1847 Chapter 1847 Can't Refuse

Knocked on the door again, but there was still no response. Hugo shook his head helplessly, and shouted, "Ernst, I really need your help, please?" But the house Still no response.

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 source of inspiration for the script "As Good as It Gets" is Ernst, Hugo still hopes that Ernst can give some advice.

"Ernst, I have written a brand new script, I need your opinion..." Hugo shouted, and waited for a while, but there was still silence in the room, and he let out a long breath, "That's it , I put the script in your mailbox, and if you have any comments, I left a phone number inside. I really need some professional advice, and I hope to wait for your reply."

Hugo stayed at the door for a while, but unfortunately he was still disappointed. In desperation, he could only turn around and go downstairs, put the script in Ernst's mailbox, and then left.

About five minutes later, after Hugo was sure he had left, the door on the second floor opened quietly. Ernst's old face appeared in the crack of the door. He looked around and double-checked that Hugo was not in ambush outside. Then he went downstairs, opened the mailbox, and saw the wrapped kraft paper bag .

Not seeing Ernst, Hugo couldn't help being a little irritable. The uncertainty and confusion about the role made Hugo feel his own shortcomings again. Sure enough, the all-rounders mentioned in movies and novels are all deceptive. Hugo forced himself to calm down and think quietly, if he were to play Melvin, would he really be less convincing as Steven said? Can acting really overcome the constraints of the character itself? If this is the case, is his script creation too successful or too failed, is this a good thing or a bad thing?

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. The chemical reaction between them is a very important part. It's like when a director sees a certain actor during the 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. Screenwriter, director, actor, producer, these seemingly closely related positions have overlapping work content, but after a thorough understanding, you will find that in fact, the way of thinking of each position is different , especially in the process of writing "As Good as It Gets".

"Hugo, Hugo..." A high-pitched voice blew into Hugo's ears along the sea breeze, interrupting his train of thought. He looked up and looked around, and saw Mark standing next to his car - Canton.

Mark has a neat suit today, with a lot of ties, square scarves, and cufflinks. He looks like he just finished a meeting. Looking around, he saw the commercial vehicle 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 attending a meeting on Sunset Boulevard, and I accidentally found your car parked here, so I wanted to say hello to you." Mark said with a smile, as if today's encounter was really just a coincidence, "So, what are you doing here?"

Hugo looked back at the familiar stairs behind Sunset Plaza, nodded with a smile, "Come to visit an old friend." Before Hugo could figure out what to say next, Mark continued, "Do you have anything else to do today? If there's nothing else, I think maybe we can sit down and have a cup of coffee."

Hugo frowned slightly, and turned his mind, "As long as you don't mind the rough taste of the coffee at the intersection." This is considered a nod of agreement.

The smile on the corner of Mark's mouth was completely outlined, "I have heard that Hugo Lancaster has a lot of research on coffee, and now it seems to be the truth." This made Hugo chuckle, and the two walked towards the square In the coffee shop next to them, they chatted and sat down while looking for a seat.

"By the way, I have read your script, it is really a very wonderful work, although everyone says you are a very good screenwriter, but forgive me, I really did not appreciate the beauty of 'Before Sunrise' But, this time, I have to give you applause, this is a very wonderful story." Mark seemed to just mention this matter in passing, with a light smile in his smile, as if it was just a chat between friends That's all.

Hugo was a little surprised by Mark's composure today. He didn't rush for quick success, and he didn't try to please. "That would be the best thing for me. Although I am already proud now, I will accept any form of praise."

Mark was amused by Hugo, "I'm telling the truth." Mark's smile added some confidence, "So have you found investment for your work now?"

Hugo didn't go around in circles this time, and asked directly, "Is Columbia Pictures interested in investing?"

"Of course, we have been looking forward to working with you again." When Mark said this, he revealed a trace of urgency in his heart. In the past two years, the situation of Columbia Pictures has definitely gone from bad to worse. Mark He has been trying all kinds of ways to get out of this predicament, and now he has finally made some progress, and Hugo is definitely an important part of his plan. Now that he finally has an absolute opportunity, Mark certainly doesn't want to miss it, "How about it, Do you have any idea about the cost and cast?"

The same question, just now Hugo told Steven the truth, but at this time Hugo smiled and looked at Mark seriously, "I'm not sure, I don't know if you have any proposals?" This is friendship There is a difference in shades.

Mark was not surprised, he looked at Hugo carefully, and then said carefully, "If you can play the leading actor, it would be great, of course, the position of producer can also be handed over to You, the part about the investment cost..." Mark paused for a moment and said tentatively, "We are willing to invest 50 million US dollars. Of course, we need to discuss the details of the investment slowly. But that's the budget."

Although Hugo clearly knew Mark's sincerity, the cooperation intention of Sony Columbia Pictures in the past two years is undoubtedly the most obvious. Mark even made compromises to cater to Hugo many times, so in order to win the project , Mark will definitely spend as much money as possible; but even so, he is quite surprised. From the producer to the budget cost, Mark has almost given a proposal that Hugo cannot refuse, showing his ambition to win .

In fact, for any screenwriter or producer, Mark’s positivity is the best news, 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. Under such conditions, it is estimated that this is the only one in Hollywood.

On impulse, Hugo really wanted to nod. But Hugo still spent a lot of willpower to restrain this impulse. It wasn't that he was dissatisfied with Sony Columbia Pictures, it wasn't that he wanted to bargain, and it wasn't that he wanted to wait for DreamWorks' reply, but that Hugo still had doubts about the script. Hugo benefited a lot from the conversation with Steven today, he needs to calm down and organize his thoughts.

Of course, Hugo also clearly knows that in order to reach a cooperation intention, Mark must open up all the conditions; but after the cooperation is really confirmed, the businessman is a businessman after all, how should the budget of 50 million U.S. dollars be arranged and used, and the producer's power sharing How it should work, the reason why Mark wants to cooperate with Hugo so urgently is to make the work successful and profitable, so they will definitely not let it go.

Therefore, even if Hugo wants to nod without any doubts now, he still needs time to settle down, and then let Rick and the others inquire and test before making a decision.

"Wow, that sounds really good." Hugo exclaimed, eyes widening. "So, Mark, tell me, what are your terms?"

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

This sentence made Hugo burst out laughing, clearly not believing it. Mark also realized that he had acted too hastily. As a businessman, it is obviously abnormal to give such a generous contract unconditionally. He smiled helplessly, "Well, our condition is that you must be the leading actor."

"Not even a supporting role?" Hugo asked jokingly, Mark shook his head, "Not even a supporting role." He repeated, "It must be a leading actor."

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

Regarding Mark's conditions, Hugo was very sure, but now he really needs to think about it, and he doesn't know if Ernst can give him some advice.

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

These words made Mark stunned. In his opinion, it was almost a certainty that Hugo would write the script by himself, and his condition was not considered a condition. Objectively speaking, what he values ​​is not Hugo as a screenwriter, but Hugo as an actor. This is the fundamental reason for Mark to delegate power. If Hugo can't play the leading actor, then the value of "As Good as It Gets" is bound to shrink by at least half.

So, what went wrong in the process?