Chapter 248: I'm Not Acting Anymore

[Chapter 248: I'm Not Acting Anymore]

Eric soon understood why the little girl was present. She was definitely brought by Donald Trump. However, the staff around her were completely neglectful; even if they allowed her to stay here, they shouldn't have let her touch the film equipment.

He was just about to scold the staff who seemed so unconcerned when the radio crackled to life: "Eric, is everything ready? Can we start?"

"Oh, of course," Eric replied, temporarily putting aside the issue as he hurriedly put on his headset and made his way to the monitor.

The camera started rolling. Kevin walked into the hotel lobby, looked around, and began walking down the corridor toward the lobby, with the camera smoothly following the boy's movements, retreating slowly behind him.

...

"Cut! Nicole, what's going on over there? Didn't you notice the camera was a bit too high? Do it again!" Eric called out immediately as Kevin had barely taken a few steps.

Nicole's apologies crackled through the radio, and after two minutes, everyone, including the extras, took their positions again, and filming resumed.

...

"Cut! Roy, the segment you were responsible for -- the guy in the blue knit jacket -- tell him to focus a little more. I can't believe someone would actually look up at the camera lens. If it happens again, just kick him off the set and we'll start over!"

...

"Cut, ..."

"Cut, ..."

After who knows how many times they had to stop, Eric pointed out yet another mistake and was about to continue when Nicole's voice came through the radio: "Eric, I can't do it anymore. I'm almost out of strength."

Eric froze for a moment. It then dawned on him that this time there wasn't a camera on a track, but rather Nicole was carrying a heavy handheld camera.

With a sigh, he took off his headset and said to a crew member beside him, "Pass the word down, everyone take a ten-minute break."

...

"You're really something, you can't get this shot right after so many tries," Ivanka commented just as Eric settled into his director's chair, taking a cup of water from his assistant. She had been peeking over his shoulder all along.

The mouthful of water Eric had just taken nearly sputtered out as Ivanka spoke, startling the little girl next to him into an "ah!"

"Cough, cough, cough..." Eric patted his chest a few times before responding, "Ivanka, Don't you see? This is hardly my fault."

The little girl stuck her hands in her pockets, raising her chin as she complained, "Excuse me, sir, please call me Miss Trump."

Eric felt a twitch on his forehead as he suddenly recalled the famous line "Call me queen." Just as he was about to reply, Nicole, Stuart, and some other key crew members approached.

...

"Daddy," Ivanka called, seeing her father and walking toward him, grabbing Donald's hand.

"Ivanka, what were you just discussing with Eric?" Donald asked with curiosity, having already noticed Eric talking to his daughter.

"Oh, nothing. I just said how great he is. But I've been watching for a while, and he can't even get a simple walking shot right. He's miles behind the directors you've taken me to meet before."

Before Eric could respond, Nicole's embarrassment was evident, as much of the blame for the mistake had landed on her, the cinematographer.

"Eric, I'm really sorry," Nicole said apologetically.

"It's okay, everyone knows this shot isn't exactly easy." Eric reassuringly patted Nicole on the shoulder. "You should take a break for a bit. Find someone to massage your arm, and in ten minutes, we'll try again. If it doesn't work, we'll shoot other scenes first."

Nicole nodded and turned to leave.

"Are you Kevin?" Eric then heard the little girl's voice again.

"Actually, I'm Stuart Ronkel," he introduced himself as he noticed a peer in the crew.

"I heard you're also eight years old, how come you're so much shorter than me?" the little girl teased, stepping closer to Stuart and patting the top of his head, which only came up to her nose.

Stuart, having a bit of an early awakening to his ego, responded defensively, "I'm definitely going to grow taller than you in the future."

"You're not even taller than me now. What are you talking about for the future?"

Everyone erupted into laughter. Donald, though amused, pulled his daughter back. "Ivanka, that's really rude. Actually, Stuart is impressive too. He shot a movie last year."

"What's so impressive about that? Just walking back and forth like that? I can do that," Ivanka retorted indignantly.

"Then show us!" Stuart immediately seized the opportunity. Although he was only eight, he understood that acting wasn't that easy.

"I..." Ivanka looked around, then her gaze fixed on Eric. "Mr. Williams, can I try that shot we just did?" With a request, the little girl dropped her formalities.

Eric shrugged. "I'm really sorry, Miss Trump, but our cinematographer is resting."

"And you? Aren't you the director? Why don't you do it?"

"Me?" Eric asked in confusion.

"Yeah! You can't be telling me that besides directing, you can't do anything else, right?" Ivanka said in her signature sarcastic tone.

Can't do anything else besides directing...

Those words from the little girl stung.

Although crew members who had been with Eric for a long time knew he was a versatile director, hearing Ivanka's comment made them all burst into laughter, egging him on.

"Eric, show her what you've got!"

"Mr. Williams, you can't let this little lady underestimate you!"

"Director, if you join in, I'll help you pull the cables."

"..."

Amidst the buzzing uproar, Eric clapped his hands in annoyance. "Quiet! Everyone quiet down! Don't forget where we are!"

As the crowd died down, Eric turned to the little girl and asked, "Miss Trump, do you really want to give it a try?"

Ivanka tilted her chin up. "Of course."

"Okay then," Eric said. "You must have just seen Stuart's performance on the monitor, so you know what to do, right?"

"Uh-huh," the little girl nodded, then recited, "I come in through the big door, ask my dad for directions at the second corridor, and then walk straight to here."

"Great! Let's do it," Eric replied.

Since it was just a casual break shoot, the extras didn't need to move. However, Donald Trump seemed quite satisfied with his daughter's performance and asked to assist with this shot, even requesting Eric to keep this footage on tape as a keepsake.

...

In the entrance hall, Ivanka noticed Eric carrying the camera behind him, surrounded by a group of people watching her. Though she tried to remain calm, her flickering eyes gave away the girl's inner turmoil.

"Miss Trump, Scene One, Take One, action!" the script supervisor announced, playfully flipping the clapperboard before quickly moving aside.

The little girl blinked rapidly a few times, looking at the camera lens and the crowd watching her. For some reason, she felt a tingling in her limbs. But still, she defiantly lifted her feet and began to walk, glancing around like Stuart had done just moments before. Yet after only a few strides, Ivanka felt overwhelmed and quickened her pace.

She walked all the way to the second corridor, spotting her father on the outside, looking at her encouragingly. At that moment, her dad was her only source of comfort. Without a second thought, the little girl darted away from the camera, tearfully racing toward her father, her tone trembling, "Dad, I'm not acting anymore."

...

"Nicole, how about this? Let's separate the scene from the first and second corridors. That way, we increase the chances of success and minimize the hassle."

Though Ivanka had bolted midway, Eric took the camera to film an empty shot, realizing how difficult it was to walk through that scene, plus the editing that would follow. So it made sense to split it into two parts. When Nicole returned from her break, Eric didn't start filming right away but started discussing with the cinematographer.

Before them lay a simple floor plan of the Plaza Hotel.

Eric pointed with a pencil, saying, "From here to here will be the first part of the shot, and the next shot will start from here until the lobby."

Nicole pondered Eric's words and replied, "So, we'll need to have the extras placed for two parts?"

"Yeah, that's not an issue. We can arrange that in ten minutes, and Stuart is no problem either. What about you? How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," Nicole shook her hands. "If we split it into two parts, I'm good to go."

"Alright, that's settled then," Eric concluded, raising his head to the surrounding crew. "You all heard that. Let's get ready, ten minutes!"

After everyone dispersed, Eric returned to his director's chair. At that moment, little Ivanka sat nearby, clutching an unprocessed box of film, looking like a drenched little bird with a dejected expression, far from the fierce little girl they had just met. Donald Trump sat beside her, softly offering words of comfort.

*****

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