Chapter 378: My Beloved Job

Chapter 378: Chapter 378: My Beloved Job

After hanging up the phone, Irene picked up her car keys and walked quickly out of the office.

The distance from Future World Pictures to the Disney editing studio was not short, and with it being the afternoon rush hour, she still drove her Mini Cooper, moving slowly through the traffic.

The Hollywood streetscape along the way was both familiar and strange; the billboards were printed with the latest movie posters, and young people chasing their dreams shuttled through the streets and alleys.

This place was always full of opportunities and challenges, and it was this very vitality that kept her full of motivation to strive.

More than forty minutes later, Irene’s car slowly drove into the gates of the Disney studio.

After passing through security, she followed the signs to the building where the editing studio was located.

Just after parking the car, she saw Jerry wearing a casual suit, standing at the entrance and waving enthusiastically.

"Irene, welcome, welcome!" Jerry walked up and gave her a hug. "It is great that you could come; Hill was just talking about you earlier."

"Jerry, thank you for waiting for me," Irene responded with a smile. "You have been busy enough lately, what with the post-production for Dead Man’s Chest and the promotion for Veronica Guerin. You really are energetic."

"No choice, who let me love this job so much?" Jerry laughed and led her into the editing studio. "Compared to me, you are the truly impressive one. You founded your own company at such a young age, hold multiple hit IPs, and now you have become a major shareholder of Marvel. The new generation really does surpass the old."

The two chatted as they walked into the studio.

Inside the editing room, several pieces of professional editing equipment were set up.

Hill was sitting in front of the computer, focusing intently on the screen and adjusting the pacing of the footage.

Seeing Irene and Jerry enter, he quickly stood up to greet them.

"Irene, you are here! Come quickly and take a look. I have optimized the editing of a few key scenes again."

"Hill, thank you for your hard work." Irene walked over and patted his shoulder. "I will chat with Jerry for a bit first; we will look at the footage in a moment."

Hill nodded and continued to immerse himself in his work.

Jerry took Irene to the nearby lounge area and had an assistant bring over two cups of coffee.

"Here, try this; these are Colombian imported coffee beans. The taste is quite good."

Jerry handed Irene a cup of coffee and said in a relaxed tone, "By the way, you mentioned on the phone earlier that you have been resting well. Do you have any new plans? I have heard you have been making frequent moves lately, from acquiring Marvel shares to negotiating new IPs."

Irene took a sip of coffee, and the mellow aroma spread in her mouth.

She put down the coffee cup and said with a smile, "There is indeed a new project; it has already been finalized, and we will start next year. This time I will not be directing; I am switching to the role of producer. Come to think of it, I have you to thank, Jerry. During the time we shot Pirates of the Caribbean, I learned a lot of knowledge about production from you, such as project coordination, resource allocation, and market forecasting—all of which have benefited me greatly. If it were not for you as a good teacher, I would not dare to take on the role of producer so rashly."

"You are too modest, Irene." Jerry waved his hand, his tone filled with admiration. "Your talent and ability are obvious to all in Hollywood. If you could win an Oscar for Best Picture with Million Dollar Baby, what movie can you not participate in? The role of producer is just a piece of cake for you."

He asked curiously, "Tell me, what kind of new project is it that makes you value it so much, and even switch to being a producer?"

Irene hesitated for a moment.

The subject matter of Brokeback Mountain was quite sensitive, and before the official announcement, she did not want to reveal too many details to avoid unnecessary controversy.

"The project is still in the preparation stage, and it is not convenient to say too much about the specifics for now," she said tactfully. "However, I can tell you that I have invited Director Ang Lee to direct this film."

"Ang Lee?" Jerry’s face showed an expression of surprise, and his hand holding the coffee cup paused for a moment. "Are you talking about the Ang Lee who directed The Hulk?"

"Yes." Irene nodded.

Jerry frowned, his tone carrying a hint of confusion.

"Irene, why would you think of collaborating with him? I am not saying he lacks talent; The Wedding Banquet and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon are excellent films, and he has great artistic accomplishments. But you know about The Hulk situation. That film had a production budget of nearly $140 million and was originally aimed at being a super commercial blockbuster, but he ended up making it into an art-house film, and both the box office and word-of-mouth were unsatisfactory."

He paused and continued, "To say that the failure of The Hulk can be blamed entirely on him is indeed unreasonable, and Universal Pictures had quite a bit of interference in the post-production. But as a director, he failed to balance commercial viability and artistic expression, and that in itself is something he has to take responsibility for. Hollywood is never short of directors; since his ability in commercial films is not recognized, he naturally gets marginalized. I did not expect you to choose to collaborate with him at this time."

Irene knew that what Jerry said was the truth.

Ang Lee’s situation after The Hulk was indeed very awkward, and many production companies were keeping their distance from him.

"I think Director Ang Lee’s talent is underestimated. The problems with The Hulk were quite complex; one cannot completely negate his abilities. The project I have in hand is completely different in style from The Hulk, and I believe Director Ang Lee can handle it well."

Jerry nodded thoughtfully and quickly guessed the answer.

"I understand; this must be an art-house film, right?"

Seeing that Irene did not deny it, he continued, "That makes sense. The investment for art-house films is not high, the risk is relatively small, and it really suits Ang Lee’s current state. That is fine. I hope he can seize this opportunity to prove himself again."

In his view, Ang Lee’s accomplishments in the field of art-house films were beyond doubt, but his ability to control commercial films was not even as good as Irene’s.

Since it was an art-house film, the investment would not be too large, and even if it failed, it would not cause too much of an impact on Future World Pictures, so he did not ask any further questions.

After the two finished talking about Ang Lee, the topic naturally shifted to Veronica Guerin, which Jerry had recently participated in producing.

This film was released in the United States in November 2003; it was a small-budget biographical film with an investment of only $17 million.

Irene had specially gone to the cinema to watch it before, and it left a deep impression on her.

"Jerry, Veronica Guerin was really well filmed," Irene praised sincerely. "Although it is a small-budget production, you can tell it has a real attitude. The film focuses on the true story of the Northern Irish female journalist Veronica Guerin; the subject matter is very powerful, the narrative pacing is tight, the emotional expression is very sincere, and it completely lacks the roughness of a small-budget film."

She paused and added, "Especially the casting of the lead actress; it was so successful. Cate Blanchett portrayed Veronica’s spirit—that tenacity, bravery, and willingness to pay any price to pursue the truth—vividly and incisively. Her performance was so infectious that I was completely absorbed throughout the whole film."