A wonderful dinner.
The food was simple, but the service was top notch. The waitress, dressed as a maid, served attentively, cutting the steak and delivering it to the mouth, The red wine tasted exquisite.
After dinner, Ava kept talking to Hardy about the movie plot.
After listening to the whole story line, Ava realized that indeed, as Hardy said, this movie was entirely a male oriented film, with the female lead having very little presence.
But for her first movie role, being able to get the female lead was extremely lucky. She knew that if it weren't for Hardy, she might not have gotten a chance to play the female lead, even after running as an extra for ten years.
"Tomorrow you and I will go to Noah Film Company to meet the director," Hardy said.
"What if the director doesn't choose me?" Ava asked worriedly.
Hardy held the woman's face and said seriously, "This movie is my investment. I am the producer. Do you think I can't decide on a female lead?"
His tone exuded the confidence of a domineering CEO.
There are too many beautiful women in Hollywood, and many people exert all their efforts just for a chance. Meeting Hardy was a stroke of great luck for herself.
Ava wasn't foolish.
She would firmly grasp such an opportunity, not daring to relax at all.
The next day. Hardy drove with Ava Gardner to the film company. The receptionist Susan saw Hardy coming in with a young and beautiful woman, and compared to this woman, she immediately felt inferior.
She had given hints to assistant Hardy before, but he didn't care. It turned out that Hardy already had such a beautiful girlfriend.
In the assistant's office, there was a rough draft of the script from yesterday. Hardy handed it to Ava. "You take a look at the script first. I'll go talk to the general manager, and then I'll take you to meet Director Nolan."
Hardy left, and Ava eagerly began reading the script. This was the first script she had ever received in her life, and she cherished it deeply.
In the general manager Cohen's office, Cohen saw Hardy smiling and stood up, "Hardy, I heard you're planning to shoot a movie and want to use our company's director, Nolan?"
"That's right, just a low budget Western film, investing $150,000. I came to talk to Manager Cohen. I want to discuss renting personnel and equipment from the company to produce this film," Hardy said with a smile.
"Of course, if Noah is ready to invest, I am also willing to accept the investment. " Hardy said with a smile.
"Investment, what's the split?" Cohen asked.
"Nolan is responsible for all expenses, including director, cinematography, props, music, and the entire production team, as well as upfront funds, taking a 30% stake," Hardy said.
Cohen frowned deeply. This assistant Hardy's was planning to invest nothing, letting Noah invest all the upfront funds entirely, and yet he wanted to take a 70% share with just a script. What made him dare to say such things?
Cohen mentally labeled Hardy as ignorant and arrogant.
"Forget about the investment then. Noah's finances are tight this year we just finished a collaboration with Warner, and aren't planning another investment so soon," Cohen vetoed the investment proposal.
Hardy thought to himself, I gave you the opportunity, It's your own fault for being incompetent.
"Well, let's discuss the rental situation," Hardy said with a smile.
Renting personnel and equipment is a Hollywood practice. There are thousands of film companies in Hollywood, but only a few dozen truly have comprehensive production capabilities. Most film companies rent equipment and personnel.
"Noah has been idle lately. I also saw this situation and prepared to start a film. Long periods without work will cause problems internally, especially with unstable morale. Don't you think so, Manager Cohen?" Hardy said to Cohen.
Cohen was taken aback. We were just going to talk about leasing. Why are you discussing company matters?
Then suddenly, his mind turned.
Thinking of the boss, Sigel.
Hardy is the boss's assistant. Knowing that the film project was given to Warner Bros. and the internal operations of the company are struggling, is this criticism against himself?
Hardy is just an assistant, how could he have the ability to pull off a movie project? It's definitely the boss's, Sigel's, behest, and even this money is likely from the boss.
Is this a hint directed at himself?
If he doesn't perform well again, he'll probably get kicked out of the company.
This assistant Hardy before him is Sigel's confidant, sent to the company to oversee him. This movie project is also a test; he absolutely must cooperate well and not let Hardy speak ill of him in front of the boss.
Hardy didn't realize that his few words made Cohen think so much. His intention in saying this was just to negotiate a lower price.
But because of his role as an assistant, Cohen's mind wandered into many thoughts.
"Manager Cohen, I plan to rent the entire team at Noah, so shouldn't you give a discount on the price?" Hardy's words startled Cohen.
"Ah, assistant Hardy is also part of the company, naturally, you can receive a discount. The company has a leasing price list, we'll give you a 30% discount, How does Assistant Hardy feel about that?" Cohen had already decided to establish a good relationship with Hardy, offering the highest possible discount.
"A 30% discount, I'm very satisfied with that. However, Manager Cohen, my funds aren't very abundant right now. I can pay the personnel rent to the company in staggered payments. As for the equipment and prop rental, can we leave that temporarily?" Hardy said.
He doesn't have much money on hand, and he doesn't know how much he'll need later on
Saving a bit upfront is crucial, keeping more funds on hand to deal with emergencies.
Cohen looked troubled, he had already offered the best price, and now Hardy was adding conditions. Leaving the equipment and props rent temporarily means if you run out of money later or the movie loses money, this deal might turn into a bad debt, and he would inevitably be blamed.
But considering Hardy's status, even if the movie lost money, it's all the boss money.
"Fine, I agree to defer the equipment rental." Cohen said.
Hardy left the general manager's office satisfied, and Cohen breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, he managed to deal with this guy. By making such concessions, he figured that, for a short time, Hardy wouldn't complain to the boss about him.
Arriving at the director's office, Hardy saw Nolan writing something on the table. Upon hearing a voice, Nolan raised his head and, upon seeing Hardy, stood up and rubbed his face.
"Nolan, didn't you go home last night?" Hardy asked in surprise.
Nolan smiled and said, "I haven't directed for two years. I finally got a good script, feeling excited inside and out. Last night, I was discussing until dawn with Newton and others here. Many ideas came to mind, I quickly wrote them down and unknowingly stayed busy all night."
"It's all settled; from now on, you're the director of 'The Wild Bunch.' Noah's equipment and personnel are at your disposal," Hardy said.
Nolan's face lit up after hearing this, "That's great! Starting today, I'll assemble my own team."
"Nolan, I brought someone here; take a look to see if she's suitable for the female lead," Hardy said.
"Oh, where is she?"
"Right in my office, I'll go get her."
"No, I was just about to stretch. Let's go to your office together," Nolan said.
As they walked towards Hardy's office, Nolan thought to himself that since Hardy had brought the female lead here and let her stay in his office, the two must have a deep relationship.
As long as that woman isn't exceptionally bad, he's prepared to let her be the female lead.
Moreover, in this movie, the main characters are a group of men. Although there's a female lead, her role is very little, possibly even less significant than supporting roles in other movies. It's not essential at all.
What he thought about most yesterday was finding a suitable male lead to highlight the character of John.