HWI 199

Hollywood What If Chapter 199

Fremont Smith lost weight. He was usually a positive guy who had a strong passion for films. 

Right now, Fremont lost his happy vibe and was very serious. He was still passionate about his dream of becoming a director. Now that he had become one, he realized that it was not easy at all. 

He had worked under Director Grey's crew and gained considerable knowledge. But standing in this position, and taking responsibility for the possible failure of the movie was very suffocating. 

Now he realized that Director Grey, his mentor, was a monster for handling his job so well. 

Because of too much pressure, there was a time when Fremont exploded and lashed out at the newbies. He was finding an outlet. A natural response to this kind of situation. 

Thankfully, he didn't have much strong intent to say hurtful words... He just said some wild stuff, even saying the N-word to the new members of the crew. 

Fremont was amazed that Kazir never reached the point of acting crazy on the set. Fremont felt like he was being immature. 

Actually, many directors in Hollywood were arrogant and had shitty attitudes. This was their way of adapting. 

Being the director of a movie, he should be assertive and never show any weakness. Or else the crew and the cast won't take you seriously.

As for lashing at the crew members and cast, so many directors did that, almost endless if listed. 

The small screening for Taken 2 was happening in the private theater of Paramount Pictures. 

Fremont saw many people from Paramount, most of them related to production and promotion management. Even the higher-ups attended the small screening. 

Brad Grey and the others were watching the Taken 2. Kazir Grey was sitting next to him, taking the movie seriously. 

So far, everything has been good. 

Perhaps working with Kazir Grey for a couple of years affected Fremont Smith's filmography. He used a fast-cutting editing style so many times. 

Fast cutting is an editing technique that refers to several consecutive shots of a brief duration, around 3 seconds or less. 

Taken 2 used the editing style a lot and made the tension build-up. 

Fremont was nervous because the current movie they were watching was edited by him and his editor. 

If this version was liked by Grey Pictures and Paramount Pictures, then this version would be the official movie. 

If not, then Grey Pictures would hire another professional editor and make another version based on their likeness. 

Fremont Smith put so much importance on this project because this would affect his future. 

If the movie was successful using his version, then he would have more influence in his next movie. Giving him more freedom to explore. He could fight for editing rights, something that only a few directors could do. 

Honestly, Fremont Smith was thankful that Director Grey gave him the chance to direct a big project. Note that Taken was the second highest-grossing movie two years ago and it had a strong influence on society. Certainly, Fremont didn't want the movie to flop. 

While tightly gripping his hands, the movie ended and the conversation inside the small theater happened. 

The higher-ups from Paramount nodded and started talking about their plan. How to execute the promotion and what to do with it. Trailers, publicity, everything that could help Taken 2 earn more money. 

Fremont looked around, a bit confused and nervous. He didn't know if their reaction was good or bad. 

Suddenly, both Brad Grey and Kazir Grey stood up and shook hands. 

Kazir glanced at Fremont and signaled him to talk to them. 

"Brad, this is Fremont. He is the director of Taken 2."

"Nice to meet you." Brad Grey shook his hand before leaving. People like Brad Grey were always busy. 

"Um, Director Grey, the result... Should we edit the movie?" Fremont weakly muttered, very nervous. 

Kazir chuckled and tapped his shoulder. 

"Fremont, can't you see that everyone around you started taking notes? Even the critics are thinking about the articles they will write based on the movie. Don't worry, I didn't see one person who had an adverse reaction to the movie. You did a good job. We don't have to edit the movie. And because of that, you are responsible for making the trailer. Congratulations."

"Y- Yes! Director!" Fremont Smith smiled sincerely. God knows how many sleepless nights he spent just to edit the movie.

Unlike Kazir who had 'references' to follow, Fremont was basing on his knowledge and experience to make a proper edit. 

"Fremont, we are both directors now. Just call me Kazir."

"You are my mentor in this industry and I learned so many things from you."

"... Well, calling me director is better than teacher or mentor. On the second thought, I think it should be better to call me director."

Kazir was not used to being called teacher or mentor. In the first place, he knew that he was not a good director. 

Even though this would be the last time that Paramount would distribute their movie since the contract ended, the company put importance on Taken 2. 

After watching Taken 2, they believed that the box office would not be bad. 

"Again, congratulations," Kazir said.

He decided to keep Fremont's edit because it was close to his expectations. Fremont's version was close to the original Taken 2 that Kazir Grey watched back in 2012. 

..........

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After the extensive promotion that Paramount and the cast of Taken 2 did, the first week of November arrived, and Taken 2 would set sail at the box office. 

In this month, the hardest opponents that Taken 2 would face would be Toy Story 2, and 007: The World Is Not Enough. 

As for the horror movies, there were a bunch of them and movie-goers were divided on choosing which horror movie to watch. 

The highest-grossing horror movie in November was Sleepy Hollow starring Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci, directed by none other than Tim Burton.