The sun was shining brightly, and the streets were bustling with people and cars.
James Wong, carrying a briefcase, looked at the office building in front of him. From a cluster of nameplates, he spotted Sandsea Entertainment's name, confirming he was in the right place. He quickly walked in.
After finding the corresponding office, he knocked and entered. A freckle-faced girl greeted him. After he stated his purpose, the girl asked him to wait for a moment while she went to notify someone in another office.
Sitting in a chair, James Wong glanced around at the seven or eight people in the office. He wasn't surprised. Since the 1980s, he and his friend Glen Morgan had been struggling in the film and television industry, and he had seen many small production companies like this.
His agent had mentioned this company and project a few days ago, and he had done some research. The $11 million investment was indeed a big gimmick.
That wasn't his concern. Hollywood often exaggerated production costs, involving various marketing and interest entanglements.
In reality, this wasn't his only option.
Dimension Films had approached him to direct a parody version of "Scream" called "Scary Movie."
He hadn't agreed yet because one of his conditions was flatly rejected by Dimension Films.
Thinking about the script he and Glen had created, James Wong frowned. Should he really give up?
After more than ten years in the industry and over a decade as a screenwriter, he knew it was a good idea.
The problem was, there were too many good ideas in the industry, and too many people waiting for their good ideas to be made into movies. When would it be his turn?
Selling the script or story outline separately wasn't an option.
From the mid-80s to 1993, he had been working as a screenwriter, and after numerous rejections, his teen comedy script "The Boy Next Door" was finally bought by a production company. He and Glen Morgan then worked on commercial films and series like "The Boy Next Door," "The Boys Next Door," and "21 Jump Street."
Unfortunately, by 1993, despite being a veteran screenwriter, his income couldn't even cover his personal expenses, forcing him to consider a career change.
James Wong understood that scripts alone didn't sell for much money.
The only solution he could think of was to bundle himself with the script.
After all, he wasn't an unknown. He had served as a director and executive producer on "The X-Files" and as a co-producer on "The Outer Limits" and "Millennium."
"Mr. Wong," the freckle-faced girl came over to inform him, "Mr. Davenport is ready to see you."
James Wong nodded, following her into an office where his agent, Edward, was already waiting.
"James, this is Michael Davenport, the president of Sandsea Entertainment."
"Michael, this is the director I mentioned, James Wong."
Seeing the black hair and yellow skin, Michael immediately recognized him as an Asian. After shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries, Michael asked, "Mr. Wong, are you Chinese?"
James Wong replied, "I was born in Hong Kong."
Michael got to the point, "You worked on 'The X-Files'?"
This was a very successful series from Fox Television. After hearing the director's name, he had watched a few episodes, especially those deeply involving James Wong.
From the quality of the episodes, James Wong had done an excellent job.
"I worked on 'The X-Files' from the first to the fourth season," James Wong said plainly. "During the first and second seasons, Glen Morgan and I mainly did outline adjustments and corrections. In the latter half of the second season, I started working as Chris Carter's assistant director. In the third and fourth seasons, I directed several episodes on my own…"
After James Wong finished speaking, agent Edward added, "Many of the plots and content in 'The X-Files' involve horror and thriller elements. Wong is very familiar with this genre."
Michael nodded. Among the directors he had interviewed, James Wong had the best resume and had genuinely been involved in directing well-known projects.
More importantly, Michael felt that the director's name seemed familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before, though he couldn't immediately recall where.
He wasn't Google, but anyone in Hollywood he remembered must have achieved something notable.
After discussing James Wong's resume a bit more, Michael handed him a script, saying, "Read the script first, and then we'll talk."
James Wong took the script, not very thick, about eighty pages. The cover read "The Purge," with Michael Davenport listed as the writer.
This was already known, and he didn't pay much attention, opening the script to read.
After reading for a while, James Wong had a general assessment. The script's background was good, but at its core, it followed the traditional American horror movie formula, filled with violence, killing, and gore, classifiable as a slasher film.
In terms of horror, it was average.
In his view, true horror was intangible and elusive.
James Wong subconsciously compared it to the horror script he and Glen had written, which he felt was much better.
But on second thought, this script seemed to touch on American social issues besides its horror and violence elements, likely resonating with American audiences.
As he read further, James Wong scratched his head. Why did the Arabs become heroes? Although the script had laid some groundwork for this earlier, it didn't fit Hollywood's usual patterns.
When did Arabs have positive roles in Hollywood movies? It didn't seem like there were many Arab American viewers. If it had been written with a Chinese audience in mind, it might have had a broader appeal.
It took a long time for James Wong to finish reading the script.
Seeing James Wong close the script, Michael poured him a glass of water and asked, "What do you think?"
Since he might take on this project, James Wong replied directly, "The role of the Arabs has some issues."
Michael smiled, "The investment comes from Abu Dhabi."
Having been in the industry for many years, James Wong understood the implication: those with money are the bosses.
"The setting is good," he said, no longer mentioning the Arabs. "This story should resonate with many people living in the US."
Michael moved back behind his desk, "Let's hear it."
James Wong shared his personal experience, "For the past few years, I've been with the crew, spending some time in France and Canada. Watching the news on TV there felt very different because the news was very different in those two countries. In France, I saw various reports about Europe. In Canada, the news was almost trivial, reporting insignificant matters. When I returned to the US, every day's news had some violent incident."
He laughed, "As an outsider, for the first few years here, my biggest feeling was that in America, I seemed to live amidst violence every day."
"Yeah." Michael nodded lightly, "The crime rate in the US is really bad."
Edward interjected, "With so much violence, why don't people dislike violent movies?"
James Wong responded, "An anti-violence movie must contain violence!"
Hearing this, Michael looked at James Wong with newfound respect. Directors indeed often thought outside the box.
"Mr. Wong," he asked directly, "if you were the director, how would you make this film?"
"I would make it an anti-violence movie with lots of violent scenes," James Wong said as his ideas became clearer after reading the script. "You wrote a good story. Although the film is set in the future, it's not a post-apocalyptic movie. People live well in the future, but violence remains a shadow. This means violence exists not only in poverty but also in wealth. It's something worth pondering, as everyone might feel they are part of the violence."
What an imagination! Michael was speechless.
Having seen the episodes James Wong directed, verified his resume, and understood his thoughts on the film, Michael felt that Wong was a good choice.
He tested the waters, "Wong, join my project."
James Wong looked at Edward, who smiled and said, "I discussed the salary with Michael before you came in. $300,000, paid in two installments."
Michael was satisfied with James Wong. Otherwise, Edward wouldn't have mentioned the salary, as it would have been pointless.
In negotiations for such independent projects, there wasn't much formality. As long as both parties agreed, they didn't care too much about some rigid industry rules.
"Hmmm..." James Wong thought for a moment before suddenly saying, "Edward, I'd like to talk to Michael alone."
Edward immediately thought of Dimension Films and stood up, saying, "Are you going to..."
James Wong interrupted, "I know what I'm doing."
Edward shook his head and left the office.