18. Delivery

Perhaps Angelina Jolie's performance in other aspects was indeed lacking, but her credit was good. In just over ten days, she introduced Matthew to a good acting training school. Los Angeles has similar institutions everywhere, most of which are pay-to-go types, but this one had a certain admission threshold.

According to Vanessa, this training school is called the Los Angeles School of Performing Arts, mainly cooperating with the Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and the William Morris Endeavor Agency (WME) to train actors for these two companies.

Actors from outside these two agencies need to be recommended by someone influential in the industry to be accepted.

For example, Matthew, without Angelina Jolie's recommendation, would find it very difficult to enter this level of acting training school.

Just like where he used to live, there were various training institutions everywhere, most of which were scams. Only a few were reliable.

When he got off in North Hollywood, Matthew casually asked around and quickly found this training institution called the Los Angeles School of Performing Arts.

"Hello, sir."

At the open entrance of the school, a security guard stopped Matthew. "This is private property."

"Ah, hello," Matthew quickly said, "I'm here to enroll in the acting training class!"

The security guard glanced at Matthew and took out a list, politely asking, "May I have your name?"

Matthew replied, "Matthew Horner."

The security guard looked through the list and nodded, saying, "Please come in, Mr. Horner." He pointed the way, "Turn left ahead, go straight ahead two hundred feet, and there's a white building. The registration office is on the first floor, you'll see it when you enter."

Very polite indeed, Matthew also showed courtesy, "Thank you!"

Following the guard's directions, he quickly found the registration office. Just as he entered and was about to speak, his phone suddenly rang, showing the number of Angel Talent Agency.

"Sorry," Matthew smiled apologetically at the middle-aged woman who was about to receive him, "I need to take this call first."

He stepped out of the registration office and answered the call, "Hello, this is Matthew Horner."

"Hello, Matthew."

The crisp voice on the phone was somewhat familiar. "I'm Helen Herman."

Matthew immediately remembered the sharp and capable female agent he had met.

The woman spoke quickly, "I have a job suitable for you here. If you're interested, come to the company before ten o'clock tomorrow morning, gather at eleven o'clock sharp, and remember to bring your documents, luggage, and change of clothes!"

Although he didn't know exactly what the job was, Matthew agreed immediately. For a small-time actor like him, jobs chose people and not the other way around.

After hanging up, he returned to the registration office and said to the middle-aged woman who was about to receive him, "Hello, I'm Matthew Horner. I received a notice to come here today for registration."

The middle-aged woman searched through a stack of documents, found a thin stack, and said, "Take a look, is everything correct."

Matthew took it and glanced through it. It was all the basic information he had filled out for "Soulmate." "No problem."

"Good." The middle-aged woman handed him a form, "Please fill this out."

Luckily, the form only required simple information to be filled out, otherwise Matthew would have been in trouble.

Thanks to Angelina Jolie's arrangement, everything went smoothly. As Matthew filled out the form, the middle-aged woman said, "The acting course lasts for six months, with no less than twenty-two hours of learning and practice per week. During this time, the school will also provide you with audition opportunities. If you perform well during the study period, the school will also recommend you to major agencies and strive for you a formal actor contract."

Hearing this, Matthew nodded slightly. It seemed quite formal.

But then, the middle-aged woman got to the point, "The total fee is six thousand dollars!"

Matthew immediately looked up. This number far exceeded his estimate.

The middle-aged woman's next words relieved him, "The fee can be paid in installments."

Thinking about it, it made sense. Those who could come here to study were probably small actors. For these people, six thousand dollars was definitely not a small amount, and paying in installments could reduce the financial pressure on many people.

"Today, pay two thousand dollars for registration." The middle-aged woman continued, "Pay two thousand dollars before the start of classes in May, and the remaining two thousand dollars in September."

Matthew calculated that with the deals he had with Angelina Jolie, he had received $5,500, $180 for the "Soulmate" crew, and less than $1800 for the first month's salary from Red Penguin Company.

During this time, he had received a total of $7400 in income.

In terms of expenses, he had already paid $2400 for half a year's rent, and then there were recent living expenses and various expenses, which he had saved as much as he could. However, buying a large number of professional books and subscribing to newspapers to improve his reading ability had also cost him a lot of money.

Currently, there was less than $4000 left in his bank account.

Paying the first fee was no problem at all. The second payment would be in May, when he will get another month's salary from Red Penguin Company. As long as he saved some money, there wouldn't be any major issues.

People came to register one after another. He even saw a few familiar faces, probably actors he had seen in movies before, but Matthew couldn't recall their names for now and didn't have the interest to chat. After finishing the registration, he went to the finance department upstairs to swipe his card and pay the initial $2,000 fee, picking up a textbook on the way out. Then he left the Los Angeles School of Performing Arts and waited quietly for the start of classes in May.

Back in West Hollywood, Matthew bought two newspapers and went straight into the apartment building. He didn't have to go to work at Red Penguin Company tonight, and he didn't have any plans to go out either. He intended to rest properly.

Upon reaching the second floor, he opened the door, and as soon as he stepped into the room, he noticed an envelope lying near the door. Picking it up and opening it, his good mood immediately turned cloudy.

The debt collectors had come directly to his doorstep!

Sitting on the sagging sofa, Matthew looked through the letter several times. Although he didn't understand much, he guessed that it was probably a lawyer's letter. It was signed by Chris Walker's lawyer, the one who had called him twice before. The contents of the letter were similar to the phone call, listing the breach of contract clauses and demanding $50,000 in liquidated damages.

"These guys!" Matthew threw away the lawyer's letter. "They actually found my place!"

Thinking about it, it wasn't particularly surprising. After all, the person before had left his real information, and he hadn't deliberately concealed his whereabouts. In a modern society, finding someone wouldn't be too difficult.

"I should probably consult a lawyer."

After all, he was the one who breached the contract first, and this kind of thing couldn't be avoided. "See if an out-of-court settlement can be reached."

In those Hollywood movies he had seen, if an out-of-court settlement could be reached, the settlement amount would generally be much lower than the amount demanded by the plaintiff. But Matthew still frowned. Even if the "Forbidden Tarot" crew and the studio behind them agreed to halve the liquidated damages, it would still be $25,000.

With the lawyer's letter arriving, Matthew felt a sense of urgency and also increasingly felt the pinch of poverty. If he had a hundred thousand dollars, he would directly throw fifty thousand dollars at those swindlers and see if they would leave him alone!

The feeling of having no money was really uncomfortable.

Matthew made a decision. He would go to Angel Talent Agency tomorrow, see what specific job it was, and then find time to consult a lawyer.

In the meantime, he picked up a book and started reading, making full use of his limited time to increase his own capital. The next morning, after his morning run, he changed into the only suit he had, packed the luggage he had prepared last night, and took the bus to the Angel Talent Agency in North Hollywood.

"Hello..."

Just as he entered, a young girl came up to him and asked, "Are you here to audition for actors?"

"Yes," Matthew politely replied, "I'm Matthew Horner. I received a notice from Miss Helen Herman yesterday."

"Please have a seat." The girl made a note in her notebook. "Wait a moment."

Matthew entered the lobby on the first floor. It was completely different from the last time he came. More than sixty people were scattered on the benches in the lobby, all of them looking young and strong, some of them even recognizable, chatting quietly together.

Obviously, these were all temporary actors like him.

"Hey, Matthew!"

Someone suddenly stood up and waved to him. "Over here, come here!"

Turning his head, Matthew recognized the young face that was as young as his own, the same face as the mover he had helped last time, Michael Sheen.

Matthew immediately walked over and greeted him, "Hey, Michael."

"Call me Mike." Michael Sheen waved for Matthew to sit down and said, "I was just thinking, that I would run into you."

"I haven't received a role in a long time." Matthew shrugged, "Just trying my luck."

He asked, "How have you been lately?"

"The same old." Michael Sheen sighed, "Working as a mover and then being a background actor in some small crews."

Matthew smiled, "Take it easy. There will be a better day."

Michael Sheen had good looks, tall and strong, with brown hair and blue eyes. If he went to shoot youth idol-type movies or TV shows, Matthew thought he should have a future.

But that was just his own opinion.

"Yeah!" Michael Sheen nodded vigorously, "I've been in Los Angeles for three years. I must make a name for myself! I will definitely become a big star!"

"When you become famous." Matthew joked casually, "Don't forget to support me."

Michael Sheen laughed.

Clap—clap—

There was suddenly applause in the lobby, and Matthew and Michael Sheen looked towards the stairs. Helen Herman, who had received them last time, was already standing there.

Seeing that everyone was looking, Helen Herman said loudly, "Everyone, there's a job that may last a week..."

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