Exploiting Hollywood 1980

  Chapter 4 Fake Script

   "Fake script?" Jenny asked with a smile.

   "Yes, ask the principal for free borrowed venues and group performances. The plot of the movie cannot be exposed."

   This is the consistent style of New World Producers: stingy!

  Van Nuys High School agreed to lend the school’s playground for free filming, organize students to perform in groups for free, and provide a free breakfast and lunch. This is all in the face of the fake script presented by the producer.

   "Rock High School" is a typical low-budget movie, filled with all kinds of rock, rebellion, love and other elements that teenagers love. The plot is simple:

The cheerleader of "Vince Lombard High School" is a rebellious rock girl. Together with her good friend, a good girl, she invites the popular rock band "Rammons" to come to the school for a concert. Toppled the roof of the high school teachers' office building and renamed the school "Rock High School".

   Such a plot, of course, the location of the filming - the school management of Van Nuys Public High School will not agree. The director asked Ronald to make up a fake script "High School Life" to fool the school.

  The story written by Ronald is: The new headmistress of the high school rectifies the school spirit and makes the students who are addicted to rock music realize that life is more than rock and roll. Some of the students were admitted to universities, some became cashiers in supermarkets, and some worked in factories. Everyone has a bright future.

   "Okay, I got it." Jenny started to erase the title of the film on the board with a wiper, and re-write "High School Life" with a water pen.

   "You inform the relevant personnel, don't reveal the secret, we will shoot at this school for one day."

   "No problem." Jenny laughed and joked, "Ronnie, you're talking more and more like a director."

   Ronald smiled and waved his hand, "I'm just here to mix up the credits."

   At this time, a group of people on the other side of the camera broke out a burst of rapid voices, and the voices became more and more sharp, as if they were about to quarrel.

   "I'll go see what's going on, see you, Jenny."

"See you."

   Walking quickly into the crowd, it was Jim who was surrounded by three leading actresses, as if 1500 ducks were crowing.

   "Can we start rehearsal?"

   "What about Mr. Director? Am I wearing a red coat or a black coat today?"

   "Where's Joe? He said last week that he wanted to feature me."

  …

  Ronald smiled and shook his head. Jim was like a poor chicken. He was dizzy by the quick questions of the three leading actresses. Before answering the previous question, he was immediately interrupted by the next question.

   So he asked the director of photography: "The group performance has already gone through the stage, and it has been rehearsed twice, and it is time to join the stage with the actors. Mr. Candy, what happened? Can't we start yet?"

  The director of photography was lying behind the camera to see the framing situation. Hearing this, he stuck his head out from behind the camera and looked at him: "What they want is a result, and what Jim gave them is a lot of explanations, so..."

   Ronald also understood. There were countless clues on the set. The script only wrote that the protagonist wore white shoes. The director had to choose the most suitable pair from the several pairs of shoes prepared for the costume.

   The director has to make dozens of decisions every day. From what kind of shoes the actors are wearing, to 50 groups of dancers, how to choreograph each person's dance moves. The actors didn't trust Jim's choice, and Jim was eager to explain why he chose this instead of that.

"Jim, where's the director? Where's Joe? Am I wearing a red coat or black today? This unfortunate low-budget movie costs only $100 for costumes, and there's no way to get the right clothes, so I'll take all the pay. Bought clothing.

You know, that day at the FredSegal clothing store on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, behind me was Lord Stewart, I got this red one minute before him, or he would have bought it, Cost me $300. And this black one is..." The first heroine, PJ Soles, said of the two dresses with familiarity.

   "Miss Sauls!" Ronald shouted, "Today's play, you should wear the red one."

   "Call me PJ. Wear red? But black is fine too."

  Because you wore red on the tape, Ronald thought, but he had to make up a reason.

   "Ms. PJ Sauls, we shot today's scene at sunrise. The light before and after sunrise is bluish, which will make the black color look wrong.

   And your red coat is very suitable, light blue, just the complementary color of red, it must be very outstanding. And your role is a rock girl, red is more appropriate. "

   "Really? Then I'll choose the red one."

   "Ms. Mary Voronoff, the director has promised to add a feature of you last week, and it's on today's schedule, I promise. You walk up to the camera from a distance and appear in the schoolgirl's uniform."

  Ronald took the shooting sheet in Jim's hand, turned to a certain page, glued a piece of paper of different colors on it, and pointed it to Mary who was playing the headmistress: "Look, this is the shot."

"Ms. DeyYoung, you play a good girl, a school tyrant, who is the protagonist of the first shot. Let's start walking, measure the focus, and wait for 20 minutes, no, exactly 18 and a half minutes later, Once the group is in place, we can start rehearsing."

   solved the problem neatly and the DP gave him a thumbs up.

   Mary Voronoff, who plays the headmistress, has acted in several New World Productions movies, and Dai Yang, who plays the good girl Xueba, is a newcomer, and the two are not very experienced, and are ready to start taking positions.

  PJ Sols, who plays the leading role of the rebellious rock cheerleader, is the biggest actor in the crew and gets the highest salary. She has played the main role in the popular horror film "The Witch Carrie" and the "Moonlight, Panic" that is currently being released, so she has a stand-in.

  Before the actual shooting, the lighting crew had to look at the effect of the light on the face, while the camera crew had to pull a tape measure to measure the distance from the actor's eyes to the camera. Movie cameras don’t have autofocus, so you need to measure the focal length with a tape measure and focus manually to get those eyes that sparkle on the screen.

  Some actors don't want to waste time, so there is a stand-in similar to her height and weight to do this for her. PJ Sowers is the only actor on the crew who gets this treatment. When the stand-in took her place, PJ went to the temporary dressing room in the teaching building to change clothes and touch up makeup.

   The first camera assistant, who is also the follower, and the chief coolie's red-haired camera assistant, quickly took the tape and found the initial position of the actors in the storyboard on the ground. After finding it, stick a T-shaped indicator on the ground with tape, which is the position of the actor.

   Then take out the tape measure, hang one end on the camera, and pull the other end in front of the actor's eyes, and take the readings. Then go back and figure out the corresponding focus, and make a mark on the focus ring next to the camera body. When it comes to the actual shooting, the follower will screw the corresponding mark to the position of the shot to ensure that the focus is on the actor's eyes.

   Repeated this several times to complete the shooting of the first shot. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, Ronald picked up the electric horn: "What about makeup? Gigi, you touch up the heroine's makeup."

  The time has come to 05:55, and Ronald started to get restless again. The director hasn't arrived yet. At this time, PJ Sowers had already changed his clothes and made up his makeup, and walked out of the temporary dressing room in the teaching building.

   She was still a little hesitant, wearing a red jacket and holding a black jacket in one hand and kept comparing her to her body, "Where's the director? I still have to ask the director."

  Everyone looked at Ronald, Ronald suddenly broke out in white sweat, why are you looking at me? I don't even know where the director is. But in the end, the dress must be red. He still pretended to be confident: "Director, director..."

   "The director is here!" shouted Jim, who was standing opposite.

   A tall, thin man approached the school gate, about 6 feet 6 inches (about 2 meters) tall. With explosive curly hair and vaguely Middle Eastern facial features, it is Alan Akush, the director of the "Rock High School" crew.

   (end of this chapter)