8. Hiring the Dream Team (l)

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works. If you recognize it from somewhere else, surprise, it isn't mine.

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Recap of the previous chapter –

Vani tells Mark about all the different variances she found in the timeline. Mark plans about how he will take advantage of them. Then tells her the names of the studios and entertainment group he is going to established.

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~ Mark's POV ~

April 11th, 1990, same day, 03:42 pm, in his apartment.

'Hmm, I think I should give a call to uncle Steve and let him know that I will be coming by to take care of some business.' Mark thought to himself.

*Ring*

*Ring*

*Ring*

"Hello, Uncle Steve? It's me, Mark"

"Oh, Mark, how have you been? You graduated recently, right?" Uncle Steve asked with clear joy in his voice. After all, Mark was his godson.

"Yes, Uncle, I did, just two days back. I was thinking about taking a small vacation. But as you say, time waits for no man."

"Ah, my favourite quote, so tell what can I do for you?" Uncle Steve asked with a fond smile on his face.

"Well, Uncle, I am in L.A. now, I arrived just yesterday by flight. I am just calling to let you know that I will be coming by later tomorrow for some business. Will you be free in the morning or afternoon?" Mark asked politely after Steve was one of the best at what he did and his time was very valuable.

"For you? I can always make time, son, so tell me any new inspiration for a book? When are you writing again?" Steve asked with faint excitement as he knew the creative genius of his godson. He won't go more than a few months before starting with another project. Also, he loved reading Mark's work, as he was a fan as well.

"Well Uncle Steve, I do have some ideas for a novel, but currently I am more focused on finishing the screenplay for my debut feature film. I will start writing again in a month." Mark said, in an upbeat tone, he was excited that he would be starting his filming journey soon.

Steve looked at this schedule for tomorrow and pondered which meeting was less important that he could push back to make time for his godson. "Hmm I understand, I am free around 5 to 6 in the evening, tomorrow. I will see you then, Mark."

"Sure uncle, we will meet at 5pm, your office. Thanks for meeting at such short notice."

Mark said gratefully.

"It's no problem, after all, you are an important client of mine as well. Bye now and welcome to LA." Steve said and cut the call.

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~ Mark's POV ~

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After the call was cut off, Mark couldn't help but reminisce about how he had met his kind and generous Uncle.

'I had met Uncle Steve before on my birthdays when I was a kid, but I was officially introduced to him by dad when I wanted to publish my first book, Ben 10.'

'My dad told me that he is one of the best corporate lawyers in the country and also his best friend and my Godfather.'

'Uncle Steve told me if I ever had any problems regarding my novel's copyrights or royalty payments or needed help any starting up a business, I could always seek his help and he would even provide a family discount.'

'Uncle Steve also introduced me to a few of his friends who were into real estate. Allowing me to successfully start my real estate side hustle where I put most of investments,. buying many property and land in various cities across America but mostly in New York and Los Angeles.'

Some of these properties were rental apartment buildings which generated a good passive income for him in the last couple of years. In the city of LA it was the same but half of real estate was concentrated in one area.'

'They were just huge empty warehouses, studio buildings and office spaces, closely located together which can be easily refurbished into my future studio's indoor filming set.'

Mark stopped his mind from going down that lane of thought and decide to focus on his current task. 'But right now I must look into hiring some verified and experienced human resources to help me make the films I want. Because while my friends and I are talented, we are still inexperienced with only a few short films and documentaries to our name.'

'With my current fame it will be impossible to recruit the famous/renowned screenwriters, producers, but with my networking through CAA I can still pull through to hire them at least temporarily. But that option will ony be kept for the worst case scenario.'

'Because, I refuse to believe that there are no hidden gems in the industry. Those people who are very good at their craft but never got the chance to showcase.'

'Or were lacking in some other attributes to make a breakthrough and make a name for themselves in Hollywood.'

'If I want to create a movie that will not only dominate the box office but win the hearts of the audience as well as the critics.'

'Then I am going to need to create a dream team, but I don't just want people who are capable but also reliable and loyal to me and the company.'

'And that's where the •Character Evaluation• skill comes in, with this skill to vouch for their personality and morals I can fully trust them and help them grow to become the foundation for my mega studio.'

"Vani, can you please pull up all the information you have on the current screenwriters working in Hollywood. And arrange them numerically based on just the score of their screenwriting skill score from high to low."

Mark asked, thinking about how many people he would need to hire for his current needs.

[Understood Mark, command is being executed, please wait ….]

In a few minutes, Vani was done with compiling the information.

After looking at the results, Mark was blown away by the sheer number of the results. One page of the tab showed information of 10 different screenwriters and with their being 6,740 pages being displayed.

There were currently 67,396 Hollywood related personnel who had the screenwriting ability. There were a total of 6 people with a score of more than 90 in their screenwriting ability.

The highest ranking of them all is Benjamin Parker, with a screenwriting ability of 98.

Mark drew in a sharp breath as he read this. To get this good at his craft without any cheats, it can only be achieved by someone with both talent and hard work.

Truly a hidden gem of a person, but from the information provided he didn't seem to be successful in Hollywood as he was just a small time book author who also worked as a librarian for the UCLA. This probably happened because he lacked points in the other critical skills.

'Vani can you display some of his lesser stats for me' Mark asked wanting to see if his conjecture was true.

[Benjamin Parker –

Age: 38

Production Skills –

Screenwriting: 98

Market Analysis: 18

Project Evaluation: 13

Public Relations: 44

Marketing & publicity: 2

Character Casting: 3]

"Yup, I was right, with these stats in his other skills, he really had no chance of making it big in Hollywood."Mark said and further thought about the issue at hand.

'Just having an impeccable storytelling ability is not good enough, if one doesn't have the ability to either select a relevant topic which resonates with the current market audience or the ability to evaluate the feasibility of a project. They are simply bound to fail.'

'In Hollywood the number of screenwriters who can't even earn money through their writing is over 60% and that might have been because of scenarios like this.'

'Where they lack stats in their other fundamental skills or even their screenwriting sub skills, which just means that they aren't just good enough as writers.'

'If they want to succeed in Hollywood and they don't have connections, then they must at least have high comprehensive stats in at least one of three core skills of Hollywood workers - Directing, Acting or Production.'

'Only then can such screenwriters truly enter Hollywood. They must either consistently put out work that is financially viable to adapt into a movie.'

'But it also must be something which the current audience will accept and like to watch as well. For this, market analysis and project evaluation skills are needed.'

{Author's Note: Sylvester Stallone was once offered over $330,000 dollars for the script of Rocky. But he insisted on playing the part of the protagonist in the movie. His bet paid off, he became an action star and successfully created his foothold in Hollywood.}

'So if the Hollywood Film companies are going to hire screenwriters, then obviously they are going to hire people with a better comprehensive score in the production skills.'

'This is because they can provide results more consistently with no extra help as they can write a story which will at least be decent, but it will also be somewhat appreciated by the audience, and it will almost definitely be financially viable to adapt into a film.'

'Because their production stats are mostly in the 60s and 70s. So their scripts are viable and relevant, but their quality of story is average at best.'

'But I don't need to do that because with Vani's help I can know all the stats of the people I hire, so I know what they are good in and where their skills lack.'

'With this, I can easily create a dream team of specialists who are masters at their specific roles.'

'Why does a scriptwriter need to also be good at Market analysis or Marketing? His job should only be in the confines of storytelling, and not be mixed with producers or directors jobs.'

'Just like Benjamin Parker who is a screenwriting savant but due to lacking in overall comprehensive skills as a producer was destined to remain in obscurity, never to see the light of success.'

A unique kind of joy now filled Mark as he felt like he could change the destiny of these people, help them have a brighter future and in turn, they would help him by becoming the foundation of his entertainment empire that will dominate Hollywood and eventually the entire world.

After all, nobody would be more grateful than towards the person who helped them at their lowest point in life, who believed in them and helped them finally achieve success.

'Let's see how many more hidden gems I can find.' Mark decided to focus on the system tab rather than dream about his future.

In the tab of screenwriting skill he found another screenwriting genius with a score of 95, Howard Stark, who is currently working as an EIC for a small magazine.

'Another hidden gem, a nice addition to my future team.' Mark thought.

The next few names on the list were already famous in Hollywood.

Such as Mr. Spielberg's favorite screenwriter –

[Lawrence Edward Kasdan with a score of 92 who was the co-writer of the Star Wars films - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983). He also co-wrote Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).]

The next big name on the list was –

[Woody Allen's also with a score of 92. He is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades.]

The next name on the list wasn't super famous, but was already making his mark on Hollywood. It was Steven Andrew Soderbergh, a film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer and editor. A pioneer of modern independent cinema. He had a score of 91 in his screenwriting ability but he was a multi-talented person with an score 82 in his Directorial Skills.

[Soderbergh's directorial-breakthrough indie drama Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989) lifted him into the public spotlight as a notable presence in the film industry.]

[At 26, Soderbergh became the youngest solo director to win the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, and the film garnered worldwide commercial success, as well as numerous accolades.]

[His breakthrough led to his success in Hollywood, where he will go on to direct the crime comedy Out of Sight (1998), the biopic Erin Brockovich (2000) and the crime drama Traffic (2000). For Traffic, he will later win the Academy Award for Best Director.]

[He will find further popular and critical success with the Ocean's trilogy and film franchise (2001–18). His film career will span a multitude of genres, but his specialties will be psychological, crime and heist films.]

Mark started pondering about Steven and his possibility of joining their team. 'He is just the director I need for my A-Team Productions division. I don't even need to give him a perfected script. Just a rough draft with the basic idea is enough, then he with assistance from the specialist team of screenwriters can complete the job.'

'But he just became the youngest solo director to win the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Whereas I have achieved nothing yet.'

'Looks like the new plan I have conceived for my second movie is going to be even more important to pull off, if I want to build my name as a director. I can't just waste years of my life filming mediocre films.'

The next big name on the list was –

[Frank Darabont also with score of 91 in his screenwriting ability. He is a French-born American film director, screenwriter and producer.]

[As a director, he will be known for his film adaptations of Stephen King novellas and novels, such as The Shawshank Redemption (1994), The Green Mile (1999), and The Mist (2007).]

Another name that Mark found on the list that hadn't made any big splashes yet was Tony Kushner. 

[He is an American author, playwright, and screenwriter. Who will be lauded for his work on stage, he will be most known for his seminal work Angels in America, which will earn him a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award, as well as its subsequent acclaimed HBO miniseries of the same name.]

[At the turn of the 21st Century, he will be known for his numerous film collaborations with Steven Spielberg. He will receive the National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama in 2013.]

[Kushner will be among the few playwrights in history to ever be nominated for an: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award.]

'He is a rare talent who is able to weave storytelling and cinema together in such a manner that it makes the director's work easier, but his dialogue writing skills will need some more practice, but I know he will become better and go on to write some of the most iconic lines in Hollywood.'

'He will be a perfect fit as screenwriter and co-author of my future books.' Mark thought. 'Also because he hasn't had a breakthrough yet and embarked on his journey, I can easily recruit him with the backing of CAA and a nice salary. He should be in his 30s now, so that leaves a lot of room for development and growth.'

'Just hiring these three screenwriters will be enough, as I only plan to create a small core team for now. And then later as my company grows both in fame and fortune. I can hire more screenwriters to expand my team.'

'Hmm, I should really get in contact with Evelyn and inform her about my recent plans. So that she can start sending recruitment letters through the CAA, at least that must make me look more official.'

'Ah, I also need to meet the hired gang boss and discuss the final touches on the estate. Augh, so much work to do.' Mark groaned a bit as he thought about all the work that was still left to be done.

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{Author's Note: I am partially motivated by praise and interaction, so leave a comment or review, and I'll probably write faster.

If you like my work please throw a power stone my way so my book can climb the rankings and add my book to your library/collection. I hope you all have a beautiful day.

Update schedule for this book: 1 chapter every 2 days.}