章節 763: Chapter 764: Stop
[Chapter 764: Stop]
Rosarito, located in Baja California, Mexico, is a seaside town less than twenty kilometers from the border. It was here that much of the filming for Titanic took place.
While Firefly Group had state-of-the-art filming facilities at its Playa Vista studio, the massive sets required for Titanic would have been impossible to realize in the space-hungry Los Angeles area. During the pre-production phase, James Cameron, introduced by his friend, Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, decided to move the filming to Mexico, purchasing a sixteen-hectare plot near Rosarito to build a set.
As the new year began, it seemed that the various business miracles of Firefly Group had led many to experience a sense of aesthetic fatigue and rebellion. When news broke that the Titanic project was spiraling out of control, the media quickly jumped into action.
In recent years, film production costs had risen rapidly, yet films with budgets exceeding $60 million remained scarce. Titanic had burned through $60 million just to complete 50% of its pre-production. It was evident that if Firefly Group didn't make certain decisions immediately, completing the film could result in production costs exceeding the previous year's $170 million spent on Waterworld. Waterworld had already demonstrated that a film with such drastic budget overruns during production had little chance of box office success.
Although it was known that with Firefly Group's solid foundation, sustaining a loss of one or two hundred million on a single project would not result in bankruptcy like many other film companies, the chaos surrounding Titanic had nonetheless proven to some that Firefly was not invincible. After basking in glory for several years, this strong company was starting to face the inevitable failures that loomed ominously from the beginning.
Originally, Firefly had set the release date for Titanic on June 28, 1996, in a move that aligned three films in a franchise-like pattern along with The Matrix and The Rock. However, following the news of Titanic's troubled production, several film companies began to feel empowered. Paramount, for instance, deliberately scheduled the first project from its newly renamed Paramount Animation studio, Pocahontas, for June 28. After a few days of hesitation, Universal also announced plans to move the release of The Mummy 2 up from mid-July to June 21.
June was already the prime month for summer movie releases, a spot that had been consistently dominated by Firefly in previous years. Other major studios had attempted numerous times to reclaim their stake in this lucrative time slot, all without success. Yet this year, some finally saw an opportunity to break Firefly's monopoly on the schedule.
Given Titanic's production pace, if Firefly wanted to force the project to meet its timeline, the quality of the film would surely suffer. Conversely, if Firefly allowed Cameron to maintain the current pace, Titanic would definitely not make it to the summer blockbuster season. According to Firefly's film slate, there was no alternative film that could fill Titanic's slot. Thus, regardless of the outcome, Firefly was destined to lose the golden box office weeks from late June to early July.
"According to Firefly's film slate over the past two years, there's currently no single film that could take the spot left by Titanic. However, during our last meeting, everyone felt that a short-production romantic comedy would be the best choice, but due to our contractual agreement with the theaters, Titanic had already reserved 3,000 screens for its opening. Not just any typical rom-com could fill that kind of screen count," said Kelly Haynes, Eric's assistant, flipping through documents on her lap, revealing the desert landscape outside to Eric, who was gazing out the window.
The convoy of five black SUVs cruised slowly along Baja's coastal highway. Upon hearing that Eric was personally heading to the Rosarito filming set, both Drew beside him and Joanna working remotely from New York, as well as many in Firefly's upper echelon, all suggested the same thing: "Don't go."
When it became clear that they couldn't dissuade him, the second suggestion that came up the next day was to bring security -- lots of security. Thus, the convoy was organized with each vehicle carrying five people, including Eric, Kelly, and most of Eric's security team.
The American public had a rather typical view of Mexico -- generally associating it with cheap labor or drug trafficking. The bordering regions were notorious for rampant crime, often described simply as chaotic. As such, Eric didn't balk at the elaborate security arrangements.
Once Kelly finished speaking, she noticed Eric appeared a bit distracted and gently reminded him.
Eric snapped back to attention, asking, "Oh, what were you saying?"
Kelly patiently repeated her previous points.
Her intention was clear. While typical romantic comedies or dramas wouldn't fill 3,000 screens, a film directed by Eric personally would be different. Everyone knew that Eric's breakout hits, from Home Alone to Pretty Woman, were predominately in those genres.
"I understand what you all mean," Eric chuckled. "But you know how busy I am right now -- perhaps I'll have to make another trip to Australia. I can't help but worry about how The Matrix is progressing without seeing it firsthand. With this schedule, it seems I won't have much time for my own projects until after the Oscars. And post-Oscars, it's full steam ahead into preparations for Casino Royale."
As Eric's assistant, Kelly was far more familiar with his schedule than many of Firefly's executives; she understood he wouldn't be able to squeeze in making a film before the production of Casino Royale. She simply reiterated what everyone else felt and ceased to press the matter. "Eric, how do you plan to handle the next steps for Titanic?"
"What do you mean by handle?" Eric asked, puzzled.
Kelly thought for a moment before continuing, "If we want to finish this film, based on Cameron's current pace, it might take around $200 million to complete, plus the marketing budget. Given Cameron's past box office performances, Firefly is likely to face a total loss. The real question might just be how much we end up losing. I think calling it quits on this project might be the best way to minimize damages?"
Kelly's suggestion reflected the sentiments of many, and this viewpoint was even echoing in media circles. A complete halt could lead to piecing together the accumulated footage to form a film that could mitigate some losses.
However, even if Titanic couldn't replicate its original success, Eric didn't plan on proceeding in that manner. Having already lived through a cinematic miracle, he was curious to see just how far the film could go this time around.
Eric couldn't articulate his feelings directly to Kelly, so he merely joked, "If I call it off now, Jim might just kill me."
"You..." Kelly chuckled, saying, "I'm starting to think you might be a bit too invested in this project."
Eric turned to look at her elegant features and asked, "Is it that obvious?"
Feeling her cheeks warm, Kelly lowered her voice, "I guess I have a sense of your perspective. Otherwise, well, you wouldn't be here in Mexico personally."
Seeing Kelly scrambling to find words only made Eric smile. He didn't want to make her feel awkward, so he dropped the playful teasing.
...
After crossing the border, the convoy traveled for another half hour before arriving in Rosarito, a small border town spanning roughly ten kilometers. However, the Titanic filming set wasn't in the town itself, so the convoy continued south for about five kilometers to reach their destination.
On the large, beachfront lot by the roadside, a simple makeshift wall had been erected. From inside the car, Eric could already see the filming facilities behind the wall.
A crowd of photographers had gathered outside the entrance, drawn by a wave of recent media buzz. The sight of the five luxurious SUVs caught their attention. Initially stymied at the gate, the reporters quickly noticed something was up. They converged around the vehicles, flashing their cameras and some even knocking on the windows in hopes of provoking a response to get a shot.
Fortunately, with five identical vehicles, the reporters were unable to identify the correct target. Eric quietly remained in his vehicle, waiting for the security team of the first car to negotiate with the guard. One by one, the five vehicles drove into the filming studio under the disappointed cries of the reporters.
Once parked, as Eric stepped out of the vehicle, Titanic's producer, Jon Landau, rushed over with two staff members, enthusiastically embracing Eric. "Eric, it's so great to see you here!"
Eric laughed heartily. "Just not sure if Jim wanted me here."
Jon Landau shook hands with Kelly, his expression instantly turning serious upon hearing Eric's comment. He shook his head, saying, "It's good you could at least come and check things out."
"Yeah," Eric nodded. "By the way, where's Jim?"
"Oh, everyone's busy with filming. Follow me, we're on the main set," Jon Landau pointed toward the way and led Eric over.
As they left the parking lot, Eric took in the surroundings. Three large soundstages stood in the studio, busy crew members moved around, prop equipment lay scattered about, and there were several large water tanks, a massive suspended tank being constructed, long filming tracks stretching over a hundred meters, and, standing by the ocean, a full-scale replica of the Titanic...
Just looking around made it clear how much Cameron had spent.
Eric remembered that in the original timeline, the Titanic replica had only been a partial model. Various special effects and shooting techniques had been employed to prevent it from being obvious on camera. But the model before him now was complete.
Even though Eric said nothing as he surveyed the area, Jon Landau couldn't help but feel anxious. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead. As the primary producer of Titanic, he was aware of just how extravagantly Cameron was spending.
At that moment, the crew was shooting a scene at the bow, and under Jon's guidance, Eric climbed up onto the deck. He noticed a crowd gathered around the filming site at the bow, and he could hear Cameron's booming voice from far away.
"William, filming this way looks like a pile of crap. I want a crane, a big crane to get wide shots of the leads at the bow, not this lame mechanical arm. This method is absolute garbage!"
After Cameron's rant, a clearly irritated male voice came through to Eric's ears, but compared to Cameron's thunderous outbursts, Eric had trouble making out what the man was saying.
Jon Landau whispered beside him, "Jim's arguing with William again. I saw his storyboards; he wants to capture some wide-angle shots of the leads embracing at the bow, which requires a large construction crane. William disagreed and only allowed a mechanical arm at the bow. It's clear Jim isn't happy with the current filming approach."
Kelly noticed Eric's slight look of confusion and leaned in to provide an explanation. "That's William Stewart, one of the producers responsible for this project. He supervises the budget for the production."
Eric nodded as they approached the crowd, saying to Jon, "Let's see what's happening."
As they squeezed through the crowd, they heard Cameron's roar again: "Damn Waterworld! You can't compare my film to that piece of trash! You're practically nullifying every decision I make. Keep this up and I'll quit -- I'm done, done with this!"
"..."
"What? I'll make you jump into the sea. No, you're making me jump into the sea! Ha! If that would help, I'd do it right now!"
Finally pushing their way through, Eric caught sight of the furious Cameron facing a poor middle-aged man. "Jim, do you even know how much you've spent? At this rate, you'll ruin everything! No amount of threats will sway me; I won't agree to your plan."
Cameron seemed oblivious to Eric's presence, waving his arms wildly. "No, I'm not threatening you! Oh, jumping into the sea, huh? Watch me!"
With that declaration, amidst the gasps from the crowd, Cameron flushed with anger and leaped over the railing, disappearing from view in a stunning act that stunned everyone.
*****
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