The Wolf of Los Angeles

[Chapter 11: We Are the Best in the Industry]

Hawke pulled out another document and handed it to Eric. "Last year, excluding the big Hollywood studios, only 14 independent films were sold during the Sundance Film Festival, with 1,488 entries."

He got straight to the point: "If we don't take the necessary measures, how likely is it that these niche films will sell?"

Eric felt an urge to respond immediately, but upon seeing the Rolex gold watch his girlfriend had bought for him, his mind cooled considerably. "I need to discuss this with someone," he said.

Hawke didn't rush him. "Take your time; just call me when you're done."

Eric asked the waiter to add his coffee bill to the room charge. His voice attracted the attention of a few people at a distance.

One handsome guy wearing gold-rimmed glasses turned to see Eric and practically lit up with excitement, striding over. "Eric, my friend! What a coincidence!"

Hawke glanced between the guy with the glasses and Eric.

Eric muttered, "What a coincidence, huh? We're at the same film festival, staying at the same small hotel -- this is clearly deliberate."

The guy in the glasses arrived at their table with a big grin. "I heard your screening didn't go smoothly. I've always warned you against making films like that, but you wouldn't listen."

Eric replied, "Don't worry about it."

The glasses-wearing guy continued, "You seem pretty confident; I'm guessing it's because of Castle Rock Entertainment?"

Eric's expression shifted slightly.

The guy turned to Hawke and asked, "You work for him? Take my advice and leave while you can. His films won't sell, and he won't be able to pay his staff."

Hawke found the guy's attitude puzzling.

"Good luck to you guys," the guy said, patting Eric's chair back as he returned to his table.

Hawke raised an eyebrow in question.

Eric whispered, "That's George Hansen. He was the assistant director on my first short film. Afterward, he pursued Katherine too, but he failed. We had creative differences on D.C. Heights, and after he left, he managed to secure funding for a feature called Lemon Street, which is also at this festival."

Hawke commented, "Former underling trying to take down their ex-boss?"

"Potentially," Eric replied, heading back to confer with his girlfriend.

...

Meanwhile, George Hansen dropped his flamboyant act, seating himself back in a group. His eyes landed on a balding man across the table, his expression serious. "It's confirmed -- the news from the broker is legit. Bruce Richmond from Castle Rock will attend Eric's screening."

The balding man stirred his coffee slowly. "I've checked; as long as the money's right, the broker can influence Bruce Richmond's assistant to get him to watch our Lemon Street."

George, eager to step on his former boss, suggested, "Let's see if the broker can arrange for him to only see us and not Eric."

The balding man picked up his phone and made a call. After a lengthy wait, he hung up and said, "The broker said Bruce Richmond will only be in Park City for one day with a tight schedule. They suggest our screening coincide with Eric's. He'll find a way to invite Bruce Richmond over."

He looked at George, a strange smile on his face. "To do all that, we need to throw in extra cash on top of his offer!"

George understood the smile and shifted nervously in his seat. "Can you help me with some extra funding?"

The balding man, being the project financier, invited George, "Alright, we should head back to our rooms. You have five minutes to come up with a way to make me happy."

The two left the cafe and went to the elevator.

...

Hawke exited the restroom, ready to head down the emergency exit. The sound of the elevator arriving made him instinctively turn, just in time to see the balding man pinch George's ass.

George noticed Hawke and shot him a rude finger gesture, embarrassed. "Shut your eyes, you fool!"

He jumped into the elevator and pressed the close door button.

Missing the chance to grovel to Katherine and revel in the joy of a throat and rectal specialist, that was George's main reason for resenting Eric.

Hawke reached the first floor and, before stepping out, received a call back from Eric.

A few minutes later, the two met again on the second floor.

This time, besides Eric, the round-faced girl Katherine joined them.

Katherine again inquired about creating a screening atmosphere and then asked, "How confident are you?"

Hawke answered sincerely, "We haven't failed once!"

Katherine stared at him intently.

Hawke remained calm and confident, showing not a shred of doubt.

He wasn't lying; he never failed because this was the first time.

Katherine then switched the subject, "What's your fee structure?"

The organizers had indicated a production cost of $200,000, and Hawke started from there: "Twenty thousand dollars."

"That's way too high," Katherine shook her head. "The crew only pays the local minimum wage for extras. Since the runtime is less than two hours, we're calculating as if it's two hours, raising the rate to $10 an hour..."

Hawke raised a hand to interrupt her. "The extras you're hiring are just background players. What about my people? They need to start preparing today, get familiar with the film materials, understand the preferences of the screening group, and rehearse their responses. Total working time will exceed 30 hours! The minimum wage in Utah is $5.15. With a hundred-plus team members, just labor costs will far surpass $15,000."

He looked up with a hint of pride. "You won't find a more professional team in the film industry; we are undoubtedly the best!"

Katherine had money but wasn't willing to waste it, especially since he wasn't going to bow to her. "I can go up to $5,000."

"Not enough. I don't do deals that lose money."

Katherine didn't want to shoulder the risk alone, so she sought to transfer it. "If D.C. Heights sells its rights, I'll give you 1% of the sale."

Hawke pressed a hand on the materials in front of Eric. "Make it 2%!"

Eric nudged Katherine, who replied, "Fine."

She had one more condition: "I want all 200 seats in the theater full, no one leaving midway..."

Hawke knew his makeshift team wasn't set up yet, so where was he going to find 200 people?

He said seriously, "More is not always better when it comes to audiences. You might not have noticed, but during the festival, there are too many screenings of films. Aside from the works of high-profile celebrities, very few screenings can fill the seats. Even achieving half capacity would be impressive. With a film like D.C. Heights, wouldn't a packed house seem forced?"

Eric nodded. "That makes sense."

Hawke said, "Trust our professionalism."

Katherine stopped pressing the issue and said plainly, "Get your lawyer over; let's sign a contract."

Hawke had been prepared for this. He called Brandt, and before long, Brandt and a local lawyer arrived at the hotel.

The parties drafted the terms and signed a collaboration agreement.

Katherine then handed a $5,000 check to Hawke.

Once the money hit his bank account, Hawke paid the lawyer's fee and hurried back with Brandt.

While one side was getting settled, the other side still had no framework ready.

Brandt was impressed. "You had nothing and still dared to sign a contract, walking away with five grand!"

"Because I have you," Hawke said, grabbing Brandt's shoulder. "Remember our discussion about the community theater meeting last night? You didn't want to go Dutch, right? And there wasn't sponsorship? I'll sponsor you!"

He added, "I'll first invite the theater group to a free screening and then fund a party!"

*****

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