Hollywood What If

[Shout out to (no name), Cherif Doghri, Abdishakur Hasan, Danny York]

Hollywood What If Chapter 16

After three days of reviewing the scenes they could shoot, Kazir decided to return to Los Angeles.

As he walked out of the airport, Renner and Harold were waiting for him. These two were his closest associates. They had worked on three of Kazir's movies and were close friends.

They were all living in Hollywood, hoping to be successful. Harold had a passion for art, especially prop making. As for Renner, he loved shooting movies.

They were both talented and loved what they did. Unfortunately, talent was not enough.

In Hollywood, where there were thousands of talented people, they were expendable. There was no such thing as irreplaceable in Hollywood, even someone like Spielberg. There were many successful directors in circle after all. Like George Lucas, James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino, and Michael Bay.

"Kazir, we have already prepared the props. To be honest, it's not that hard to prepare them because our movie doesn't have any complicated scenes," Harold said as they got into the car.

"I also bought 400 rolls of 35mm Kodak color film. My uncle gave us a discount and charged us only 32 thousand dollars."

"Thank you."

Before the 2000s, Kodak film was the most popular way to shoot movies. But as digital cameras developed, Hollywood began to adopt digital cameras. Film lost its edge. Of course, there were still some directors who used film. Like Quentin Tarantino, Wes Anderson, and Christopher Nolan.

"What about rental cameras?" Kazir asked.

"As I promised, I will rent four cameras for the shoot."

They didn't need four cameras yet, they would rent them when they needed them.

"Harold, put out a casting call in the Actors Guild. Especially the role of Napoleon Dynamite and Pedro, take the importance of these two. As for the other roles, we will see."

It was impossible to hire the actors from the original movie because they were still young. So Kazir decided to use different actors. He would never believe that there was no one who could fit the role of Napoleon Dynamite and Pedro Sanchez.

'Like I said, there is no such thing as irreplaceable in Hollywood.'

"I will," Harold promised.

They met at Renner's apartment. Of all of them, Renner had it better. His family ran a business. If not for his love of film, Renner might have taken over his family's business. Instead, he chose to work in his uncle's rental business.

"I just want to be clear, our budget is only 500 thousand and I don't want to spend more than that. If possible, we will try to limit our expenses."

"I agree."

Both Renner and Harold had experience working on a film crew. Every crew understood the importance of their expenses. They were in business, the less money they used the better.

"I've already contacted the others and they agree to join us."

"That's good. Although I only need 15 people at most."

"I understand."

Kazir and his friends started making plans for the shooting. Fortunately, Kazir had already confirmed that Preston High School was okay with the filming. They even signed a contract.

As for the other locations, Kazir could rent a house for filming.

"Hayst..."

Ed Helms sighed. He had just auditioned for a small part in The Nutty Professor. But he learned that his looks were not what they needed. In the end, he never got the role.

He was just 21 and he hoped to become an actor, he knew that his age was young and people would not take him seriously. But hey, there was nothing wrong with trying. Maybe he would get a role.

Disappointed, Ed Helms entered the Actors Guild's building. He looked at the projects posted on the bulletin board.

However, Ed Helms understood that the usual projects posted on the bulletin board were small-budget movies. He knew he would never get a chance to make money with these.

'I don't need money. What I need now is opportunity.'

He would even agree to accept a role without a salary as long as he could see his face on the screen. He was still young and he knew that what he needed was exposure... Of course, he also needed money.

Ed Helms understood his situation very well.

"This..."

While looking for projects, he found an ad saying that a production team needed a young actor. The project was a comedy. Except for a few pieces of information, there was nothing. The address and time were written at the bottom.

Ed Helms narrowed his eyes as he read the project. He pulled out a small notebook and copied the address. There was nothing to lose if he tried the audition.

Ed Helms decided to accept the project. Small actors like him had to work hard to make their dreams come true.

"Thank you, Miss Adams. You can go now." Kazir said calmly.

"But director, can I have another chance? I swear I will do it right."

"No, it's okay. We will call you as soon as we decide."

"..."

The beautiful girl reluctantly left the audition room.

"What do you think of her?"

Knowing that they were the only people in the audition room, Renner asked Kazir for his opinion about the young woman.

"Amy Adams fit the role, but let's wait for more. We're not running a marathon here." Kazir shook his head.

What he was looking for was a blonde who looked sweet and innocent. He wanted to see the all of the actresses who auditioned before he can decide.

'I can't believe I'm going to see Amy Adams auditioning for my movie. It feels surreal...'

Harold called to the next woman. Kazir nodded slightly as he saw another famous actress.

"Hi, I'm Reese Witherspoon."

Reese smiled sweetly. Both Renner and Kazir maintained their expressions.

"Reese, what you're going to do is simple, just say 'Uh, hello, would you like to look like this?' in a surprisingly shy way."

"Eh? Excuse me? O- oh, yes, Director. I will do it!"

Reese received a paper with small lines written on it and carefully memorized the lines... Although, in her opinion, it was a bit underwhelming. She didn't have any idea of what role she was auditioning. 

[Reese Witherspoon]

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