Shabby warehouse

A black Ford pickup truck headed westward, passing through the scenic Château d'If, gradually approaching the largest seaport in all of France, Marseille.

Although it had just entered the new millennium, one could already see the bustling market scene of Marseille. The city was surrounded by limestone hills on three sides, with the southeast bordering the Mediterranean Sea. Its deep and wide harbor allowed for unimpeded passage of large cargo ships, while its western location facilitated connections with Northern Europe. This advantageous geographical position made Marseille the largest gateway for foreign trade in France.

As the car entered the city, Thomas slightly slowed down the speed, making turns left and right until they arrived near a community. "This is it. Let's get out." Thomas sat in the driver's seat and pushed open the car door while speaking.

"Wow, we finally made it." René said as he opened the right-side door.

Lyman got out of the car and saw a store on the side of the street with many photography equipment displayed.

The three of them walked forward, and as they approached, a middle-aged man came out upon hearing the noise. "Uncle Angus, long time no see." Thomas took a step forward and hugged the middle-aged man in front of him.

"Haha, Thomas, how come you have time to come over to my side? Where's your father?" The middle-aged man seemed happy upon seeing Thomas.

"He's still in Paris and didn't come. This time, I brought friends here to rent some photography equipment." Thomas replied.

"Oh, I see. Well, come in quickly, all of you." Saying that, Angus invited Lyman and the others inside and served three cups of coffee.

"Try it, this is our homemade coffee beans."

"Thank you, Uncle." Lyman took the coffee and politely thanked him.

"You can take a look and choose. Don't worry, since you're Thomas's friends, I'll definitely give you the most favorable price." With this assurance, Lyman felt somewhat relieved.

He took out a list from his pocket, which recorded the photography equipment and film quotas they needed for shooting the movie. In addition to three 35mm special cameras, they also needed to purchase color film produced by Kodak. This kind of 35mm color film, which was compatible with the cameras, had a length of 122 meters per roll. According to the current specifications for shooting and screening movies, a typical shot of about one minute would require approximately 27 meters of film. So, one roll of film could shoot for about 4.5 minutes.

Calculating this way, theoretically, it seemed that purchasing around 20 rolls of Kodak color film would be enough, considering the estimated total runtime of approximately 90 minutes based on Lyman's plan. However, in the end, Lyman purchased 300 rolls, and even that was a conservative number. If they ran out of film, they would order more at any time.

When making a movie, almost all the materials shot by the director would be several times or even dozens of times the length of the final film. Directors like James Cameron, known for their extravagance, could even have material images that were hundreds of times the final length. For a film crew, the money spent on film alone was often a significant expense. That's why Lyman knew about Thomas's acquaintance with photography equipment and hurriedly rushed from Cannes to Marseille.

Saving a little on each roll, they would save quite a bit with 300 rolls. Fortunately, Thomas had good connections. When Lyman expressed his initial need for 300 rolls of Kodak 35mm movie color film, Angus charged only 80 euros per roll. On the market, the price per roll was generally around €140. Even with a large order and some discounts, it would never reach the cost price of €80.

"Altogether, it's €24,000." Lyman silently remembered the price in his mind.

His procurement journey wasn't complete yet.

They still needed to choose the lenses that matched the cameras.

Wide-angle lenses, telephoto lenses, soft-focus lenses...

For "Buried", since it mainly involved close-up and medium shots, they selected lenses for these two parts. Together with the three 35mm cameras, the expenditure amounted to €8,000 for a rental period of two months. Due to Thomas's trustworthiness, Angus didn't even ask Lyman to pay in advance for any breach of contract or compensation fees. That saved them quite a penny.

The rental fees for the shooting equipment spent today amounted to €32,000. From the preparation of the film until now, they had already spent over €50,000 on various items, including personnel salaries, production props, the purchase of cosmetics, and inexpensive special plasma, among others. This was achieved by employing special cost-saving techniques such as having someone provide costumes and recruiting two interns.

Lyman even began to doubt whether his budget of €450,000 could sustain the film production until the end.

The pre-production preparation was too costly, and although the expenses would be somewhat reduced during the actual shooting, they still needed to pay for location rentals and recruit actors. Furthermore, there was the post-production of the film. Lyman planned to hire a professional and experienced editor and obtain licensing fees for the soundtrack. They also needed to rent a post-production studio...

Just thinking about the hardships they would face on their filming journey made him feel like his head was about to explode.

After loading all the rented and purchased photography equipment onto the Ford pickup truck, under the condition of an €80 daily rental fee and a full tank of fuel, they waited for Thomas to exchange a few words with Angus. Then, amidst their expressions of gratitude, they set off again, preparing to return to Cannes.

"Thomas, thanks to you this time. When the film is released, I'll give you a big bonus." Lyman began making promises of uncertain rewards once again. But that was the only way he could think of to show his gratitude.

"Hehe." Thomas chuckled a few times but remained silent, continuing to drive the vehicle steadily.

"I say, why don't we introduce a beautiful girl to him? Thomas, don't you have a girlfriend yet?" René turned his head and asked.

"Um... I had one during college, but we broke up. Now I'm single."

"Great, then we'll introduce a girl from the Cannes area to you."

Lyman couldn't stand it and quickly interrupted, "René, you don't even have a girlfriend yourself, and you're thinking about helping Thomas find one."

René responded with disdain on his face, "That's because I didn't want to. I've been with many girls, unlike you. You haven't even tasted it yet. Don't mind him, Thomas. We should go to Martinez Beach together when we have time. There are plenty of beautiful girls there."

"Okay." Thomas casually agreed.

After returning to Cannes, instead of immediately returning the Ford pickup truck, they headed towards Martinez Beach, where Thomas had found suitable shooting locations.

They made a left turn at an intersection and entered a small road. As the car continued to drive, Thomas started introducing the details of the property, "The real estate agent said it used to be a large warehouse for storing timber. The owner no longer needed it due to a business transformation, so they rented it out. The place is not far from Martinez Beach, and it's quite secluded with few residents nearby, which makes it ideal for our film shoot."

Lyman nodded, satisfied with Thomas's work. They couldn't choose a shooting location in a bustling city area. Aside from the disturbance it would cause, there would be many inconveniences with onlookers. A more remote location naturally suited their shooting needs.

"René, have you sorted out the family photo collection?" Lyman turned his head and asked René.

"All set." René replied carelessly, "I used my cousin's family photos. She had a cute girl image when she was young. I talked to my aunt, and she agreed to let us use the photos in the film."

"Well done." Lyman expressed his approval. This way, they didn't need to pay for the authorization agreement for the photos. In France, if you didn't communicate properly about using someone's portrait rights, you would be heavily fined.

The film crew had limited funds, so any savings were significant. If they didn't manage their budget carefully, the entire €450,000 might be used up during the pre-production phase. Big projects have their own planning, and small projects have their own survival rules. Lyman understood this well. If he had sufficient budget, he wouldn't have to do things this way, but unfortunately, he didn't.

The trees along the road became fewer and the small road became more rugged. Besides the sound of the Ford's engine, there was no longer the noise of the city. After driving for about five minutes, a large warehouse in the midst of overgrown grass appeared in their field of view.

"Can we go inside?" Lyman got out of the car, took a few steps, and suddenly asked.

"I paid a deposit, and the real estate agent gave me the key to the warehouse. We can go in and have a look." Thomas was meticulous in his work and had considered many things.

"Then let's go." René chimed in.

The three of them walked forward. First, they circled the warehouse, and then Thomas used the key to unlock the large lock at the entrance, leading them inside. "It looks so old and dirty." René couldn't help but comment as soon as he entered and saw the scene.

"Probably no one has used this warehouse for a year or two." Lyman responded.

"Perhaps, but this warehouse does have enough space for us to shoot." Thomas said something positive.

"But we'll have to clean the warehouse. How can we shoot with so much dust?" René questioned.

"We'll clean it up then." Lyman answered René's question, then he asked, "If we rent it for two months, how much is the rent?"

"I asked, it's €600." €300 per month for such a large warehouse, although it needed cleaning, was still quite cost-effective. Lyman quickly calculated the gains and losses in his mind.

"Thomas, after we return, find some time to sign the lease agreement with the real estate agent for this warehouse. We'll take it. I'll transfer the required fees to you later."

"Okay," Thomas nodded without any objection.

With the shooting location confirmed, the focus of the preparations was almost complete. The only thing missing was the target for the film's most important role...