Chapter 81: Film Noir

After recruiting suitable financial personnel, the Stanton Studio's new project officially commenced. Unlike other production teams, most of the positions for this project were still vacant.

Currently, only a few positions have been confirmed: director and producer Murphy, assistant director Paul Wilson, assistant director Seth Rogen, makeup artist Jack Watson, props master Baker Clibbert, editor Jody Griffiths, and telephone operator Rosa Rodriguez.

Several actors have also been confirmed: Seth Rogen through auditions, James Franco after negotiations, Carey Mulligan who is temporarily under school supervision, and Paul Wilson and Rosa Rodriguez who can serve as background actors.

In addition to these people, Murphy and Bill Rosas have met many CAA contract actors, who, like Murphy, lack significant experience and fame. However, as Bill Rosas mentioned, anyone signed by CAA generally has guaranteed basic abilities.

Since Murphy is considered a super potential client, Bill Rosas has introduced very reliable individuals.

"Murphy, this is Phil Lasher..."

In a CAA reception room, Bill Rosas introduced a middle-aged white man, "He has participated in the shooting of two TV series and worked as a second cameraman on the set of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 4."

He then introduced a thirty-year-old mixed-race woman, "This is Helena Espola. She worked as an art director for three episodes of Apocalypse *****. Her abilities are as outstanding as her appearance."

Next, he introduced the last person, "This is David Roby from Australia. He was the lighting technician for the She-Wolf Club last year."

Finally, he turned to Murphy and said, "Phil, Helena, David, this is Murphy Stanton, an excellent director."

"Hello, nice to meet you..."

Murphy shook hands with each of them, exchanged greetings, and under Bill Rosas' suggestion, they sat on the sofa near the window.

"Director Stanton..." The first to speak was the cinematographer, Phil Lasher. "Bill introduced your project to us, and we've also watched your Hard Candy. I want to ask, what type of film will your new project be?"

Often, it's not just directors who choose cinematographers; cinematographers also choose projects that suit their style. If a film's style is vastly different from their shooting style, it won't help their career much and can even have negative effects.

"Gore horror film," Murphy understood the intent behind the question and replied directly, "a black style CUT film."

Upon hearing this, Phil Lasher, Helena Espola, and David Roby all nodded. This was exactly their specialty.

Not only had they watched Hard Candy, but Murphy had also reviewed their works beforehand. He had already discussed the new project's style with Bill Rosas, who had found people suited to this style.

Both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Apocalypse ***** and She-Wolf Club possess typical black styles.

If these three joined the crew, they wouldn't need fundamental changes in their approach; they would just need to make relative adjustments and adaptations.

This also highlighted Murphy's lack of experience during his first film. For the Hard Candy project, he hadn't considered these factors, and the recruits, except for Jack Watson, had been woefully inadequate.

Then again, given Murphy's conditions at the time, he couldn't have expected more.

Since this was their first meeting, Murphy talked with the three for some time, especially exchanging views on the film's style and concepts. They had some conceptual similarities and differences, which was normal.

It was impossible to finalize the collaboration on the first meeting. After all, filmmaking is not child's play; Murphy needed comprehensive consideration. Moreover, those three might not necessarily join his crew; their decision would depend on Stanton Studio's offered salary.

These three were unlike the corresponding professionals in Hard Candy. They not only worked alone; Phil Lasher had a photography assistant, Helena Espola worked with two set designers, and only lighting technician David Roby was alone.

According to Hollywood rules, hiring them meant hiring their teams as well. Besides their personal salaries, the crew had to bear the team's expenses.

Murphy had no issues with this. The new project involved multiple scenes, actors, and set work, several times more than Hard Candy. It couldn't be completed as simply as before; a comprehensive crew was necessary.

Moreover, Murphy had other considerations. As a director with ambitious goals, he needed to consider forming a relatively stable team of his own.

Working together is the best way to see each other's abilities and develop cooperative rapport.

Every behind-the-scenes profession in the crew is crucial. One point of failure could halt the entire project. Apart from these key roles, Murphy also met seven or eight other individuals recommended by Bill Rosas. These people were all from CAA's numerous potential signees. As mentioned earlier, they might lack fame and credentials, but being recognized by CAA means their abilities were somewhat assured.

After spending an entire week, Murphy finalized the positions for each crew member. Unlike the cheap hires for Hard Candy, relatively better skills also meant relatively higher salaries. The considerable salary expenses made Murphy continue his frugal ways.

Photography, props, lighting, and art direction alone incurred substantial costs.

The importance of cinematography to a film cannot be overstated, and this department's salaries are generally higher, often exceeding other behind-the-scenes positions.

Phil Lasher and his team's weekly salary was $5,500; Helena Espola's art direction team $4,000 weekly; the lighting team $3,000 weekly; and the props team $5,000 weekly. Just these departments meant the crew had to pay nearly $20,000 weekly.

If the new project took more than six months or even a year to prepare and shoot, like mainstream Hollywood films, the personnel costs alone could bankrupt Murphy.

Murphy estimated the production cost at $800,000, so the shooting time had to be brief.

According to his plan, if everything went smoothly, the film would take no more than two months from preparation to shooting.