Hollywood Domination Chapter 357: An actor’s self-cultivation

"If you were to ask me if this is the most convenient option, it is."

Cesare was silent for a while, as if he was thinking about Jenny's question, and he seemed to be trying to figure out her heart. After a while, he said calmly, "This is also what Virginia and I discussed. Career route, she believes that doing so can maximize the interests of both of us-as you can see, she has always wanted to find a career heir, and Aiden and the others are undoubtedly a bit young. "

Jennie's lips moved, but Cesare didn't give her a chance to speak.

"But if we're talking about what I thought it was... yeah, the reason I accepted Virginia's offer, and even started working as an agent while I was in college, was because of my interest in the media. My own interest. There are many physical industries in this world. Yes, I can be involved in politics, trade, and even high-tech, because the work I am doing now is essentially buying and selling, and the profits in those industries may be It’s more lucrative. I really chose the film industry because I’m fascinated by it.”

"Fascinated." Jenny repeated, she felt a little funny, "I'm sorry, but it's hard for me to associate the word obsessed with you——"

Cesare allowed her to laugh calmly, but he didn't intend to continue sharing, as if the topic was over. And Jenny looked at him questioningly, "Why don't you continue?"

"There is nothing more to say," Cesare said, "I was fascinated by the media industry, and I happened to have an advantage, so I became an agent with the help of my family-you know half of what happened next." It's very clear, otherwise what else do you want to know?"

"I don't know, is there any sentimental story about why you are fascinated by movies and what it means to you..." Jenny thought of where to say, "Will there be a special story like The Lonely Child?" Love to watch the story of a certain movie - this should be the standard configuration of many literary youths."

"...If you need, I can make up a similar story to satisfy you," Cesare's voice also showed a smile, and the atmosphere became more like chatting, "But unfortunately, it is true There's no such touching story, and I'm obsessed with media, not because of my personal experience -- or rather, my lack of synaesthesia prevents me from connecting my interests to my personal experience, you know, For some sentimental writers and artists, watching it on a thunderstorm day when I was a child... I don’t know, the ordinary afternoon of "The Sound of Music" can be described by them as great as a great change in the world, as if his whole life was because of that afternoon And to be changed, generally speaking, this kind of person also has a strong empathy ability, and can try in creation and performance. Only people with this kind of quality can really enter the role. For people like me Said that nothing changes overnight, and few decisions are even the result of emotion. I chose the media industry, which is a dual function of emotion and reason, and my interest in the media industry comes from years of observation and experience... there is no romantic and moving story, sorry if this is what you expected.”

"What I need is not a romantic and touching story," Jenny laughed, she wrapped her cardigan tightly, and looked at the big and yellow moon in the sky, "That should be Salvi's patent—if I If you ask him, he will definitely give me a romantic story, I promise you—"

"—I will definitely not question it." Cesare said.

They both laughed, and Jenny said, "Then why do you find the media industry fascinating? Because of its ability to affect people?"

"Indeed, because of its power," said Cesare, "why does it attract the best minds? It is one of the least productive of the great industries—lower pay at least, But why do so many people devote themselves to this? Even so that they have to adopt harsh entry barriers, low salaries, long hours of work, and difficult upward channels to screen job applicants, because it can give people great power, This is the biggest reason why I am fascinated by the media industry... You will find that when you gain attention, you also gain incredible power. When they are watching you, you seem to be their master, you It can drive their emotions, affect their thinking, and even more extreme, have an impact on their lives-behind every filmmaker who has been influenced by a movie for a lifetime, there is another successful filmmaker. It is a fascinating phenomenon. Of course, it exists in all cultural products, but you have to admit that movies, compared with TV dramas, TV, news, and music, have a stronger ability to break through the barriers of time and space. This is exactly what is the reason I chose to be a film actor agent...sadly, I don't have the talent to be an actor, but I can still participate in this industry through a more tortuous path...yes, this is what I chose to be One of the reasons for the broker."

"It's a pity that you don't have the talent to be an actor." Jenny said-she couldn't help snickering, "So it's a pity for you-this sentence seems to mean that you tried to be Actor?"

Cesare responded with a meaningful silence, while Jenny straightened up and began to ask, "Wait, wait—don't tell me you really tried it?"

"You know... I've been in private schools—of course they have a lot of extracurricular activities," Cesare said, "and when your whole family is in the film industry and you have a good memory, you can't recite lines. When it's quite natural, it's natural that people will put you in the lead role in a theater festival, at least at first, and they'll try to do that."

Thinking of Cesare reciting Shakespeare's famous lines on stage, Jenny laughed, "Don't tell me they gave up this idea after a spectacular embarrassment."

"No," Cesare seemed to give her a glare, but his tone was also full of a weird joke, "Actually, for a primary school student, my acting skills are not bad, so I have been acting until high school." I've also held roles in drama clubs, which is good for college applications - but I can only barely make it here, playing another person in front of a crowd, or just being noticed by a crowd, is a big deal for me None of them are easy tasks, they don't bring me joy, but a burden. I can only admit that although I have a lot of interest in media-I have also dreamed of being a star, but I don't have the talent for this , I couldn’t break my defenses in front of the camera.”

"Not so confident, are you?" Jenny said understandingly, "Too much self-consciousness, which is indeed the first problem to be overcome in acting class."

"Yes," Cesare said solemnly, "this is indeed a pity-just imagine, if I can have acting talent, even if it is just a mediocre acting talent-I think the generation born after 75 will be the first to get it. Oscar's person should not be Christopher."

Jenny laughed, "Yes, if you can have acting talent, network resources and the current company at the same time - then you are the male version of me, maybe you will be better than me, because your network After all, stronger and stronger than me."

"But I am also very satisfied with the current situation. I have progressed from selecting movies, buying and selling movies to making movies. Although it has not yet been recognized by the market, this is somewhat of an improvement." Cesare shrugged, "and The .points are also higher than those of my peers. In terms of my talent, I can be satisfied with the current start."

Cesare is less than 35 years old this year, and has already earned a net worth of more than one billion by virtue of his own ability (although he did not start from scratch). Jenny was a little overwhelmed at first, but soon realized that what he was talking about was his ability to directly produce movies—from this point of view, what he was doing before had nothing to do with making movies. Star-making and marketing, followed by company operations and business negotiations. The real producers should be "Marley and Me" and "Dragon and Tiger Boys". Tiger Boys, perhaps in Cesare's mind, is his first work as a filmmaker.

"So, managing a company isn't what you really want to do? Would you rather just make a movie and manage a company just to get as much profit as possible?" she speculated, "If Are these two jobs in conflict? I mean—actually, your time is not enough now, if you had to choose, which would you choose? To be a company or to be a film?”

Cesare was silent for a while, then smiled wryly.

"I found that you are a very resilient person, you are going to pass this question on to me, you must pass it on - this question should be asked by Salvi, right? The person who will star in the new movie It's not me, why do I have to answer?"

The light-hearted complaint in his words made it all seem more like a joke, and made Jenny laugh.

"Because I want to refer to your practice," she said honestly, kicking Cesare's calf, "You see how important you are—quickly answer—ouch!"

Cesare quickly grabbed her arm and warned, "Don't sit too close to the edge, be careful, otherwise you may fall down."

Jenny was also frightened, she stuck a little closer, but she didn't give up, "Quick answer, quick answer, or I'll keep kicking, kicking, kicking—"

Although the light was very weak, she still saw Cesare rolling his eyes.

"Okay, that quick answer—I'm in a different situation than you." His tone was higher and tense than usual, as if suppressing the urge to tell her to 'shut up', the tone of the answer There is also a suspicion of showing off, "Of course, the past six months have been busier than before, but that is mainly because international distribution and production are learning, some things only need to be done once, and then you can let Someone else did it—that’s why you’re called leadership, isn’t it? As long as I get through this tough period, my workload will be manageable, and it’s not a multiple-choice question for me.”

Because his tone was full of the sense of superiority of "I won", the heaviness of the question itself was relieved a lot. Jenny sneered and kicked him again, Cesare said, "Hey! ’ with a sound, but instead of dodging, he grabbed her arm again to prevent her from losing her balance due to this movement and really falling.

"Aside from your unreasonable pride, this is indeed a question that varies from person to person," Jenny also stopped expressing her childish emotions, and retracted her feet again. She turned on the flashlight and shot aimlessly. Looking at the vegetation on the hillside, "Maybe it's like anyone. When you start out, you don't have too many choices. You keep fighting for options. Don't people say? The only meaning of being rich is that you can have Choice, but many times, when you have no choice, the sense of happiness may actually be stronger, because you can only and only need to do the things in front of you well, and when you start to have choices... when the choices are full When you lose your world, maybe you will get lost because of it... When you can do anything, what should you do?"

The atmosphere seemed to gradually become a little sentimental, and then Cesare gave a flat, homely 'hmm', which ruined the whole atmosphere——Jenny couldn't hold back, and almost wanted to kick him again.

"So, this is actually an emotional choice," Cesare said in a tone of 'you're a little fussy', "—I thought you were worried that you would act mentally again—hey! This is really Pain! - ok, ok, that's a very important question too - but I don't think it's an either/or option is it? The situation is far from that urgent, is it? I understand Salvi It may require your absolute concentration and devotion during the filming, which is also the basic requirement of the experiential school - but during this period, I can take care of the company's affairs, since it can survive during your filming of "Monroe", this Why not once? Logically speaking, it doesn't make sense."

"It's not that I'm not worried about my mental disorder—" Jenny said emphatically, and then she pursed her lips again. The conversation with Cesare often gave her the feeling that she couldn't escape—in front of him You’d think it’s a cowardly and stupid thing to run away from yourself, “but instead, it’s not necessarily going to be a successful movie, you know? If I were an actor, all I’d have to think about is the movie itself. quality, then I might agree to act without hesitation, but when I am a star—the next literary film is very important to me, when my time and energy are very precious and are needed by many projects at the same time When it takes half a year or a year to produce such a film, it may not be a success at the box office and critics, and there may not be so many people who can appreciate it—even the film that the director himself is not sure about. I was attracted to this project only because of a possibility... If you were me, would you hesitate? You would also have a hard time choosing. It is not related to the success or failure of a movie itself, nor is it your business and How to balance the performance, it is related to your pursuit, your direction... your final choice..."

Words cannot express all her thoughts, Jenny paused, and said with some difficulty, "It is related to a metaphysical thing... *, I don't know how to say it."

"In general, you are timid," Cesare said, "you are intimidated by the risk of this project."

"No!" Jenny instinctively denied this weak guess, "I am——I can't adapt to making a movie whose commercial value is completely unappreciated, even myself. Attracted - yes, that's what I want to ask you, I think it may not make too much money, it will be a kind of damage to Jennifer Jefferson, of course to Big Dream Saying it will have an impact, even if I—even if I want to star, will you support me? Will you blame me? We just made a decision, the next art film must be chosen carefully, and we must not get carried away— "

She stopped talking, and Jenny had a feeling that Cesare was already deep in thinking—maybe this was not an easy choice for him, and there were indeed too many factors to consider. Not only the opportunity cost and time cost of a movie, but also the value of the entire 'Jennifer Jefferson' brand...

"Do you like acting?" When Cesare asked, Jenny almost didn't recover—she had also fallen into her own thinking maze, and was troubled by this problem again.

"I... Do I like acting?" She repeated the question, a little caught off guard.

"Yes, do you like acting?—what was it like when you first came into contact with acting?" Cesare asked—he smiled again, "It's strange that when I was thinking about it just now, I suddenly I found out that in the nine years we have known each other, I have never asked you this question."

"Maybe that's because when we first met, it wasn't an option in itself, it was a craft, a fast ascension," Jenny said, and she couldn't help smiling—it was It was her first real exposure to the profession of an actor, though, of course, not her first exposure to acting.

"Do I like acting?" she repeated the question in a low voice, "That's a good question, when I first got into acting, did I like it?"

She looked at the manor under her feet - this sleeping beast built by modern technology, looking at one of the properties she obtained through acting, a faint sense of accomplishment rose up, and the corners of her mouth slowly turned up Qiao: The successful present makes looking back on the past less painful, and even has a bit of nostalgia.

" - I think...yeah, I love it, I loved it when I first got into acting...it makes me feel special and gives me hope out of my troubles , it’s a way to adapt fate, it’s a... a fast way up.” She said, thinking of the past, her smile grew bigger and bigger. "Can you imagine? A girl who just arrived in Beijing, her whole world used to be just a small remote town, and suddenly she came to one of the largest cities in the world. In exchange for our delicious meal, she just walked in one expensive specialty store after another, looking through those tags, and she was not timid at all. All she had was longing. She wanted to prepare a decent dress for the interview. , it’s no longer old clothes that don’t fit, and all she can rely on, apart from her looks, is her acting talent—at that time, of course, she loved acting very much.”

"But that's just a utilitarian love," Cesare said in a low voice, "her love is only because acting can bring her benefits."

"Yes, after that - she entered the university and started her busy university life. Apart from her studies, she has a lot of things to do, to earn some living expenses for herself, and to find a suitable rich husband... She has too many things to consider, and acting is no longer her all hope," Jenny said softly, "She also realized that changing her destiny through acting—relying on this skill to gain a foothold in society is a very important thing. A naive idea is far inferior to finding a wealthy son-in-law. As you said, the threshold for an actor is very high. If you have no connections, you can only count on your luck. Of course, there is one exception, that is Use your talent to conquer it all.”

She paused, then smiled self-consciously, "To be honest, there was a short period of time before entering college, she was very eager to perform-she liked to get approval, and she had been doing it before she discovered acting. Troubled by her own incompetence, the performance allowed her to be affirmed for the first time beyond her appearance, and made her feel her own ability. It turned out that she could really change her destiny with her own strength—she also liked the feeling of showing her talent, She thought she could go on like this and change everything with acting... Then, she enrolled in school and began to really study acting, and what followed was a very common "university loss". It can't be called top-notch, and her level among her classmates can only be regarded as mediocre at best."

Cesare didn't bother, so Jenny recalled freely, "There is no talent, no connections, and in Beijing, the opportunities are far less abundant than Hollywood, and the competition is of course much fiercer. She didn't wait and try. capital, then the most sensible choice is of course to shift the focus and find an ideal husband for myself..."

"And she found it." Cesare's tone was sure.

"Yes, she found it," Jenny said, "and she did shift her focus--but she still loved acting... She loved acting classes, practice assignments, and getting away from herself for a while. , the feeling of pretending to be another person, whose troubles may be more troublesome than hers, more suffocating and more hopeless than her situation, which makes her feel a little relieved about her life-the other person's Life may be very sweet and happy, and it is a rare escape for her. She never knows what happiness is, but in the performance, she can allow herself to desire and imagine—even if she has no talent, She still likes this feeling, she doesn't need the teacher's admiration, the casting director's affirmation, she only derives happiness from the act itself, does she like acting? I think, she should like acting."

"Then I think she should be considered a real actress." Cesare said, his tone softened, like an invisible hug. "Only stars need to calculate their stardom gains and losses - box office appeal, award competitiveness, company leaders need to calculate their own influence and sense of authority, producers calculate a movie's box office and awards, but for actors She said that the only important thing is the movie itself, she does not need the affirmation of the audience and film critics, for her, the performance itself is the result.”

"But..." Jenny said, she hesitated for no reason, "but—"

"I know what you want to say-but I'm your partner and broker, yes, from the perspective of the company, the company needs your sense of authority, your never-fail," Chesa Lei became serious, "This can help Dameng develop faster. As your former agent, I also hope that you can take over movies with a higher chance of winning. This can extend your professional life and allow you to get more rewards." Awards - One thing you need to know, Jenny, is that in Hollywood, stars never lack friends, but actors are always alone, and they can't have a professional team, because they can't produce enough profits to support them. So, as As a member of your team, I serve your star and celebrity status. When we sit in the office of Dameng, I must also be responsible for my duties. What adverse effects come..."

He turned his head to look at Jenny, and suddenly smiled, "But now, we are wearing sportswear and sitting on a big rock at the top of the cliff during non-working hours. I think at this moment, I am just a friend of an actor , and I must remind you how valuable your talent is - there are countless people in the world who would trade it for your talent and want to be an actor like you - maybe as your... I don't know, your Partner, your buddy, I should be worried about your mental health, I should say '*it, what movie, I just want you to live healthy and rich', but as a lack of talent, not able to set foot on this path Former reserve actor, what I really want to tell you is...you are an actor, and an actor should be in the movie that he wants to be in."

Pause, he added, "It's natural, isn't it?"

Jenny turned her head to look at him, at Cesare in the moonlight, at his dark blue eyes, and the gentle smile in them.

"You're right." She also laughed, "It's natural, an actor should act in the movie he wants to act in-regardless of success or failure, this is... haha, this is... a An actor's self-cultivation, isn't it?"

A trace of confusion flashed across Cesare's eyes, but he still nodded.

"Ultimately it's just a matter of finding out who you are," he said, shifting his position. "Would you like to sit a little longer?"

"We will all get up early tomorrow." Jenny stood up and patted her buttocks, and turned on the flashlight again. Before, go back."

"Okay." Cesare took the flashlight and lowered the rock before Jenny, "Be careful where you stand—the light is not so good now."

"Well, you should also be careful. The flashlight will first shine on the soles of your feet, and then shine on me—" Jenny said, "By the way, remember that I will pay you when you get back—tonight's chicken soup time for the soul, if Maggie The charging standard is worth at least a thousand dollars."

"Ha, ha." Cesare laughed dryly politely. "Then I would like to thank you for your generosity."

Jenny chuckled, but quickly concentrated on finding a foothold. Now that the moon has gone to the other side of the mountain, the road is indeed not as easy as when going up the mountain.

The two walked for a while in silence, and this time it was Cesare who broke the silence.

"Speaking of it." He said thoughtfully, "Your behavior in this matter is indeed a bit strange-maybe you can talk to Maggie about it."

"You mean?" Jenny asked a little strangely.

"According to what I know about you, you should have always been very interested in acting and dare to take risks-according to your usual thinking mode, although you will be aware of the risks involved, you should still I believe that I can make it a blockbuster, because before that, you have created such miracles several times.” Cesare said with some confusion, “For you are very talented, it’s not easy There is no shortage of certain actors, your caution about this project is a bit unreasonable—I even think you are a little afraid and not confident enough—but you have no reason to be so. If it is just that it is difficult to predict the prospects of the project, " "Codename Shero" is also an unpredictable project, but your performance has always been full of confidence, isn't it?"

"Because "Code Shero" does not require high acting skills, and—" Jenny blurted out, but bit the second half of the sentence in time: Maybe this is the reason why she really hesitated about this project, This is a project that cannot be assisted by a cheat, and the performing arts space seems to be useless, but without a cheat, she...maybe in front of a director like Salvi, she...would really feel guilty...

Noticing that Cesare stopped and looked at her curiously, Jenny suddenly felt a pang of guilt rushing straight to her forehead: Over the years, with her golden fingers, she has obtained so many things that should not belong to her. Her reward, she even got used to it by the end, but—at this moment, when Cesare had just shared his *past with her—she felt guilty, guilty again. feel.

'For a talented actor like you', 'You don't know how many people are willing to exchange your talent' - Cesare did not emphasize how much he wants to be an actor, but isn't his envy and praise already in Did it come out in words?

And does she deserve the praise? "The Fifth Sally" is opportunistic in the performance space, "Michael Clayton" and "A Week with Monroe" cannot be said to be purely out of acting - "Michael Clayton" just happens to have reality The experience of life, 'bumped', and "Monroe" actually still has the help of the performing arts space, so she can quickly enter the role of Monroe. In this project, there is nothing to 'bump', and the performing arts space can not help She enters the play, she can only rely on herself, and shoot under the guidance of Salvi, a discerning and critical director——

Are the many excuses just to cover up her fear? Can she... really play this role well? Apart from Goldfinger, is she really a good enough actress?

"And—" she repeated flusteredly, taking a random step, "and I—ah!"

"Aww!"

Chesare's left foot was in a lot of trouble tonight. After being kicked several times, it was accidentally stepped on by Jenny, causing both of them to lose their balance. , fell into the hillside one after another while waving, the flashlight was first thrown to an invisible distance, and Jenny could only cover her face tightly in the flashlight, for fear that the guy who was eating would be hurt - at one point she seemed to be rolling down out of control , but fortunately Cesare grabbed her hat, pulled her into his arms abruptly, and shoveled down the dirt together with him.

Fortunately, the **** is very gentle. After all, they did not roll all the way down the foot of the mountain, but stopped halfway up the slope. But even so, the mountain stone at least caused them a large area of ​​soft tissue contusion - at least half of Jenny's back and buttocks were very painful, and she guessed that a large area of ​​bruising would form tomorrow.

Staring at the moon and gasping for breath for a while, she tried to move aside—and grunted in pain because of this movement, and then said weakly, "Uh... sorry..."

Cesare, who was half a pad for her, snorted, and his tone was not very cheerful, but considering that he should have suffered a greater impact than her, Jenny shrank her neck and lowered her posture, "You Are you okay?"

"You'd better make sure your face's okay, or it's the most ridiculous excuse for getting hurt ever - and seriously undercuts your prestige, if you care," Cesare said, "—I'm okay , what about you?"

"I... my **** hurts..." Jenny said, "Get up first, let me lie down for a while, I have no strength now."

Cesare's tone became serious, "Is it a severe pain?—Where is the pain? Is it the hip or the lumbar spine—"

He had already sat up, and bent down to check on her situation at this moment, at least that's what Jenny understood in her vague thinking, but at the same time she had already accumulated a certain amount of strength and wanted to prop herself up ——

Everything happened so quickly, she wasn't even sure if it happened, a bump, maybe even just a brush - Cesare stepped back abruptly, and she was still a little dazed, Sitting up straight, he instinctively announced, "There shouldn't be—"

Slowly realizing what seemed to have happened just now, Jenny pursed her lips and said in a daze, "—big event—oh——"

Cesare didn't look at her at first, the atmosphere suddenly became extremely awkward.