America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 637 Mexicans

South Bogda Street, diagonally opposite Disney Studios.

Several trucks were parked in front of a four-story office building, and many Mexicans got out of the trucks and carried the goods into the building.

At the entrance of the building, a newly hung bronze nameplate gleamed, bearing the words "Davis Film Production Studio" in large characters.

At the end of this year, Martin's office lease at Warner Bros. Studios expired, and instead of renewing it, he moved his company to Disney.

Martin stood in his spacious fourth-floor office, with a clear view of the Disney building across the street.

Similar to Warner Bros. Studios, the studio area is located behind the office building.

There was a knock on the office door, and Martin went to open it.

Jessica came over with a few Mexicans pushing carts: "Boss, the safe you ordered has arrived. Should I have them put it directly in the office?"

Martin nodded. "Put it in." He pointed to the reserved spot in the corner. "Just put it there."

Several Mexicans pushed a cart over, and together they lifted the extremely heavy safe and placed it in the corner.

Martin checked the location: "It's ready."

As the Mexicans passed by Martin's desk, two of them glanced at the desk, where a large stack of documents sat.

They often work for Hollywood companies, and they can tell at a glance that it's a script.

The group didn't linger and walked out of the office.

Martin asked Jessica, "Have you moved most of your things?"

Jessica replied, "We've finished moving everything in one trip."

Martin, like a seasoned capitalist, said, "We'll resume normal operations tomorrow."

The sounds of things being moved kept coming from the open office door until they quieted down half an hour later.

After the bill was settled, the truck and a large van left one after the other.

Four Mexicans are having a discussion on the bread truck.

"Boss, putting such a big safe in the office must mean it's for valuables."

These people, who had only recently arrived from Mexico, had no idea what kind of work they used to do. Some of them were particularly daring: "Shall we find a chance to pull off a heist?"

The leader looked quite honest and kind: "Diego, don't fucking talk nonsense, we're doing legitimate business!"

Diego, whose dark blue tattoos were showing through his neck, scratched his head and said, "Boss, working hard like this is too slow to make money."

DePaul, standing nearby, remarked, "Everyone says America is paradise. We gave up our business in Mexico, finally came to America, and now we still have to work hard."

Rodriguez, the boss, said, "Didn't you see? That office belongs to Martin Davis, a real big shot in Hollywood. Rumor has it he's practically inseparable from the new LAPD director!"

Diego retorted, "In Mexico, we've even had mayors!"

Romero, who was driving, said, "Shut up! This is over, and no one is allowed to mention it again."

Rodriguez said, "You haven't been here long enough to understand that the LAPD is the largest armed violent organization in Los Angeles. People like us, once we mess with the LAPD, are the ones who get their magazines emptied!"

Diego and Romero fell silent.

Rodriguez added, "Los Angeles isn't a safe place. Nobody would put valuables in their office safe; wouldn't that be inviting trouble?"

Romero, who was driving, interjected again: "When I came out of the office, I noticed some scripts on Martin Davis's desk."

"I saw it too, it's definitely a script." Rodriguez looked at Diego and De Paul and said, "Watch closely, I'll teach you how to make money without risk."

Diego and De Paul nodded repeatedly.

Rodriguez said, "Martin Davis is known in Hollywood for his keen eye for film projects, which always turn out to be big hits. I often interact with people in Hollywood companies, and I've heard it mentioned more than once that many Hollywood companies and producers want to know in advance what projects Martin Davis will choose in the future."

DePaul reacted quickly: "Those scripts on the desk?"

“That’s right, those scripts are our business opportunity!” Rodriguez said to Lamela, who was driving. “You know a lot of people in Hollywood, so spread the word that we’ve seen scripts for many of Martin Davis’ projects.”

Romero said, "But we only saw the script..."

Rodriguez may seem unassuming, but he's no pushover: "This information about where the script is hidden should make some money."

Romero nodded: "I'll go this afternoon."

Diego and Romero said, "Let's go together."

Rodriguez nodded: "Alright, although your English is quite good, you still need to adapt to the environment here. Don't get into guns all the time; we need to make money with our brains!"

"Understood!" the two replied.

Back in downtown Los Angeles, the four had lunch. Rodriguez went to find high-end routes, while the other three went out to spread the word.

…………

Like other Hollywood production companies, Davis Studios always receives a lot of scripts from screenwriters.

Every other week, Martin would take some time to quickly skim through these scripts, but over the years, very few of them were of value.

Hollywood has roughly estimated that it receives nearly 40 scripts each year, while industry associations report at least 35 in the worst year.

This does not include remakes of old films, sequels, comic book adaptations, and novel adaptations.

Of those, even one percent is a pipe dream if it can be produced.

As for the Hollywood Blacklist of scripts, which gained fame because of the success of "Juno," some of them have become successful films over the years, but like the 80/20 rule in the industry, many more have failed.

Martin has also been keeping an eye on the blacklist, and if he sees a valuable project whose copyright has not yet been sold, he will certainly make a move.

The dozen or so scripts I just received are all piled up on my desk.

Martin was flipping through the pages quickly.

Among these were submissions from established screenwriters in the industry, but most were from new screenwriters.

The first script Martin opened was called "Seventh Son." He opened the first page, saw the setting, closed it, and put it aside.

There's no need to read any further, because this is a magical epic.

Martin had no recollection of the scripts he saw later, such as "Middle Eastern Lover" and "The Prince Who Escaped," as the screenwriters were newcomers and the content of the scripts was not worth watching.

The same applies to the next dozen or so.

Until the very last one, Martin saw another work that left an impression, called Transcendence, a story about an electronics scientist who is assassinated by terrorists, and his wife transfers his mind into a supercomputer.

He had seen the movie, and it left an impression on him because the male lead was Johnny Depp.

But considering that ever since Depp played Captain America, every time he leaves the Caribbean, he's faced a series of pitfalls, Martin simply closed the script and put it aside.

He read through all the scripts and originally intended to have them all taken away, but remembering that even a children's book like "Jack the Giant Slayer" had come in handy, he only had the scripts he didn't recognize taken away, leaving "Seventh Son" and "Transcendence".

Martin thought for a moment, but couldn't think of a use for it, so he simply put the script in a safe.

The phone on his desk rang. Martin answered it, and it was Mia calling, asking him to come over.

After Mia joined the company and signed a creative agreement with Davis Studio, she has been writing and revising the script.

As a new screenwriter, despite receiving help from Bradett, it wasn't easy to write a script that satisfied Martin.

Moreover, at Martin's suggestion, the script has been transformed into a musical.

Mia's boyfriend, Sebastian, also quit his job at the Smoke House and joined Davis Studios, where he was responsible for composing music and songs for "LA LA LAND".

Martin went up to the second floor, where Mia and Sebastian had a large, separate studio.

Mia handed Martin a manuscript and said, "I've revised the script again."

Martin wasn't entirely satisfied with the script, mainly the ending, where the female lead, now a big star, ends up with the male lead, like something out of a Disney fairy tale.

The happy ending seems great at first glance, and it would work perfectly well in other types of films.

However, films set in Hollywood are inappropriate, as they neither reflect the reality of Hollywood nor the public's perception of it.

The female protagonist may still have feelings for the male protagonist, but she will choose to marry and live with a richer man with a higher social status.

Martin took the script and flipped directly to the end. The ending had been changed; instead of the male and female leads getting together, the female lead married a producer, and the ending took place in the male lead's music bar, where she met him again.

The two met again but never saw each other again, eventually going their separate ways.

Mia asked, "Is this ending acceptable?"

Martin closed the script: "This is a good ending."

Sebastian then said, "I composed a piece of music specifically for the ending."

Martin asked, "May I hear it?"

Sebastian sat behind the piano and pressed the black and white keys.

This is a slightly melancholic melody, but it also carries a sense of striving for progress.

Perhaps because he listened to Taylor Swift's songs so much, Martin developed a certain level of appreciation and was able to hear these things from the melody.

He decided that in order to improve his musical literacy, he would listen to Taylor and her group of girlfriends sing more often.

After finishing the piece, Sebastian took a moment to catch his breath before looking at Martin: "I was the one who first suggested the song type, but I only know how to compose music, not choreography or lyrics. The studio needs to prepare as soon as possible."

Martin nodded: "I will have someone communicate with Disney. Disney is very good at music and dance, and they have no shortage of professional talent."

Sebastian was relieved and said, "I will continue to compose music."

Martin handed the script back to Mia: "Keep refining it. If you have any problems, communicate with Brad."

His phone rang, he waved and left the studio, only to find that the calls were from Julie and Aniston.

"Hi, honey, wanna go see an art film shoot tomorrow? I spoke with Jenna on the phone; she and Pitt are starting filming their new movie tomorrow."

(End of this chapter)