America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 402 Performance Art

Saoirse Ronan pulled out a chair and sat opposite Martin. Martin held out his hand and pointed to the camera: "Let me see."

"I didn't take your picture, I really didn't," Saoirse said, but she took the camera out of her hand and placed it in front of Martin.

Martin remembers clearly that this girl was a real troublemaker; she managed to create the "diaper scandal" at Pinewood Studios.

He looked through the photos taken with the digital camera, confirmed that this area wasn't captured, pushed it back to her, and asked, "Which film crew are you on?"

Saoirse pointed to the photo studio next door: "This one."

Martin understood: "You're playing the teenage Daisy?"

Saoirse nodded repeatedly: "Yes, I have several scenes with you."

Martin understood why she was there and casually reminded her, "Don't film randomly on set. This isn't England; American directors are ruthless."

Saoirse quickly explained, "I didn't bring the camera to photograph the film crew, but to photograph the Michoud assembly plant."

Martin knew this was Michoud, but he'd never heard of the assembly plant. He asked, "Why are you filming that?"

Saoirse looked around and saw that Martin's trailer was big and tall enough, with a ladder to climb to the top. She pointed and said, "Shall we go up?"

Martin was also curious: "Sure."

Bruce was the first to climb onto the top of the trailer and look around, followed by Saoirse with her camera hanging on her.

Martin had to consider his appearance, so he came up rather slowly.

The studio is located on a small hilltop. Standing on the trailer here, you can see over the low wall and have a panoramic view of the valley below.

Saoirse pointed to a cluster of factories in the valley and said, "This is the place I wanted to film."

Martin pointed to the camera dangling from her chest: "Hurry up and take the picture, then leave. Don't cause any trouble here."

Saoirse rolled her eyes. "I'm not a troublemaker." She didn't take out her camera. "I don't want to take pictures of the outside; I want to take pictures inside."

Martin asked Bruce, "What's that place over there?"

Unexpectedly, Bruce had done his homework beforehand: "It seems to be called the Michoud Assembly Plant."

"Before I came to the United States, I did a lot of research on New Orleans. There are two of the most widespread rumors here." Saoirse has a great thirst for knowledge and a desire to explore. When she was at Pinewood Studios, she would take a camera and take pictures everywhere. She once had a big fight with Emma Watson.

She held up one finger: "The first one is the legends of various witches. I've already been to the tomb of Mary Laver, the Voodoo Queen."

Saoirse raised her second finger: "I found out online that the Michoud Equipment Factory is a secret NASA base, specifically used to make props and sets for the moon landing. Many whistleblowers have revealed that the Americans have never landed on the moon, and all the videos were filmed here."

Martin's expression became quite interesting. He asked, "You want to sneak in and take pictures?"

Saoirse's face was full of curiosity and voyeurism: "Yes, take a picture, even just one."

Martin said, "Have you ever considered this: if what you're saying is true, why has there never been any concrete evidence? Because the people who broke in were turned into experimental subjects, perhaps even made into voodoo dolls."

Saoirse was stunned. Her attention was entirely focused on taking the photos, ignoring everything else. She said, "It seems that's really the case."

Martin reminded her, "This isn't the British Isles. It's dangerous for a girl to wander around like this. Not every American is as kind as I am."

Saoirse raised her camera, opened her lens bag, attached a telephoto lens, quickly adjusted the teaching aids, and took some photos of the assembly plant.

After the filming was finished, she discovered that there was only one person left on the roof of the car.

Martin sat back down under the parasol, leisurely enjoying the breeze.

Bruce went to the side to make a phone call.

Saoirse got out of the car, said goodbye to Martin, and left alone.

Bruce returned shortly after finishing his call, his expression quite interesting.

Martin asked, "What happened?"

"Kim just called me." Bruce didn't hide anything from Martin: "The DVD sales are amazing, and Kim wants to give me a share, she said it's several hundred thousand dollars."

Martin, however, wasn't focused on those details. He asked, "Did you sell a lot?"

Bruce nodded: "North American sales have exceeded $2000 million. Many TV stations are inviting Kim to be on their shows. It seems like Oprah Winfrey has also extended an invitation. She seems to be more popular than you now."

Martin waved his hand: "It's different. The allure and influence of celebrity privacy are naturally greater."

Bruce said, "Yeah, you'd be right. If you made a video, I reckon your female fans would go crazy, and maybe the guys would too."

Martin raised his middle finger in front of him: "If the profit sharing is legal income, it's up to you whether you want it or not."

Bruce thought for a few seconds: "I don't need the money, so I don't want this kind of money."

Filming continued in the afternoon.

The lead actress, Blanchett, hasn't arrived from Los Angeles yet, and things are going smoothly on set.

David Fincher was extremely satisfied with Martin's performance. The role of Benjamin in his youth was the most difficult to play, but Martin showed no difficulty at all.

He felt that Martin gained a lot from experiencing life in the nursing home firsthand.

A good and professional male lead makes things much easier for the director.

David Fincher suddenly understood why Scorsese and Nolan chose to work with Martin; what director wouldn't like an actor like that?

Moreover, they are not troublemakers; they do not coerce male actors into doing those filthy things.

Most importantly, Martin truly possesses commercial appeal.

The following morning, two red trucks painted with "Coca-Cola" drove into the Michoud Studios. The vintage Coca-Cola specially ordered for the film crew by the Atlanta headquarters had arrived.

If it were another production team, it would be very troublesome, since the proofs and printing plates would have to be redone.

But in the film crew where Martin plays the lead role, there was an inconspicuous clause added to the GG sponsorship contract.

The truck driver got out of his vehicle and insisted on taking a photo with Martin.

They were all wearing T-shirts with the Kola God cult logo, clearly indicating that they belonged to the Kola God cult.

Coca-Cola sponsored the film with millions of dollars, and when David Fincher learned of this, he specially extended the crew's break time so that Martin could go out and take photos with people.

The two drivers put up a banner at the entrance that read "Cola Cult Forever".

The production crew specially sent a photographer to take group photos, and that was it.

Martin looked at the cinematographer, the screenwriter, and David Fincher. If this were on the set of "The Dark Knight," he would definitely create some authentic behind-the-scenes footage.

No wonder David Fincher is not as commercially successful as Nolan; his commercial appeal is far inferior.

David Fincher might not like behind-the-scenes glimpses, and Martin didn't say much about it. Instead, he approached the producer in charge of public relations and asked, "Can my look be released now?"

The producer had already considered this: "In Los Angeles, they're building momentum for you. You just won the Best Actor award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. By leveraging your popularity and the influence of the Cola Cult, releasing some behind-the-scenes photos will also draw more attention to this film."

Martin praised, "You've thought of everything."

The crew developed and printed the photos as quickly as possible. By the time Coca-Cola was unloaded, the two drivers had already brought the photos over to get Martin's autograph.

After signing his name and getting himself ready, Martin threw himself into the filming.

The male lead remained the same, but the female lead changed. Elle Fanning finished filming her limited scenes and made her exit smoothly.

Saoirse Ronan became Daisy on set.

The production team is very good at casting, especially when it comes to child stars; the two they chose are both very talented.

Saoirse's acting is even better than Ellie's.

During this period, Martin was the only one in charge of the cast and crew. As long as he didn't cause trouble, no one would bother him.

Although Shia LaBeouf joined the cast early on, he spent most of his time doing some inexplicable performance art.

One afternoon, he suddenly disguised himself as a hanged man and hung himself on a crooked tree behind the studio. The first female costume designer on the set who discovered him screamed and wet her pants.

Once the entire crew had gathered around, this guy untied the specially made rope, kicked off the camouflage stool made of plexiglass, and slowly climbed down, saying, "It's a bit hot today, I want to hang in the tree for a while to cool off."

The entire crew was speechless, and David Fincher was so angry that his hair almost stood on end.

But since the other party was the godson of DreamWorks, one of the three major investors, he could only give him a stern reprimand.

David Fincher originally thought the biggest challenge during filming would come from the personal conflict between Martin Scorsese and Cate Blanchett, but Shia LaBeouf stole the show.

After giving a reprimand and a stern warning, David Fincher dismissed the crew and sent them back to their posts.

If David Fincher hadn't stopped him, many people in the crew would have definitely wanted to beat Shia LaBeouf to a pulp.

The female costume designer glared at him, as if she wanted to rush up and bite Shia LaBeouf a few times.

Martin and Saoirse came out at the same time and went back to the set together.

Shia LaBeouf caught up from behind and asked, "Martin, do you think my artistic expression is acceptable?"

Martin was speechless and casually remarked, "Very imaginative."

Shia LaBeouf then reversed the argument: "You were able to gain Nicholson's approval and become his protégé, and now that I've gained your approval, I'll surely be able to gain Nicholson's approval in return..."

Martin got a headache listening to this and quickly moved away from the guy.

Saoirse glanced back. "I always felt something was off about this guy when I watched Transformers." She pointed to her forehead and asked, "Is there something wrong with this?"

Martin wouldn't discuss Spielberg's illegitimate child with her, saying, "Perhaps the thoughts of artists are difficult for ordinary people to understand."

Saoirse asked, "Aren't you an artist?"

Martin frankly stated, "I'm a celebrity, a multi-millionaire, and maybe I'll become an artist someday."

Saoirse thought of the hanged man's ugly appearance: "An artist like that is better off not being one."

(End of this chapter)