Chapitre 151: ### Chapter 149: Your Wolf Claws are Beautiful
"Richard, is the news in the paper true?"
In the office, Anthony opened the newspaper and laughed.
"It's true!" Richard shrugged.
Anthony chuckled, "Were you stimulated by something? Why would you think about winning an Oscar?"
"Why not? Can't a person have some aspirations?" Richard put down his teacup and asked.
"It's very difficult. Professional actors have to shed a layer of skin to win an Oscar. You, a boxer, think the Oscar Academy members will vote for you?" Richard thought for a moment and shook his head. The difficulty was indeed very high.
The full name of the Oscars is the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards.
The academy has 14 branches, including the actors' association, directors' association, art directors' association, cinematographers' association, screenwriters' association, film editors' association, producers' association, music association, and sound association, among others.
In the Oscar selection process, the Best Picture is voted on by all academy members, while the other 23 awards are voted on by members of the respective branches.
Each year, every member gets two ballots, one for Best Picture and one for their branch.
Currently, there are nearly 10,000 academy members, over 90% of whom are white, predominantly older men, often referred to as "old white men." They have a unique taste, generally leaning conservative.
For a young, handsome, and cross-disciplinary boxing champion to gain their recognition is extremely challenging.
"Richard, I remember you used to say your goal was to become a big star in commercial films. Our plan for you also followed the commercial film route. Now you want to succeed in the field of film art. Which direction should we develop?" Old Hall put down the newspaper and asked slowly.
"Can't we do both at the same time?" Richard stroked his chin and asked.
"It's difficult, like the Nobel Prize. The higher the commercial value and fame of an actor, the harder it is to get the Oscar judges' approval. Unless your performance is exceptionally outstanding, they won't give it to you directly but will give you a nomination, letting you try harder and see your performance next time. If you perform well, there's still a chance," Old Hall said with a light smile.
"We can spend money on PR, like the Weinstein brothers," Richard suggested.
"It's tough. The Weinstein brothers have been dealing with the Oscar judges for decades, knowing their tastes and securing votes. We can't do that," Old Hall spread his hands.
It is said that the Weinstein brothers started building relationships with academy members many years ago, frequently inviting them to film screenings, film exchange meetings, sending small gifts, and hosting big parties.
Over time, they established a stable relationship, which is one reason their films often won awards. Currently, BAA cannot achieve this.
Richard pondered for a moment, "Then we will focus on commercial films first, gain fame and money, and take our time with awards. After all, I am still young."
"Richard, it's good that you think this way. However, no matter what you do, once you enter a field, you must learn the skills of that industry. Just like boxing, you trained for many years to win the championship belt. Now that you've become an actor, have you thought about systematically learning acting?" Old Hall asked.
"You mean I should go to school?" Richard laughed.
"No need for that. The company has signed six new actors. To improve their competitiveness, we have arranged for some fixed acting coaches to come to the company to teach acting classes. If you need, we can arrange acting courses for you alone," Old Hall suggested.
Richard thought for a moment and nodded. To become a boxing champion, he trained for more than ten years. For the Oscars, he should also invest some time and effort.
After discussing the work arrangements, he took Old Hall and Mike into the car.
Today, the "X-Men" crew gathered the main actors to shoot costume tests and undergo some action training. The training location was at the 20th Century Fox studio, also known as 'Century City.'
Century City is one of Hollywood's earliest film production bases.
In 1926, Fox Film Corporation president William Fox saw that California had plenty of sunshine and low production costs, so he bought 300 acres of land west of Beverly Hills to build Hollywood's earliest film studio.
In the mid-1930s, 20th Century Pictures merged with Fox Film Corporation, leading to a second expansion of Century City, making it even larger.
Many 20th Century Fox movies and numerous Fox TV shows were produced here.
It took less than half an hour to get from West Hollywood Boulevard to Century City, and it was even closer from Beverly Hills. This is one reason many stars prefer to live in Beverly Hills, as it's close to several film production bases.
Upon entering Century City, Richard went directly to the Fox Film Production Center office for the "X-Men" crew, where he met the main creative team.
Producer Richard Donner, also the director of the "Lethal Weapon" series, had chatted with him at a party before. They usually communicated and were quite familiar with each other.
Director Bryan Singer, a very talented young director, known for "The Usual Suspects," which helped Kevin Spacey win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
Screenwriter David Hayter, main cinematographer Newton Thomas.
And the film's main actors: Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, Halle Berry as Storm, Patrick Stewart as Professor X, Ian McKellen as the main villain Magneto, Famke Janssen as Jean Grey, and Rebecca Romijn as Mystique, among others.
The cast was mainly second-tier, without any big names, and in terms of fame, Richard was the biggest.
The crew had over twenty main creative members. They held a small meeting in the office, briefly introducing the project, crew members, and the shooting schedule.
Then the actors and the screenwriters had a joint meeting to discuss the film's plot and character rehearsals.
The film's plot wasn't complicated. A group of mutants with special abilities suddenly appeared on Earth, causing social panic. Ordinary people rejected mutants, and government officials demanded control over mutants.
Within the mutant community, there was also a split. The academy faction, led by Professor X, advocated a moderate approach, while the radical faction, led by Magneto, wanted to transform ordinary people, leading to conflicts between the two sides.
Richard played Cyclops, the leader of the X-Men and an important aide to Professor X, whose eyes can emit powerful laser beams, like red laser cannons.
His girlfriend is Jean Grey, who has three superpowers. However, Jean Grey is also ambiguously involved with Wolverine, making their relationship somewhat environmentally colored.
"Hey, Richard, we're partners from now on."
Famke Janssen, who played Jean Grey, walked over and said.
"Yes, this should be our second collaboration. In 'Celebrity,' I had a small role," Richard said, shaking hands with her.
Famke, 34 years old and 182 cm tall, used to be a model and had walked the Victoria's Secret runway before transitioning to movies, becoming famous as a Bond girl in 'GoldenEye.'
In last year's 'Celebrity,' Famke Janssen played the model Bonnie.
"Oh, I remember now. I didn't expect we'd be playing a couple this time," Famke smiled slightly.
"This is interesting!"
There was a significant age difference between the two, making them an older woman and younger man couple.
"Hey, Richard, Famke, we have a lot of scenes together. Shall we chat?" Halle Berry, who played Storm, asked from across the table.
"Sure!"
The three of them sat together to discuss their roles and the plot. After a while, Hugh Jackman joined them, completing the X-Men team.
In the afternoon, the cast members went to the studio to try on their costumes and shoot character photos.
Cyclops' props mainly included the X-Men uniform, a high-tech pair of sunglasses, and a few motorcycles.
Richard put on the black tight leather suit and stood in front of the mirror. His muscular contours were all highlighted, with long legs, a V-shaped upper body, strong arms, and a robust chest. It was very cool.
"Richard, move around a bit and see if there's anything that needs to be adjusted," costume designer Louise asked.
"Alright!"
Richard did a few simple dance moves and felt the suit. He gave a few suggestions: the shoulders were too narrow, making it difficult to move his arms, and the thighs were a bit tight, possibly because of his firm buttocks.
"Okay, we will make the adjustments before filming," Louise noted.
"Richard, are you ready?" Hugh Jackman walked over and asked.
"Yes!"
Richard looked at his equipment. "Your claws are beautiful."
"Haha, thanks. Your glasses are cool too."
Hugh Jackman waved his metal claws, like a steel fist.
Richard was a bit envious. This equipment was supposed to be his, all because of that meddling old man Murdoch, who gave the role to his little countryman.
That guy is preparing to marry Wendi Deng in June and even sent an invitation. Thinking about the role, Richard felt reluctant to go.
After shooting the character photos, the crew arranged for the action director to train the main actors in their character movements.
Richard had no issues with this. Cyclops' power activation was simple: pointing his head and shooting randomly would do.
"Richard, the crew's schedule is out. Your scenes will be concentrated at the end of this month and the beginning of next month, spanning three weeks," Old Hall reported after a meeting.
"Alright, not many scenes. 'Mission Impossible 2' won't start filming until September. There's some time in between. You can arrange a few acting lessons for me," Richard thought and said.
"Okay, I will arrange that."
Old Hall wrote it down in his notebook.
Richard smiled and continued listening to the action director's explanation. This shoot involved a lot of special effects, requiring green screen filming, which was new and needed learning.
"Oh, by the way, Richard, 'One Kiss' is about to be released. The crew has arranged several promotional activities for you, so you might be busy these days," Old Hall patted his forehead and said.
"Alright, I got it."
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone