My Hollywood System

Chapter 123:

The vacation from work that Will had decided to take for himself stretched through the chilly snowy climate of Christmas and New Year. He had almost all the capable people in his office working on the various projects that his company had undertaken like [1917] and [500 days of Summer], and he wasn’t needed in the production of either anymore, and he could sit back and relax while the work was done for him.

He had also spent most of Christmas and New Year’s Eve indoors with June, celebrating the festive occasions with each other and with Uncle Ben and his family. He preferred a nice and cosy atmosphere for festivities instead of lavish parties and a family holiday was the perfect opportunity for him to establish a better relationship with his Uncle, especially after the strain he had involuntarily put it under due to the fiasco with the MCA, and the Collins family.

He had used the time off to ponder over what he should do with the ever-expanding pool of money that was lying in his bank account. While intrinsically, he knew most of it would go back into producing and developing new movies but the amount that he had generated gave birth to opportunities and opened doors to possibilities that were previously both outside his imagination and capabilities. With the capital he had amassed, he could afford to be a little bit riskier with his investments and potentially produce content that was far superior to the standards that were set by the industry in which he worked.

When he had first gained a large sum from the box office share of [The Blair Witch Project], he had used it naturally for self-betterment and had gotten himself a brand new car and a better place to call home. And the rest had been reinvested into movie making with the production of [Sherlock Holmes]. He decided that some of that money would be better donated to charity. While it would be a fantastic way of helping people in need, it would also improve his already pristine image in Hollywood, should it become known anonymously to the right people.

Some of the rest, he decided, would be better used to help himself learn the various musical instruments and about music in general. For a while, he had the system to quicken the process and grant him suitable skills, he would need the practice to hone those skills and make them his own. As they say, Hard work trumps talent, and while the system gave him the talent, if he didn’t work to better and nurture it, the talent would be useless.

During the days he spent in his office during his vacation, he would join Leo, watching movies mostly around the action gangster genre. He wanted to establish a rapport with Leo that he hoped would eventually develop into a mentor-mentee relationship, he wanted to rope him into DTA eventually, and while a contract would secure him as a talent at DTA, an established relationship and Leo’s debt of gratitude would ensure that he wouldn’t want to seek work elsewhere after he becomes famous in Hollywood. He and Robert had a similar relationship, and he was sure Robert would stay with DTA throughout his career in Hollywood. Unless something seriously major happened between him and Robert, that relationship would stay as solid as it already is.

As soon as Christmas had passed by, the filming process of [500 days of Summer] was almost done, as it required almost no CGI and no extra special effects, it was a fairly simple filming process. The only nuance that director Duckstein had was to focus on the different facial expressions and raw emotions that the actors had to work hard to show. Natalie and Clark had managed to build a chemistry that was visible on set and on the final shots that the director had sent forward to Will to review.

Similarly [1917] was halfway through its filming too; while the movie had no CGI either, it had a very theatrical and artistic need to shoot long scenes in one shot whilst perfectly managing special effects, like explosions, bullet ricochets, barbed wire etc. all the while the shots are being taken on from a non-stationary camera. Elijah and Renly had to take multiple shots of the same scene, and the scene where the plane crashed into the barn had almost turned into an actual crash, but the pilot managed to avoid the barn and fly over it at the last second. After which, the wooden wall was blown apart using light explosives, and a fake crash site, based on the plane, was created for them to continue.

Will was extremely happy with the progress that both of his projects were achieving, and he was immensely satisfied with the work Leo was putting in for [Liberty City], he had managed to get the character that he was to play eventually down, almost perfect and he was capable of showing the development of the Italian gangster adapting to the culture of the country and city that he was setting out to make a name for himself in.

In the meantime, Will had received word from the Hospital to which Spencer was admitted that he was finally in the condition to accept visitors.

******

Heading up the elevator of the Hospital, Will adjusted his collar as he prepared to finally once again meet Spencer Miller again. As soon as the elevator door opened, he walked up to the receptionist and asked the lady behind the counter, “Uhm, excuse me, could you guide me to the room Spencer Miller is located in? I am Will Evans, here for a visit.”

The nurse who recognized him stuttered for a bit before assuming a professionally calm mask and replied, “Certainly, sir, Mr Miller is inward 4B, just down that hall on the right.”

“Thank you!” He said and walked down the hall toward ward 4B.

Reaching the wooden door labelled 4B, he knocked and pushed it open. Inside he could see that the curtains for the bed were pulled open, and Spencer, who had been watching the ward television, turned to look at him. He was still attached to a catheter on his right arm, which was dripping saline constantly into his bloodstream. He was wearing a hospital gown underneath his white blanket that looked like it had been freshly changed. Spencer smiled as he saw Will and exclaimed, “Will! I did not think that you’d come to see me. It’s good to meet you again!”

“Hello Spencer, How are you feeling now?” He asked about his health.

“Oh, don’t worry, I will be fine and fit as a horse in no time, you tell me, how is the movie industry treating you? I heard you met with Colt.” He said with a thin smile on his face.

“Ah! Yeah, I met your son at the gala by Krown Studios. He was a good company after the business that we conducted there was concluded. I am sure he’ll do good.”

“You think so?”

Spencer laughed like he didn’t believe it. Then, with an expression that said he was reminiscing about something, he said.

“He’s different from me. That kid, he and I have a personality that’s not similar. I invest in people and let them do their own work and just see the results while he invests in himself and wants everything to go his way.”

“Which way is better?”

Will asked, but Spencer shook his head.

“I don’t know. Anything is fine. In my career, there were many who messed up when I didn’t interfere, while there were people like you who exceeded my expectations. So, I don’t know. Just, I hope you have a little patience with my son.”

“I will try my best.”

After that, they talked about Sherlock Holmes. Spencer was quite keen on it as it was actually the last movie in his career, and he wanted the franchise to become the best in Hollywood.

Will and he discussed some ideas for it, and then he asked Will about his next ventures and how if he needed any help, Will could ask him.

…

//DreamNote//

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