Hollywood Road

Back in Los Angeles, Murphy made another trip to the Actors' Guild. The "Hard Candy" project was too insignificant, from investment to production company. In just one day, no actors had left their application information.

Murphy decided to place another job advertisement in the newspaper after returning home, just like how he had recruited other crew members. There were many actors in Los Angeles who were not part of the guild.

Afterward, he took Jessica Chastain to the Directors Guild, the Cinematographers Guild, and the Writers Guild to inquire about the possibility of joining, especially the latter. Joining the Writers Guild would allow him to file his scripts and check others' scripts, avoiding unnecessary troubles.

Indeed, he could register copyrights at the Copyright Office like he did with "Hard Candy," but that required a hefty fee. Although the Writers Guild also charged for project registration, it was relatively cheaper.

Price directly influenced Murphy's current choices.

Unfortunately, Murphy's trip was in vain. While the entry barriers for organizations like the Directors Guild were not high, there were certain admission requirements, and as a novice, Murphy did not meet the criteria.

However, the trip was not entirely wasted. Murphy understood some misconceptions caused by cultural differences and translation issues.

Firstly, guilds and associations are not the same thing.

A guild is an organization where people in a particular industry or trade unite to fight for rights such as better treatment, improved working conditions, guaranteed minimum wage, and health insurance. An association, on the other hand, is a non-profit organization composed of professionals in a particular field for cultural exchange, information sharing, and educational research.

The difference is that guilds are open to all practitioners with low entry barriers, while associations or societies are more like elite clubs for seasoned professionals.

Murphy's previous understanding of the Producers Union, Directors Association, and Actors Association was incorrect; they were actually guilds.

Despite the low entry requirements, Murphy was still disappointed. For example, to join the Cinematographers Guild, one needed to have 100 days of paid work experience in non-union film production within three years or 30 days in union production. Murphy clearly did not qualify.

Putting aside the plan to join Hollywood's official organizations for now, Murphy published actor recruitment ads in several local Los Angeles newspapers the next day and began coordinating the preparations for his small crew. He rented camera equipment with Jessica Chastain, purchased special tomato ketchup to use as fake blood with prop master Mia Sucre, and scouted house interiors in San Fernando Valley with set designer Sunny Craig.

Funds were steadily withdrawn from Murphy's account, and the days of only spending without income felt like an eternity.

During this period, a dozen actors called in for initial interviews at Milton Cafe, but the results were unsatisfactory. The actors either did not meet the physical requirements or had poor acting skills.

Most of the scenes in this project involved interactions between two characters, inevitably demanding relatively high acting skills.

Regardless of Murphy's project's progress, Hollywood continued operating as usual.

The Actors' Guild, with over 100,000 members, had its West Coast office in Hollywood. Every day, a large number of actors came and went, many stopping to check the job bulletin board for suitable opportunities.

The majority of actors struggled for their dreams, much like Murphy, although a few had higher starting points than the average person.

A girl with short golden-brown hair, carrying a large file bag, walked into the Actors' Guild. She looked about fifteen or sixteen and had a naturally cute baby face, unlike the typical early-maturing white girls. Her big eyes fluttered playfully, reminiscent of a girl from Vladimir Nabokov's novels.

"Uncle Julian!"

As she walked past the job board and approached an office, she looked back unhappily, pouting. "Can't you hurry up?"

Her clear, melodious voice carried a distinct London accent.

Not far behind, a bald old man had just separated from the crowd at the job board, gasping for breath as he approached. "Kerry, you walk too fast. You need to consider an old man's health."

The girl scratched her short hair. "You need to understand my excitement. You know I've always wanted to be an actress, but my stubborn parents want me to go to college instead of pursuing acting. Now that I finally have the chance to come to Los Angeles as an exchange student..."

Her eyes were constantly darting around. "I'm so excited that you finally found time to help me register with the Actors' Guild."

"Come on! Hurry up!" The girl was impatient.

Julian Fellowes finally caught up with the girl and took her into the office. He was a veteran actor with some fame in Hollywood. With his introduction, the girl didn't have much difficulty joining the guild and becoming a somewhat protected actor.

Things are often unfair.

Leaving the office, Julian Fellowes said to the girl beside him, "The guild ensures your working conditions, guarantees a minimum wage and health insurance..."

The girl was smart and immediately interjected, "But only if I can find an acting job."

Julian Fellowes nodded, asking as they walked, "What kind of roles do you like?"

With his connections, getting small roles in Hollywood would not be difficult for the girl.

"Well, let me think..." The girl's big eyes sparkled. "I think playing Lolita would be great."

This answer was completely unexpected for Julian Fellowes. He turned his head, looking at her in surprise. The girl quickly realized her mistake and added, "Uncle Julian, I was just joking."

She swiftly changed the subject, pointing to the crowd at the job board ahead. "What are they doing?"

"Many production teams post job information here," Julian Fellowes explained simply. "But they're usually not very famous projects."

The girl seemed not to hear the latter part, excitedly exclaiming, "Great, I want to take a look too."

Her baby face was full of excitement as she ran towards the crowd, ignoring the slightly hobbling old man.

At the job board, she realized there were too many people. She couldn't see clearly from the periphery and couldn't squeeze in closer.

In front of the bulletin board, job postings were densely packed. The newly registered guild member was eager to find a suitable role to test her well-praised acting skills from the school theater.

She had been interested in acting since childhood, and many people had called her a genius in acting, including Julian Fellowes, who was following her.

"I want to see, I want to see. Why are there so many people?"

The girl pouted, her big eyes flickering, then suddenly brightened. She deliberately used a childish voice, "Hey, hey, everyone listen!"

No one paid attention. Undeterred, she continued, "Steven Spielberg's casting director is hiring in the west courtyard!"

This immediately caught some people's attention. Some even looked towards the west, but the Actors' Guild's west courtyard was separated by two corridors with corners, making it impossible to see.

Someone quickly asked, "Little girl, is what you're saying true?"

"Spielberg's team? That's impossible..."

"Are you lying?"

Hearing the chaotic voices, the girl put on the most innocent expression, hands behind her back, blinking her lively big eyes, and said sweetly, "I'm a good student. How could I lie?"

At her age, with her looks, even steel would melt.

"Let's go check it out..."

"I think she's telling the truth."

Evidently, many chose to believe her and headed towards the west courtyard.

Though many remained unmoved, with fewer people around, the place was no longer crowded. The girl easily squeezed to the front, ready to read the job postings, when a voice beside her spoke up.

"Are you an actress too?"

The girl looked towards the voice. It was a man with curly brown hair, about twenty-two or twenty-three, very handsome. When he looked over, a faint smile at the corner of his mouth made him even more charming.

"Yes!" The girl lightly nodded her pointed chin. "I just registered here."

The man's smile grew more evident. "Dave was right; the cuter the girl, the more she lies."

"What?" The girl looked at him in surprise, seemingly not understanding his words. "What are you talking about? Who lied?"

A natural look of innocence and curiosity appeared on her face, as if she had no idea who he was talking about.

"Your acting is quite good," the man said, seemingly amused. "Especially for someone your age."

"Hmph!"

The girl wrinkled her nose, embarrassed like anyone caught lying, slightly angry at the man beside her. Her eyes shifted to the bulletin board and spotted a job posting.

"Stanton Studio's 'Hard Candy' project is looking for a 14-16-year-old actress, cute appearance, some acting experience, preferably familiar with 'Lolita'..."

Reading this, the girl gulped and quickly noted the contact information. Before she could read more, the man beside her spoke again.

"Those you tricked are coming back," he reminded.

"Ah?" She turned and saw many people returning from the west. Not bothering to read more, she squeezed out quickly. The brown-haired man glanced at her retreating figure and then focused on the Stanton Studio job posting.

Such a pretty, cute girl, isn't she?

He kept watching her until she completely disappeared.