American fame and fortune

In the apartment building that was completed less than three years ago, Martin followed the landlord Antonio to the second floor.

Walking on the stairs, Antonio suddenly asked, "Are you an actor?"

Martin was slightly surprised, but did not deny it: "Good vision."

"Those who speak your accent are all daydreaming actors." Antonio is as fat as a mountain, panting when he walks up: "Don't be surprised, I've seen too many people in this apartment. Most of them are actors."

Martin asked, "Has a star ever walked out here?"

Antonio was surprised: "Are you kidding? Celebrity? Heh...Let's put it this way, people who leave my place are lucky enough to wake up in time and go back and forth from where they came from; those who are unlucky are called by high-level recruits; those who are unlucky , went to the city center to be a street girl; worst of all, might be a bum in some alley.”

Martin thought for a while, and then asked: "Is there any luck?"

Antonio came to the third floor and turned into the corridor: "Two of them went to the valley in the north. I heard that they can earn tens of thousands of dollars a week. They can be regarded as realizing their dreams and becoming actors."

He took out the key, opened a door, and said, "The previous resident was also an actress. She was lucky and went to the valley."

Martin checked the room again. Just like the house inspection, the small two-bedroom apartment was fully equipped with home appliances and furniture, the table and the floor were cleaned very clean, and you can move in with your bags.

Antonio said again: "How about it? There is a reason why you are expensive. From here, you can go to any studio in Burbank within 15 minutes, and to Los Angeles International Airport in 25 minutes. Nearby restaurants, bars, theaters, and art districts There are no shortages like supermarkets.”

He came to the window of the living room, pointed to the opposite side: "Long-term parking, go to the parking lot over there, 60 dollars a week, just park."

Martin said casually, "Very good, I fell in love with it the last time I came here."

Antonio warned: "You can bring people back to stay overnight, one or two is fine, as long as it doesn't affect the neighbors, but parties are not allowed here, I will call the police and drive you away."

"No problem." Martin decided to rent it: "Let's sign the agreement."

The two signed a house lease agreement, Martin paid half a year's rent in one lump sum, and went downstairs to get his luggage.

It was impossible to park here for a long time, so he drove the car to the parking lot diagonally opposite, and went to the management office to register for the weekly card.

The cost of living in Los Angeles is higher than in Atlanta.

With the trolley case in one hand and the computer bag in the other, Martin returned to the apartment building.

When I went upstairs, I was followed by a middle-aged man. The light shone on his face, like an oil field that had been set on fire in Iraq, dark, oily and pitted.

Martin came to the second floor and turned into the corridor.

Potface also entered the hallway.

Martin grabbed his computer bag by the shoulder straps, and when he reached the door, his attention was on Dimpled Face.

But the potholed face went to the opposite side and knocked on the door: "Jessica, open the door! I know you are inside, don't hide from me."

The door opened, and a blond woman appeared: "Jessica moved away a long time ago and is not here."

The bumpy face was still entangled, Martin had already opened the door, entered the apartment, closed the door, and the sound outside was much quieter.

He packed his luggage, organized his belongings, and cleaned up.

I always feel like something is missing.

Martin quickly remembered that without Elena helping him with housework, he was not used to it.

He checked the time, calculated the time difference between the two places, and called Elena's cell phone, which was quickly connected.

"I've rented a house and settled down." Martin asked, "How's your side?"

Elena's voice was exhausted: "Everything is fine, Emma is back, Scott just had a fight with her this morning." She didn't intend to talk about her own bad things, but said instead: "I carefully Asked Emma, ​​Jack may have gone to Australia or New Zealand."

Martin doesn't care where Jack goes: "He'd better not come back."

Elena added: "There are many events held during Christmas in Atlanta, and there is a bartender competition, which I am going to participate in."

Martin left Elena with a lot of cocktail recipes: "I wish you the championship."

The two talked for a few minutes, and after hanging up the phone, Martin found out the bag containing important items. In one of the hardcover books, the most important addresses and contact information were recorded.

Louise Mayer is still in Morocco and will not return to Los Angeles until the Christmas holiday at the earliest. Martin will call her every few days to chat about life and cocktails.

Kate - Winslet lives in London, temporarily PASS.

Martin will find a suitable time to pay a special visit to Robert Patrick.

The same goes for Michel Gondry and Blanco.

Then there is the brokerage company introduced by Louise Meyer, William Morris (WMA).

Coming to Los Angeles means that Martin has to say goodbye to the extensive model of Atlanta, and the provisions of the California Talent Act must be complied with at least for now.

Actors, directors, etc., must be obtained through an agent.

Martin asked Louise during the last phone call, and Louise had already recommended his profile to William Morris.

Of course, a small actor like him doesn't have to expect the contracts and resources of a high-profile agent.

Even thinking about it is impossible.

An agent must be found, and an agent can save a lot of trouble. Martin is new here, and an agent can help him get acquainted with Hollywood as soon as possible.

Martin found out the phone number left by Louise, called to introduce himself, and made an appointment to meet in the afternoon.

William Morris was in Century City, Beverly Hills. Martin had lunch, changed into formal clothes, and drove over. He deliberately came to the company's front desk a few minutes earlier. After reporting his name, someone took him into the company's open office. hall.

In the office partitions one after another, there are men and women in suits and leather shoes sitting. They are extremely busy, and they hardly leave their phones.

The front desk took Martin to the innermost partition of the hall, where a man in a gray suit who was less than 30 years old was sitting. After seeing the two, he gestured for them to wait.

The man spoke to the phone for a while, maybe it didn't achieve the effect, hung up the phone with a bang, and swears: "Bitch!"

"Thomas, I'm looking for you." The receptionist said and left.

"Who are you?" Thomas Lane asked.

"Martin Davis." Martin said simply, "I called in the morning and they asked me to come and find you."

Thomas remembered: "The little actor assigned to me." Just like an examiner, he pushed back on the swivel chair and looked at Martin with his arms crossed: "Young man, which school did you learn acting in, and what roles did you play? Who recommended your company?"

Martin is digging out documents.

Thomas said quickly: "Don't show me those useless things, you have to build a sense of saving time."

Martin said truthfully: "I was an extra at the age of sixteen. I learned acting from many people. There are too many teachers to count. I just starred in a B-movie called "Zombie Gigolo."

Thomas frowned slightly. He was born in Yeluzi, and his resume was too poor.

At this time, a text message rang on his mobile phone, and he touched it to read the text message.

Martin's words continued: "My recommendation is Ms. Louise Mayer."

Thomas looked up sharply: "Louise Mel? Ms. Mel from Pacific Pictures?"

Martin nodded: "It's her."

Throwing Thomas' cell phone back on the desk, he pointed to a swivel chair next to him: "Sit down and chat." When Martin sat down, he stretched out his hand: "Where's your personal information? Give it to me."

Martin was not surprised, he took out the documents and handed them over, and there was no abnormality in his expression or demeanor.

Thomas looked carefully, and the front was very inconspicuous. He was a background actor in a late-night scene in Atlanta and played a small supporting role in the back. With such a resume, at least tens of thousands of people can be found in Los Angeles.

But seeing the leading actor in "Zombie Gigolo", Thomas felt that the name was somewhat familiar.

He didn't ask much, swiveled the chair and turned to the computer, typing quickly on the keyboard with both hands, and the relevant information of "Zombie Gigolo" was displayed on the screen.

The theater movie released by Lionsgate Films has a box office of several million dollars in North America. The actor is called Martin Davis, who looks exactly like the person opposite.

Interesting, the male lead of a theatrical movie has a great resume for a young actor.

Then I clicked on a searched video, and it happened to be the two big scenes of the male protagonist in the movie - Zombie Machine Gun Dance and Flying Trapeze.

Followed by an impromptu dance at the fan meeting.

After the video was played, Thomas subconsciously looked down at his lower abdomen, his deep inferiority complex was like a strange shape, piercing his heart out.

Looking at the young man on the opposite side, he has an outstanding appearance and a calm demeanor, as if he has an aura of contempt.

Thomas hurriedly cleared up his mood and put on a smiley face: "A male lead in a theatrical film has a poor reputation, but the box office is not bad compared to the investment. You have a good starting point."

Speaking of this, Thomas thought of a possibility. Although Pacific Pictures is small in scale and has never made independent films, it often participates in various platters. The relationship between Louise Mayer and this person will not be simple.

They are all mixed in Hollywood, and some things can be understood after a little thought.

Louise doesn't care, and of course Martin won't hide it. This kind of personal relationship is directly brought out, which saves a lot of trouble: "I have been in Atlanta, and Louise recommended me to develop in Los Angeles. I don't have an agent or a brokerage company. She Recommended my profile to William Morris."

Thomas now understood that the one assigned to him was not a burdensome newcomer, but a potential customer, and said, "You just came here and don't know much about the industry, so I can introduce you, let's talk about the brokerage contract first."

He introduced in detail: "WMA implements a unified standard in the industry, and the commission is 10%. Newcomers sign for one year for the first time, and three years after that..."

Martin has learned about these things in detail, so he still listens carefully to Thomas.

The biggest advantage of Hollywood's brokerage contract is that there is no contract of sale.

The relationship between actors and agents and brokerage companies is very complicated. How to get along depends on the power in the industry.

For example, at the level of Leonardo, CAA is fired, instead of an agent, but a manager is used, and there is nothing wrong with him.

After doing enough research, Martin called Louise again, and then signed a one-year brokerage contract with William Morris.