Ian sat in front of Joseph who looked serious.
"We picked Michael from the top actors who reached us… Although I saw more potential in Jason. He was tough with his expressions and his gestures were better than Michael's. Uh, you decided on Micheal even before seeing the performance of others…"Joseph whispered the last part.
The director of the Renner studio sat opposite Joseph. The conversation started out with a discussion about The Godfather, Ian's next project. Since Joseph signed the contract and agreed to begin the pre-production with Ian, he joined Ian while casting actors for the movie.
Joseph was a person who was steady, confident, and calculative, but also someone patient. On the other end of the discussion, there was Ian—also confident, and calculative, but someone who knew what he wanted. He was someone who would go for something if he saw the reasons. That was the same with casting.
When Michael performed, Ian saw Michael's role being inside the actor. And he decided it right then and there.
"Yeah, Joseph. I understand what you're saying," Ian said after a while. As they already have talked to each other several times, during meetings and outside events, they were now addressing each other using first names.
He continued saying,
"But, I have my reasons for selecting Michael to play Michael."
"Let me hear those. And the names being similar better not be a reason," Joseph's voice tone shifted slightly. He was making a joke.
"Ah, haha… No, well, as I wrote the storyline, I had a lot of ideas at first. Because creating something like this, with the entire vintage theme ongoing, was not easy. So, the first thing I focused on was the characters. Their characteristics, personalities, and their physique.
And Michael resembled a lot how I imagined the character of Michael Corleone, both in terms of facial features and build. And normally, this doesn't happen to me. So, it was the first chance I took," he said with a neutral look on his face.
Joseph's serious facial expressions were back on. He understood what Ian just explained. Having the physical features the directors imagined being similar to the actor they were about to cast was a big 'yes' to every director.
"Hmm… What more?" Joseph questioned.
"You said Jason has great potential, but I did not see what I saw in Michael in the first place. When compared, I feel like Michael had more experience. The complexity and nuanced character of Michael Corleone was portrayed little to perfection. I'd love to see more of it…"
Ian paused before continuing with his explanation of why Michael was the best person to act in the role of Michael Corleone.
"Did you not see the natural chemistry with the other actor? The actor we decided on for Moe's role was perfect, and he is a good fit for the ensemble cast… He will be in the future, I've a hunch."
Joseph let out a relieved sigh. "Michael it is then. Are you ready to pick our Kay Addams?" he asked with a slight smile on his wrinkly face.
Ian felt a bit relieved after he noticed that both of them were on the same page. It was important for co-directors to be on the same page as he, himself, had witnessed quite many incidents in the past where movies flopped a big time due to clashes and movies halted their production due to disputes between directors.
Thus, having a great relationship was extremely important, yet at the same time, Ian did not want his voice to be unheard.
"Yeah, and I must warn you, I already have an actress in mind."
Joseph showed indifference at his confession.
"Who is it? Is it someone famous?" he asked.
"Not really. She is an upcoming actress. But I believe she has the potential to play Kay Addams."
Joseph raised his right eyebrow.
"Oh, is that so? And," Joseph paused before continuing. "By the way Ian, can I ask something personal?"
"Yeah, you can. I'll choose to answer or not," he said in return.
"Is it true that you sleep with actresses? Do I have to be careful around the set?" He asked with a smile playing on his lips.
Ian chuckled at his question.
"I appreciate you for directly asking me this, Joseph. Ah! And no, I don't sleep around actresses. Don't worry. Although I never thought you'd be someone to ask things like that in the open," He said, being honest about his opinion.
Joseph seemed to look like a person who would give space and privacy, but instead, his assumption was wrong.
"Normally, yes. But you're still in your twenties, Ian. What can I expect? Hah. I'd be surprised if you don't mess around the set. I remember the days-"
"I have a feeling that I won't need the details to a T," Ian said and chuckled, for which the guy laughed.
"Of course not. I was just about to say that I remember how my friends used to do that around set. Mr Will, Mr Hanson and Mr Bartley, ah, good old days."
Ian identified the names immediately. Those were directors who were extremely famous in this world. The fame was similar to what Joseph had. Some names were bigger than others.
"Your friends? You knew them?"
"Yeah, we met at the Film Director's Guild. And that is a story for another time," he said and stood up from his chair. He adjusted his pants and his tie. "I'm sure we're about to have lots of experiences from this movie," he said humbly.
Ian appreciated the man just for being how humble he was. From his style of talk, to how he responded to Ian, it was precious. Because many directors in the industry had an untouchable ego around the way they carried themselves. Some were more unreasonable than others. But Joseph was the opposite, and with every interaction, Ian learnt more.
"Yeah, I'm grateful. Thanks, let's take the elevator to go to the screen test."
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