leading lady’s situation.”
The actress didn’t react, but Tim Lester was surprised and let out a soft “ah.”. He didn’t know about this, but he quickly understood when he remembered the tone of Tony Brandt on the phone earlier. A hint of resentment crossed Tim Lester’s face, but he immediately regained his composure.
The leading lady was just a low-budget film actress. If she lost the role, she lost it. As long as she could grab onto the thigh of this big shot in front of her, why worry about not having a role?
“It’s okay, Mr. Williams. Actually, that movie wasn’t suitable for Jenny in the first place. Losing it doesn’t matter,” Eric looked at the actress, Jennifer Connelly, who forced a smile but didn’t say anything.
“You should know that I’m planning to make a movie recently. We just confirmed the male lead last night, and the preparations in New York are already done. We just need to find the female lead, and we can start shooting.”
Even though Jennifer Connelly tried to act reserved, her eyes couldn’t help but light up after hearing Eric’s words. Tim Lester’s eyes were even more filled with excitement.
But Eric continued, “It’s just a pity that the female lead for that movie isn’t suitable for Jenny.”
After speaking, Eric leisurely picked up his coffee and looked at the changing expressions of the two people in front of him. He played a small joke, and their reactions were quite interesting.
Even though Tim Rist realized he was being played, he didn’t dare show any displeasure. However, his disappointment was evident on his face. Jennifer Connelly tightly gripped her skirt hem. She was still wearing the dress she wore to the party last night. Upon hearing Eric’s words, the actress felt a sense of loss, making her breath quicken and the ample softness under her dress sway with her heaving chest. She looked extremely alluring.
After thinking for a moment, Tim Rist suggested reluctantly, “Mr. Williams, perhaps we can let Jenny try out for the role and see how it goes. Her performance in ‘Swan Song’ last year was excellent.”
Eric shook his head, “If it was just about acting, that wouldn’t be a problem. The key is her image. The movie I’m making requires a homely image, but Jenny’s temperament is too elegant and unsuitable.”
“That’s a real pity,” Tim Rist shook his head and sighed.
Eric took a sip of coffee and said calmly, “But it’s not a big deal. Hollywood produces hundreds of movies every year, and even the seven major movie companies produce no fewer than 100 films annually. It’s easy to find a movie suitable for Jenny.”
Jennifer Connelly still had some doubts about Eric’s recent besiegement, which had become well-known. Although no evidence had been disclosed, it was widely believed that the Seven Big Studios were manipulating behind the scenes. Therefore, Eric should have been in conflict with the Seven Big Studios. What was the use of discussing this now?
But Tim Lester had a deeper understanding than Jennifer Connelly. Since Eric had successfully weathered the storm, it meant that he was barely accepted by the Seven Big Film Companies. Under such circumstances, it would be easy for Eric, with his current status in Hollywood, to demand a female lead role from the Seven Big Studios. Any one of the Seven Big Studios would be willing to give Eric face.
“Mr. Williams, are you telling the truth?” Eric nodded, “Of course, but it will take some time. I need to have someone look for it first, and Jenny will have to cooperate.”
“Don’t worry, Jenny will definitely cooperate fully with you,” the agent blurted out without waiting for Eric to finish. The atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Not to mention that the actress’s face turned red, even Eric himself felt embarrassed. Why did he speak so directly?
“Cough, Tim, I mean, Jenny needs to free up some time to cooperate with some auditions,” Although he felt it was useless to salvage the situation, Eric still added what he didn’t say just now.
“I understand, I understand,” Tim Reste said pleasingly.
Just as the situation became awkward, there was a knock on the door. Allen poked his head in and gave an apologetic look. “Mr. Williams, there is something urgent.”
“Please wait a moment,” Eric quickly said and then left the office.
“Here’s the thing, Mr. Williams. I just called Mr. Stan Winston and explained our intentions. He readily agreed, and the meeting is set for 11:30 this morning. Oh, and Mr. Winston also wants to bring a friend. So, I thought I’d let you know as soon as possible.”
A friend?
Eric raised his eyebrows and quickly thought of a certain voice - Stan Winston, his best friend without a doubt. Cameron must have been involved in this.
“No problem. Is the phone still online? Should I speak to them myself?”
“It’s already hung up,” Allen shrugged. “But if you agree, it’s already 10:30 PM. The meeting place is at the Clar restaurant in Beverly Hills. I think you should… cough cough, pay attention to the time.”
Eric checked his watch and glanced at his office before nodding. “Don’t worry, I got it.”
“Then I’ll go and handle it,” the assistant quickly said.
“Sorry, both of you, something came up,” Eric returned to his office and said to Tim Lester and Jennifer Connelly. “I’m afraid we can’t chat for too long.”
“It’s okay, Mr. Williams. Perhaps we can arrange to have dinner together. How about tonight?”
“Sorry, I already have plans tonight,” Eric thought of a tall woman’s figure and said. Since he had made up his mind to keep Famke Janssen in his hands, he naturally had to go out with her more and increase their relationship. Material things were necessary, but emotions were also essential.
After thinking for a moment, Eric turned to Jennifer Connelly and said, “By the way, Jenny, I’m going on a date later. Would you like to be my companion?”
Upon hearing Eric’s words, the woman hesitated.
Tim Lester almost wanted to accept on behalf of the woman, but at this moment, he felt it was better to let her make her own decision.
“It was just an ordinary lunch,” Eric added. “The other person is a well-known Hollywood special effects artist, and possibly a director as well. After we finish lunch, I’ll take you back home.”
“Well, alright then,” Jennifer Connelly nodded quickly when she heard Eric say this.
Eric smiled and looked at the dress Jennifer was wearing, “Actually, your outfit is perfect, hmm, very beautiful.”
“Thank you,” the girl said softly.
“Now that that’s settled, I think I should leave first,” Tim Lester said, feeling relieved after the girl agreed. He quickly stood up and said goodbye.
Eric walked the other person out of the door and then returned to the office, leaving only the two of them. The girl suddenly became a little uneasy.
“Just wait a moment, I’ll change my clothes,” Eric said lightly to the girl and walked towards the small room next to the office.
…
“Stan, do you think that little guy has something important to tell you?” In the Beverly Hills Claire restaurant, two big men sat in a corner. A man with a crew cut asked a middle-aged man with a beard.
“I heard he needs special effects for his next movie. With that young man’s ambition, James, what do you think?” Stan Winston smiled.
“You mean he wants to buy your studio?” James Cameron was stunned for a moment, then said.
“It’s obvious,” Stan Winston said with an unchanged smile.
“I see you’re very interested,” James Cameron thought for a moment and smiled.
“That’s a billionaire with a lot of money. He bought an animation studio last year and invested several tens of millions of dollars into it, but it didn’t produce a single penny. However, he still invests without any hesitation. This generous little guy is naturally very attractive to me. You know, special effects are very expensive, and this is also the reason I brought you here. You’ve always wanted to make ‘Terminator 2’, and this is a good opportunity.”
James Cameron immediately showed an excited expression, but soon became discouraged: “That little guy has never made a high-cost movie before. I remember his most heavily invested movie, ‘The Hidden Battle,’ only cost 30 million. Although I kept cutting the budget of ‘Terminator 2’ and only reported 70 million, none of the seven major studios were willing to take it. I think the other party definitely wouldn’t take this risk either. If such a large production fails, Firefly will definitely be badly hurt.”
“Well, you can’t find investors now anyway,” Stan Winston patted his friend on the shoulder. “So, why not give it a try with him?”