Chapter 80: New Team

Chapter 80: Chapter 80: New Team

Although the internet startups looked like a dead end, good news came from Shelly.

After several rounds of tough negotiations, they had finally reached the last stage of investment talks for The Italian Job with Fox Pictures.

All the core terms had been settled. Only a few legal details were left to review, which meant Irene could officially begin pre-production on the action blockbuster with a sixty-million-dollar budget.

On signing day, Irene Coppola walked into the familiar conference room at the 20th Century Fox building.

On one side of the long table sat the Fox executives, led by CEO Baird Fergus and Adelaide Griffin, all wearing professional smiles.

Irene sat across from them, with Shelly Ovitz and his legal team beside her.

After the lawyers from both sides confirmed the contract one last time, they placed the final version on the table.

Baird Fergus signed his name on the last page first, then smiled and slid the contract toward Irene.

"Director Coppola, Fox believes this will become a classic action film that stands the test of time," Baird said, his tone formal and congratulatory.

This time, the investment split matched what she had on Mean Girls. She would cover one-third of the total budget, but because the overall project was much larger, her share had increased significantly.

This twenty-million-dollar commitment was not only built from her past successes, but also another major bet on her own vision and ability.

She didn’t hesitate. She calmly picked up the pen and signed her name clearly and firmly on the Party B line.

She set the pen down, looked up, and exchanged signed copies with Baird, Adelaide, and the others. Then both sides stood and shook hands.

"Pleasure doing business with you, Director Coppola."

"Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Fergus. I believe this will be a movie that makes everyone happy."

With the deal closed, Irene immediately threw herself into pre-production on the new film.

"Hi, Mark. Have you finished the script? Are you interested?"

In the living room of a luxury mansion in Beverly Hills, CAA agent Cran Gerard sat on the sofa, asking his hottest client.

"Honestly, the script is solid, but this director is way too young, and she’s a woman. She’s only done teen comedies before. Taking on a male-driven crime film for the first time just doesn’t seem like a safe bet," Mark Wahlberg said, leaning back on the sofa with a relaxed posture.

"Listen to me, Mark. Fox Pictures is very confident about this film. A sixty-million-dollar investment is serious, and the director is putting her own money in. That shows how much she believes in the project," Cran Gerard said, leaning forward, trying hard to convince Mark to take the role.

"Her first movie grossed 136 million dollars. You know what that means. Her second film is also getting strong praise inside Fox. They’ve already invited several male stars to audition, and I have inside info that you are the lead the director personally recommended," Cran emphasized.

"Oh? So she’s a fan of mine?" Mark Wahlberg stroked his chin, suddenly more interested in this young female director.

Cran didn’t want to feed his ego. "I don’t know about that. Maybe you can ask her yourself. So what do you say? You’ll go to the audition, right?"

Mark smiled slightly. "All right. A gentleman can’t refuse a fan’s request. Tell them I’ll do the audition."

This guy is getting more shameless, Cran thought as he left.

As May began, Irene gave up the temporary office she had used before and set up a new studio for The Italian Job in Burbank. That meant pre-production on the film had officially started.

"Did Edward take the script?" Irene asked Vera Cecil as they walked.

"Yes, he just left," Vera replied, keeping pace beside her. "I explained your plan to him, and he said he would finish reading the script before giving me an answer."

"Good. It sounds like he’s grown a lot. It’s a good thing he’s learning to make his own choices." She had prepared two roles for Edward Nelson: the hacker and the getaway driver. Those were the parts played by Seth Green and Jason Statham in her previous life.

Of the two, the getaway driver fit Edward better. He was part of the street racing scene himself, so he wouldn’t even need training on set. He just didn’t have the nerdy humor of the hacker.

In the end, though, it would depend on what Edward wanted. She wasn’t his agent, after all.

The two walked through the studio hallway and reached the conference room. She pushed the door open and went in.

Today was the crew’s pre-production meeting. On one side sat Fox Pictures, represented by Adelaide Griffin. On the other side was CAA, represented by Shelly Ovitz. There was also the financial supervisor from the third-party guarantor, the Completion Bond Company.

Yes, even though Irene had directed three movies already, this was the first time she had worked with a completion guarantor. Their main job was to provide professional oversight for the production team, including budget control, schedule monitoring, and fund management.

Apparently, her first three films hadn’t had budgets large enough to require one, so she was curious about how this third-party group worked.

Besides them, the key crew members were present. The producer was Irene Coppola. Since she was investing her own money, she was the investor, so it made sense for her to serve as producer.

The executive producer, Brown Charles, was recommended by Fox. He had worked on Mission: Impossible and Die Hard 4 and had plenty of experience with commercial action films.

The assistant director was still Jack Harris, Irene’s longtime collaborator. There was also the art director, Anna Garcia, and the head of the special effects team from Industrial Light & Magic, whom Irene had specifically requested from George Lucas.

Art director Anna Garcia came recommended by CAA. Although Irene hadn’t seen any of her previous projects, Anna’s grasp of character design and costumes was strong. After reviewing her portfolio, Irene approved her for the job.

As for the special effects team from Industrial Light & Magic, Irene had personally called George Lucas to request the best effects and pyrotechnics crew in Hollywood.

This was her first time using heavy effects. Even though the movie didn’t rely on them, it was a gesture of support from a godfather to his goddaughter.

When Fox saw that Irene was using the Star Wars: Episode I effects team for The Italian Job, they thought it was like using a cannon to kill a mosquito.

The team structure this time was more complex than ever before, but that was standard for a high-budget film. For Irene, it was also a test.