I am Hollywood

Chapter 7: Audition



[Chapter 7: Audition]

Eric followed James and a few others into a small temporary soundstage. As he looked around at the familiar surroundings, he felt a flutter of excitement. He silently vowed to all the movie equipment, "Just wait, beauties, this time I'm going to become the movie legend everyone admires. I want future generations to remember Hollywood the same way they recall Barry Diller's biography. When they mention Eric Williams, they'll say: he is Hollywood!"

As the scriptwriter, he skipped all the questions about understanding the character during the audition and went straight into the performance.

In his previous life, besides being a director, Eric had also struggled as an actor, appearing in various movies and TV shows for minor roles. After all, in that circle, whenever someone he knew had an actor in their crew that looked like him, a quick phone call could land him a minor role, earning a few thousand dollars, helping him build connections for future opportunities. Penny Marshall casually picked a few scenes for Eric to perform. The first few were quite simple, and since he had practiced privately for some days and had a clear image of the original movie in his mind, Eric performed effortlessly.

Brooks and Penny Marshall, who were watching, found themselves surprised. Eric's performance was nothing like that of a complete novice -- if he maintained this level of quality during actual filming, he wouldn't even need the short-term training; they could jump straight into movie preparations.

"Next up, Eric, give this scene a shot," Penny smiled as she handed him a script. From her expression, Eric felt he had passed this round, easing his nerves as he had been afraid of making mistakes.

Looking at the script, this scene was one where Mike comforts his daughter after she breaks up with her boyfriend on a school stage. It included Mike's favorite and most iconic lines from the film.

"Ms. Penny, I need a female actress to perform this scene with me."

"Of course," Penny said, turning to a female crew member nearby. "Teresa, come on over and act with Eric."

The scene lasted over two minutes, so Eric and the girl named Teresa took a few minutes to prepare. Teresa only needed to get the lines down since she was just a "prop." Eric, however, was deeply immersing himself in the emotions portrayed in the scene -- feeling the concern when his daughter cried, the fury upon hearing that his daughter might sleep with Stan, and clumsy as he attempted to comfort her when she came to him for support.

Once ready, a crew member shouted, "Action!" and the performance began.

...

Maggie sat on a prop box, pretending to cry.

Mike walked closer, concern etched on his face. "Hey, Maggie, what's wrong?"

"Go away," Maggie mumbled, tucking her hands into her sleeves and continuing to cry.

"Hey, what happened?" Mike sat beside her.

"What do you want? To pet my head and say, 'Didn't I tell you?""

"No, no, no, I wouldn't do that," Mike hurriedly explained, "I just want to know what's going on."

"Stan dumped me."

"Stan dumped you!" Mike raised an eyebrow, surprise flashing across his face before melting into anger and disbelief.

A father would naturally be happy to learn that his daughter broke up with a jerk. But then realizing that the jerk had actually dumped his daughter sparked his outrage. In a father's eyes, his daughter, being so wonderful, should have been the one to walk away -- what right did that jerk have to dump her!

...

Watching Eric's performance, James Brooks and Penny Marshall exchanged astonished looks. If Eric's earlier performance could be rated a sixty, this change in expression alone elevated it to a ninety. James began to respect Eric; someone at his level wouldn't be someone who was rigid in their views and unable to change their opinions once negative feelings emerged.

The scene continued unfolding.

...

Upon hearing that his daughter might sleep with Stan, Mike went into a frenzy. Once confirming that a terrible outcome hadn't occurred, he embraced his daughter while awkwardly scratching his head, struggling to find the right words to comfort her.

"When you're young, a little thing feels like the end of the world, but it's not. This is just the beginning. You might run into a few jerks, but one day, you'll find a boy who treats you like a treasure, spinning around you like the sun, up and down."

"Really?"

"Of course."

"You're so sweet," Maggie said, and as she leaped into Mike's arms, he noticed her strange emotional state and clumsily pulled back, grabbing his backpack and standing up, inviting her to join his party while fending off her advances.

...

Clap--clap--clap--n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

As soon as they finished performing, James Brooks and Penny Marshall couldn't help but applaud. With their professional eyes, they could clearly see just how exceptional Eric's performance was. The crew members nearby, noticing the director and producer's reactions, joined in with their own applause.

Michael Krauss stood by, grinning and clapping his hands. While he also thought Eric's performance was impressive, he knew he wasn't a professional. Yet, from the actions of James and Penny, he understood that Eric had passed the audition, meaning the script for 17 Again had successfully sold, and he would earn at least a hundred thousand dollars in commission. Though he ran a small publishing house with decent performance, his total assets amounted to only around four to five million, mostly in real estate. Landing a single payment of a hundred thousand was a significant sum for him.

Having passed the critical audition, everything began to fall into place.

Eric sold the script for $250,000 and signed an actor's contract for $150,000. The script's price was $50,000 more than anticipated, which Michael fought for since half of that belonged to him. As for the actor's fee, although Eric excelled, he was still a newcomer, making $150,000 reasonable.

[T/N: Originally it was 500K but it didn't feel realistic for a newbie. So, I changed it to 150K.]

In no time, Eric found himself worth over $275,000. Though actor payments would only be made after filming concluded, it still gave him a surreal feeling. If only he had that amount of money in his previous life, he surely would have produced a film himself. Unfortunately, amid all his hardworking peers in the industry, only a handful ever managed to become movie directors.

...

After signing the contracts, Eric left Fox Studios with a check in hand. The next order of business was preparing for the film. He wanted to get involved and gain experience, but having just earned the goodwill of the producer and director, he didn't want to give them the impression he would overstep his role.

As for the planned acting classes, they were canceled. In Penny Marshall's words, Eric's performance was perfect, and there was no need to waste time in beginner classes. Any minor flaws could be corrected during filming.

Eric went to the bank with Michael Krauss, cashed the check, and paid Michael $125,000. He didn't mind this expense too much; while Michael hadn't done much, getting the script in front of the right people was enough. If it had just been up to him, without contacts, who knows when he would have sold the script, not to mention the conditions attached. Soon, he resigned from the restaurant as Jeff expected. After a month together, Eric invited his coworkers over for a small party at his place. Jeff and a few senior colleagues did not

attend. After a night of revelry, Eric drunkenly passed out, deeply asleep.

*****

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