knocked on the door again, but there was still no response, Hugo shook his head helplessly, and shouted, "Ernst, I really have something to do with you, I need your help, please?" But there was still no response in the room.

After the meeting with Steven just now, Hugo came to Sunset Square, hoping to communicate and discuss with Ernst, not only for the role of Melvin, but also because the inspiration for the script "Perfection" was Ernst, and Hugo still hoped that Ernst could give some advice.

"Ernst, I've written a brand new script, and I need your opinion......" Hugo shouted, waiting a little longer, but there was still silence in the room, and he let out a long breath, "Well, I'll put the script in your mailbox, and if you have any comments, I'll leave my phone number inside." I really need some professional advice and hope to wait for your reply. ”

Hugo stayed at the door for a while, but unfortunately he was still disappointed, and in desperation, he had no choice but to turn around and walk downstairs, put the script in Ernst's mailbox, and then left.

After about five minutes, until Hugo was sure that he had left, the door to the second floor quietly opened. Ernst's old face appeared through the crack in the door, and after checking to the right and side to make sure that Hugo was not lying in ambush outside, he went downstairs, opened the mailbox, and saw the wrapped brown paper bag.

didn't see Ernst, Hugo couldn't help but be a little irritable, and the uncertainty and confusion about the role made Hugo feel his own shortcomings again, and sure enough, the all-rounder in the movie was a lie. Hugo forced himself to calm down and think quietly, if he played Melvin, would it really be as Steven said, not convincing enough? Can acting really overcome the constraints of the characters themselves? If so, is it a good thing or a bad thing that he was too successful in writing the screenplay, or too much of a failure?

In fact, in the film industry, casting has always been like this, the director or screenwriter will have the first person to play the role in his mind, and the reasons for this candidate are complex and difficult to explain, but it is undeniable that the chemistry between the character and the actor is a very important part. It's like when a director sees an actor during an audition for a role, he thinks that the actor is very suitable at first sight, and there are countless cases like this.

Hugo naturally knew this very well, but he had never felt it so deeply before. Screenwriters, directors, actors, and producers, all of these seemingly closely related positions have overlapping work contents, but when you really have a complete understanding of it, you will find that in fact, each position has a different way of thinking, especially in the process of writing "perfect".

"Hugo, Hugo......" A high-pitched cry blew down the sea breeze into Hugo's ears, interrupting his train of thought, and he looked around to see Mark Canton standing next to his car.

Mark is dressed in a straight suit today, with a tie, a scarf, and cufflinks, and he looks like he has just finished a meeting. I looked left and right, and sure enough, I saw the business car parked in the parking space in front of Hugo's car. Hugo also smiled and waved in greeting, "Hey, why are you here?" ”

"I just finished a meeting on Sunset Boulevard when I accidentally spotted your car parked here and wanted to say hello to you." Mark smiled and said, as if today's encounter was really just a coincidence, "So, are you here for something?" ”

Hugo looked back at the familiar staircase behind Sunset Square and nodded with a smile, "Come and visit an old friend." "It's an understatement. Before Hugo could figure out what to say, Mark continued, "Do you have anything else to do today?" If it's okay, I thought, maybe we can sit down and have a coffee. ”

Hugo raised his eyebrows slightly, and his mind turned, "As long as you don't mind the rough taste of this coffee at the intersection." That's a nod of yes.

The smile on the corner of Mark's mouth was completely outlined, "I have long heard that Hugo Lancaster has studied coffee, and now it seems to be the truth." Hugo chuckled at this, and the two of them walked to the café next to the square, chatting and finding a place to sit down.

"By the way, I've read your script, it's really a wonderful work, although everyone says you're a very good screenwriter, but forgive me, I really didn't appreciate the beauty of 'Before Sunrise'. However, this time, I have to give you a round of applause, which is a wonderful story. Mark smiled as if he were just talking about it in passing, as if it were just a casual conversation between friends.

Hugo was already a little surprised by Mark's composure today, he didn't rush for quick success, he didn't deliberately please, everything fell into place, he didn't cut into the topic without any reluctance, and his performance was very good. "That's great for me, of course, and although I'm starting to be proud now, I'll accept any kind of compliment."

Mark was amused by Hugo, "I'm telling the truth. Mark's smile added some confidence, "So now do you have the opportunity to invest in your work?" ”

Hugo didn't go around in circles this time, and asked directly, "Does Columbia Pictures have the intention of investing?" ”

"Of course, we are always looking forward to working with you again." Mark revealed a trace of urgency in his heart when he said this, in the past two years, the situation of Columbia Pictures can definitely be said to be getting worse, Mark has been trying all kinds of ways to get out of this dilemma, and now there is finally some improvement, and Hugo is definitely an important part of his plan, and now he has finally waited for the absolute opportunity, Mark certainly doesn't want to miss it, "How about it, do you have any idea about the cost and the cast?" ”

The same question, Hugo was telling Steven the truth just now, but at this time Hugo showed a smile and looked at Mark seriously, "I'm not sure, I don't know what proposal you have?" "That's the difference between the depth of friendship.

Mark was not surprised, he looked at Hugo carefully, and then considered the words and said, "If you can play the leading role, it will be great, of course, the position of producer can also be handed over to you, the part about the investment cost ......" Mark paused a little and said tentatively, "We are willing to invest 50 million dollars, of course, we still need to discuss the details of the investment slowly." But, that's the way the budget is. ”

Although Hugo clearly knows Mark's sincerity, the cooperation intention of Sony Columbia Pictures in the past two years is undoubtedly the most distinct, and Mark has even made compromises many times in order to cater to Hugo, so in order to win the "perfect" project, Mark will definitely try to spend as much as possible; But even so, he was quite surprised, from the producer to the budget cost, Mark almost gave a proposal that Hugo could not refuse, showing his ambition to win.

In fact, for any screenwriter or producer, Mark's positivity could not be better, which means that Hugo can create the "perfect" work according to his own ideas, and ensure the quality of the work as much as possible. With such conditions, it is estimated that there is only one in the entire Hollywood.

Hugo was impulsive, and he really wanted to nod. But Hugo still spent a lot of willpower to suppress this impulse, not dissatisfied with Sony Columbia Pictures, not wanting to bargain, not waiting for a reply from DreamWorks, but Hugo still has doubts about the script, and Hugo benefited a lot from today's conversation with Steven, and he needs to calm down and sort out his thoughts.

Of course, Hugo also knew very well that in order to reach the intention of cooperation, Mark must open all the conditions; But after the cooperation is really determined, the businessman is a businessman after all, how should the budget of 50 million US dollars be arranged, how should the power sharing of the producer be operated, and the reason why Mark is so eager to cooperate with Hugo is to make the work successful and profitable, so they will definitely not let it go.

Therefore, even if Hugo doesn't have any doubts now and wants to nod his head, he still needs time to settle down, and then let Rick and them inquire and test before making a decision.

"Wow, that sounds really awesome." Hugo's eyes widened and he sighed, "So, Mark, tell me, what are your conditions?" ”

Mark shrugged his shoulders and spread his hands, "Seriously, we don't have any conditions. ”

This sentence made Hugo laugh a little, making it clear that he didn't believe it. Mark also realized that he was in a hurry, as a businessman, it was obviously not normal to give away such a generous contract unconditionally, he smiled helplessly, "Okay, our condition is that you must be the male lead." ”

"Not even a supporting role?" Hugo asked mockingly, and Mark shook his head, "Not even a supporting role." "It has to be the male lead." ”

This is the difference between Mark and Steven, Steven values the work itself, while Mark values Hugo himself. Of course, this is also because Steven is a friend of Hugo, so he will put aside his businessman to give sincere advice, in the final analysis, Steven, as the leader of DreamWorks, he will eventually return to the position of a businessman.

Hugo was pretty sure about Mark's conditions, but now he really needed to think about it, and he didn't know if Ernst could give him some advice.

Gathering his thoughts, Hugo smiled, "Thank you for your conditions, I will think about it seriously." ”

This made Mark stunned, in his opinion, Hugo starred in writing his own script, which is almost a certainty, and his conditions are not considered conditions. Objectively speaking, what he values is not Hugo as a screenwriter, but Hugo as an actor, which is the fundamental reason for Mark's decentralization. If Hugo had no way to play the leading role, the value of "perfection" would inevitably shrink by at least half.

So, what went wrong in the process?