Preparations

The interview work for the heroine came to an end as Levi appointed a candidate.

Of course, after Levi appointed Theron as the heroine, he didn't make any more requests: he didn't know what Theron was thinking in her heart, he just wanted to find a heroine for the movie, and of course, he wasn't arrogant to come up with ideas for what to ask for.

But it would be wrong to say that there are no requirements. After the interview, Levi also chatted with Theron, "Miss Theron, can you come with me? I know a place with some very good costumes. If designers see a great model like you, they'll be happy to make you some outfits."

Costume designer? Theron didn't quite understand, but when she was brought to Enigma Company by Levi, Theron suddenly understood.

It turned out that he just took her to make props.

Of course, Levi didn't take her out for shopping, but needed someone to make costume props according to Theron's body shape, prepare the required materials, and decide on the actors, so he would naturally bring them back for introduction with Alexander. After all, Alexander is in charge of the props.

Seeing Levi come back with the heroine, Alexander, and Theron got to know each other for a while and then directly talked to Levi about the preparations for the film.

"I'll talk about the costumes later. Now let's talk about some important things. I want to ask, can we finish the pre-shooting of the film, mainly the interior part, in the United States? There are top prop masters here. The top set designer, lighting, and art are all the best, and all our props and sets can be made here than in Germany, and they are more realistic."

Regarding Alexander's suggestion, Levi also expressed agreed. Although Germany is the place where the story takes place, the story took place in 1984-this time can be said to pay tribute to the novel "1984." Levi also kept the details; the gap between East Germany in 1984 and current Germany in 1997 is quite large. Even if you go to Germany, you need to use a lot of sets and props. In comparison, the production level of sets and props in Germany is much lower than that in the United States. Instead of going there, the interior part might as well stay in the United States.

In Levi's memory, the German version of "The Lives of Others" has some problems in this regard. Where the movie uses cars, there is no way to spend money to find a car from 1984. You can only use the car styles that appeared in 1988 or even 1991. Some details, such as the straws used for eating, and because they didn't have enough money to make props, they had to use the straws bought in the supermarket directly. These problems are actually not too big problems, but if you want to make the best movie, you should be more serious.

It goes without saying that the American side is better when it comes to prop production.

"But in the later stage, we still have to go to Germany." This Levi did not forget, "Streets, houses, theaters, bookstores, these exterior scenes, we still have to go to Berlin to shoot the scene. I don't know how many people will be going there. You have to get ready for ticket booking, accommodation, and filming."

"Don't worry about this, I can do it, and there is one more question I have to ask you." Alexander said, "We have prepared all the equipment... But can you tell me why you need to use 1500 rolls of the film I prepared?" Alexander thinks it is understandable for Levi's other requirements, but this is a bit strange. The shooting time of a roll of film is 4 minutes, 1500 rolls of film, that is, 6000 minutes.

Of course, it is difficult to shoot a movie successfully at one time. Basically, the film consumption ratio is about 1:10. With 6000 minutes of film, a 600-minute movie can be shot. But even so, it's a bit much.

Of course, Levi's request is to shoot with three cameras but let alone how many times the three cameras are turned on at the same time, even if they are used all the time, they can still shoot for 200 minutes.

Levi's vision was for a 120-minute movie, and 200 minutes was too long.

"Just in case." Levi said, "I don't know about you. Anyway, as far as I am making a movie for the first time, I think it's better to be cautious."

Since he wants to be a director and make a good movie and has prepared for so long, he naturally has to be fully prepared in all aspects. One thousand five hundred rolls of film can be said to be twice as much as the normal film needs. Since it is the first time Levi to direct a feature film, he needs to prepare more.

There is only danger if you are not prepared well.

"I thought it was because you couldn't find a good photographer, so you prepared more film for this."

Alexander's irony, Levi heard it but didn't care. Indeed, Levi asked Alexander to find a photographer, not a very famous one. This photographer, named Wally Pfister, is still an unknown person. He has been shooting some low-cost horror movies for a long time. As a photographer, he is quite unsatisfactory. In Alexander's view, since his company wants to shoot movies, it should also find photographers such as John Toll or Roger Deakins. Levi chose such an unknown person, and Alexander was also a little worried.

The cinematographer is basically the person in a movie crew whose power is second only to the lead actor, director, and producer. In the whole set, only the director, main leads, and the cinematographer can ask to start over if they are not satisfied with the shooting situation. He is of great significance. Only a good photographer can fulfill the director's shooting intention, and in some movies, a photographer with a good-looking lens can even turn a bad film into a good one. The photographer's improper employment is a big problem.

Levi is very insistent on his opinion on this.

"There is absolutely no problem with this photographer." However, Levi was as stubborn as when he decided on the heroine. "Have you seen his movies? His grasp of the contrast between light and dark is very good. Or even the best I've ever seen. This shooting style is just right for my film and is more suitable than Roger Deakins. Trust me; he can shoot blockbusters." Fortunately, making a film like Batman is a show of skill.

Of course, this man is no problem: the cinematographer who will shoot the Batman trilogy in the future and the worker's master of light and dark contrast. Levi can rest assured with such a person in charge of the camera.

Alexander snorted coldly and said nothing: the filming of this film was not particularly difficult, and Levi was very self-aware. The filming of this film was done with relatively simple and straightforward photography techniques and did not require a very good photographer. Moreover, Levi must also have his reasons. Compared with film photography, he does not have all the power to do everything. In terms of the soundtrack, Levi still agreed to find someone to do it.

"As for the soundtrack, you can leave it to Hans Zimmer. He is also German and can understand my request. For this movie, the transformation of German and Russian music is also a matter of attention." In this regard, Levi agreed with Alexander's suggestion: Hans Zimmer's company will have a lot of work to do next year, writing a lot of soundtracks. Generally speaking, the film soundtrack accounts for about 8% of the total film expenditure, which is 1.6 million. Hans Zimmer will definitely work hard to write a good tune.

"The soundtrack is fine; you don't have to worry about the post-editing work. Since Clark wants to do it himself, the company just spends money to buy the machine. The sound effect is not a problem; just find a few music engineers. There are ready-made people available for this, and their level is trustworthy."

Film shooting is a process of multi-party collaboration, and everyone must work hard to make a good movie. Bob finished the script, Clark took care of the interview, and in terms of logistical preparations, Alexander is not far behind. Photography, soundtrack, set, and sound mixing these aspects are all his tasks.

"Don't worry too much. I've said it many times; time is not urgent."

During the discussion between the two, Theron sat on the side and listened to their words: She never knew that there was still time to make a movie and that there were so many things. She has participated in movies before, but everything from photography to soundtrack to shooting locations and props must conform to the theme of the film. This is the first time she has seen such an approach—of course, this is also because this is her second movie.

This is like a regular movie shooting... Theron said to herself in her heart.

And just when Theron was surprised, another piece of news came.

"Nick, good news." Bob came in from the door, "Kevin Spacey read our script. He wants to talk to you and then decide whether to star."

'Want to talk to me?'

Levi immediately figured out what Spacey was thinking: for great directors, it is natural for the director to choose the actors when acting, but for big-name stars, when acting, they also want to choose the director. Levi's script has won Spacey's favor, and now what he wants is to give Levi an audition.

Just try it. Who is afraid of whom? Moreover, he should go to see him, because there are other things. Levi's gaze flicked around Theron before speaking.

"Miss Theron, are you interested in visiting a top actor with me tomorrow? This actor will be our lead actor."

*****

Thanks and kudos for my patreons Cherif Doghri, Abdishakur Hasan, Adam LV, Danny York, and haze2343.

You can read advanced chapters on my Patreon account: https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.