In the face of Lance's ridicule, Cole chuckled and shook his head, "No, this job can be done by any top agent, and I am not the only one who can complete the commission." Cole's back-and-forth answer raised the corners of Lance's mouth slightly, "But I must admit that I wish I could get the job, and I think I'm good enough to deserve it." ”

At this moment, Cole did not hide it anymore, but showed strong self-confidence, met Lance's scrutinizing gaze with dignity, and conveyed his firmness with his head held high.

To be honest, Lance's understanding of the agent is really limited, and his understanding of the actor's contract is even more limited. Filming "City of God", he hardly needs to worry about these things, the young actors in Brazil are completely cash-settled, and there are no contract problems at all; Filming "The Day After Tomorrow" is also barely involved, and the only tricky Dennis Quaid is far from being an important person.

Clearly, Cole taught him a good lesson, and even after years of rolling in Hollywood, his knowledge of the industry is still only the tip of the iceberg.

"Back to the issue of the distribution of benefits." Cole knew that he had taken the initiative at this time, and naturally he would not miss the opportunity to strike while the iron was hot, "In terms of box office sharing, what you are currently participating in is the total box office share in advance, of course, this is also a matter of course, because you are participating in the sharing as a co-shooting with the production company." But as your business becomes more and more successful, you will participate in the adjusted share of total revenue in the future, in other words, the net profit share. In addition, there is a bonus for the overseas distribution rights to share the premiere box office performance, etc., etc., etc., which will need to be negotiated by me. ”

Lance's eyes lifted slightly. He opened his mouth to refute, but Cole didn't give him a chance and raised his hand to stop Lance's words. And then he said, "I know what you mean. You will definitely say that this is left to you to negotiate, and there is absolutely no problem. Yes, that's true, especially if you're talking as a production company, I'm just an agent, and I can't do anything. But you have to be aware that talking to the big studios about profits. This is a very cumbersome matter, and it can even tear the skin in the face, not to mention the trivial rights and interests that I have just mentioned. But the problem is that even after the two sides have fallen out, they still need to sit down again and continue talking. So, you need a character to play the bad guy and be in charge of arguing with the studio, and then you play the good guy and work with the studio. ”

There are some things that the broker can say. But artists can't say that; There are some conditions that the agent can mention, but the artist can't ignore his face; There are some contradictions. Agents can stir up trouble, but artists must have scruples.

"So, you're the bad guy." Lance smiled meaningfully.

Cole spread out his hands, did not speak, only expressed his affirmation with this gesture, and then looked at Lance with a calm face, as if he had played all the hole cards and was now waiting for Lance's judgment. But Lance believes that Cole is far from fully revealing his cards.

The dirty things that agents can handle for artists are far beyond imagination. At the same time, the services and opportunities that agents rely on their connections to strive for artists are far beyond imagination.

There was once such a saying in the circle. At the end of the nineties, after every film project of the eight major Hollywood studios came out. The innovative artist agency will take over as soon as possible, and after they have selected it internally, they will leak it out, and William Morris agency or International Innovation Management will take over, and after they have screened it, it will be the turn of the other agency. In the end, there are only a handful of opportunities to end up in the Screen Actors Guild. Therefore, it is even more difficult for an actor who does not have an agent to win an audition.

Of course, this statement is an exaggeration to describe the dominance of innovative artist agencies in the late nineties.

However, it is undeniable that the existence of the agency has greatly enhanced the status of artists in front of the film company, and the actor's salary has been capped from 5 million US dollars in the mid-80s to 20 million after 20 years of development. At the same time, agents are driven by more self-interest, and they also seek more benefits for artists.

Although it is said that many actors have refused the help of their agents and independently undertaken their own business; But it must be admitted that the broker's deposit has changed the pattern of the entire industry. In today's Hollywood, there is a triangle of checks and balances between artists, agents and producers.

Lance has always underestimated the contribution of his agent, but now it seems that if Chaos Pictures wants to develop further, he does need the help of his agent. Originally, contract negotiation was his shortcoming, and it was Theo and Ian who helped him to negotiate the "acquired" contract, but the problem is that Theo and Ian are professionals in their respective fields, but their understanding of Hollywood is really limited. Especially since he began to get involved in the field of actors, the role of the agent has become more and more obvious.

However, as Cole points out, there is no shortage of suitors in Lance today.

William Morris Agency was founded more than a century ago as the best agency in Hollywood's history, but in the late eighties, their lack of progress was overtaken by the up-and-coming innovative artist agency, which completed the domination of Hollywood in just 15 years and is still the first of Hollywood's five major agencies.

Tom is the artist under the banner of the innovative artist agency.

In addition to Cole, the agents of William Morris, an innovative artist agency, and an international innovation management agency, have actually been in contact with Reims one after another. It can be said that there are many options for Reims, and Cole is not necessarily the best partner.

Choosing the right agent not only means a community of interests, but also the agent will also determine the direction and height of the artist's development. Although the two sides are originally interested in a cooperative relationship, and it is not uncommon to change brokers, Lance knows that the real top brokers are still very rare.

So, why should Lance choose Cole as his agent? Just because of the friendship of the past year or so? No, Lance wasn't so soft-hearted. Right now. It's time for Cole to show his cards.

"Two conditions." Lance is not a novice, and he struggles with the details of things, such as how Cole learned about "killing people with a knife". For example, it doesn't matter why Cole used Tom as the starting point for negotiations. A stable and trustworthy cooperative relationship is, in the final analysis, a collision of each other's capabilities and the division of interests. As for friendship, it can only be a lubricant - it doesn't hurt if you don't have it, and it's better if you have it.

Cole straightened his back and looked at the two fingers of Lance's right hand, knowing that the real success or failure was at this moment. He personally visited him today. It is to be the first to persuade Lance before anyone else to hold Lance's brokerage contract in his hands. Because Cole firmly believes that the future of Lance is definitely not only that, and the "City of God" and "the day after tomorrow" can only be regarded as a small test.

"First." Lance shook his index finger, "I don't know how much you know about 'Killing with a Knife', but my definition is that this is a work that will hit the awards season. I wanted Tom to be fully compatible with my requirements in terms of performance. ”

"Absolutely? Be specific. Cole was a little surprised, surprised by Lance's self-confidence, and surprised by Lance's positioning. But he didn't ask why, believing that Lance would be able to convince Paramount to convince Tom. That's enough.

"Tom hasn't put on any great performances since 'Magnolia', and I need him to break the way he acted, or even change his acting habits, and lose all his charming smile and twinkling puppy eyes. Perform the way I asked me. ”

Lance's unscrupulous words made Cole gasp, not only because of Lance's request, but also because of Lance's big breath. You know, as a director who has only shot two films, Lance doesn't have any credible evidence when it comes to acting. But he demanded that the actors perform exactly the way he did - and for Tom, which was definitely a lion's mouth.

But. Cole didn't rush to jump into conclusions, he realized. Tom was persuaded by Lance to nod and agree to play "Kill with a Knife", so how did Lance convince Tom? Is it an Oscar-winning statuette? If that's the case, it's not necessarily impossible – Tom was almost a puppet of Paul Thomas Anderson when he starred in "Magnolia," and Paul was just a newcomer to directing a second film.

Cole swallowed the surprise that came to his lips, nodded, and motioned for Lance to continue.

"Second." Lance nodded his middle finger, "I want the rights to the adaptation of Sin City." Now that "Murder with a Knife" has been filmed according to Lance's ideas, why not be bold and include the third part of the crime trilogy?

Of course, Lance knew that this was very difficult, and he just wanted to see how much Cole was capable of. If he fails, he won't mind too much, Robert Rodriguez Quentin Tarantino's ambition for "Sin City" is sure to win, and Lance is impressed; But if it works......

After Cole was surprised to the extreme, he calmed down at this time. "Sin City" is Frank Miller's classic comic book, which belongs to the flag of Dark Horse Comics, and Lance's request for the adaptation rights of this work is obviously not unreasonable. On the contrary, it also proves his thinking once again: Lance has a clear goal and a clear idea, and it is clear that his acting career is anything but a thing.

When he chose Lance, he was not waiting for Lance to choose him, this is a two-way competition, there are challenges, and there is a sense of achievement.

"Whew...... I'll take note of it on a notepad. Cole knew that he had taken an important step today, and although he didn't succeed in convincing Lance to sign as his artist, at least it showed that Lance wouldn't accept anyone else as an agent until he succeeded, which was a huge success. As for what will follow, although I am not sure and have no clue, at least this is a start. "So, we can now talk about the cast of 'Kill with a Knife'." (To be continued.) )

ps: Today's first update, I implore book friends to support genuine subscriptions, thank you!