[Chapter 1: An Epic In The Making (I)]
The brisk morning air hummed with anticipation as crews shuffled about, prepping equipment, securing cables, and making endless coffee runs.
The set was an organized chaos, the hum of an unseen energy buzzing between every person on set, and each person knew their role.
Two figures stood off to the side, almost outside the zone of controlled chaos, with one of them jotting down notes with an intense expression of concentration.
The other, older, and more weathered-looking man, sipped from a stainless steel thermos as he observed the scene with a practiced eye.
The early morning mist lay thick and rolling over the mountains of Kamai, giving the makeshift film set an otherworldly air.
The majestic mountains loomed in the background, half-shrouded in fog, while a team of workers unloaded equipment from trucks, setting up large, silver-tinted reflectors and arranging gear along the grass-covered plains.
The chilly air was filled with the sounds of clinking metal, hushed chatter, and the faint humming of generators warming up their surroundings.
It felt like the start of something enormous—everyone felt it, even if they weren't yet sure what that "it" was exactly, but they had faith in the man that brought them here, and so they worked diligently.
Mike Carr, the older of the two, was a tall, broad man with some stray graying hair on his beard. He stood with a relaxed stance, as he looked out over the set with a satisfied sigh.
Alongside him was his junior, Sam Patel, a wiry, wide-eyed young man of Indian descent who still hadn't quite lost the starry-eyed look of a newcomer yet.
The young man had sidled up beside him while holding onto his notepad tightly, as if it were his lifeline in the midst of all the organized chaos that was a professional film set coming to life.
Mike watched the new recruit with an amused glint in his eye, as the new hire was earnestly writing down his words in his notepad.
Sam was barely into his twenties and was as green as they came nowadays, he exuded a palpable sense of nervous excitement, as he scribbled furiously in the small notepad.
When Sam finally stopped, Mike spoke up, intent on distracting the greenhorn and easing his tension. After all, making sure that everyone was performing to their level best was his job as one of the senior set coordinators of the crew.
"Alright, Sam, next rule," Mike started, looking him dead in the eye. "When it comes to this set, you've got to remember your dos and don'ts down to the letter."
"And no one likes repeating themselves, so pay attention and be a good listener, especially to the big names around here. Got it?"
Sam nodded fervently, jotting down to be attentive and a good listener in bold.
"Right," Mike continued, leaning back on a metal crate as he rubbed his forehead with his calloused hand.
"So, who you got to be careful around first are the producers. Some of them like their coffee in a very specific way—just ask Janice over at catering and do not bother them with inane questions."
"And don't bother them with unnecessary questions unless it's a life or death situation, you hear? And by that I don't mean yours. I mean the film's because that's what we are here for. If the cameras are rolling, that means we don't stop at nothing."
"Producers, especially, care a lot that the crew keeps running like a well-oiled machine, whether it's their money or name or sometimes even both that's on the line.. riding on the film's success."
"So they don't mess around, and if you get on their bad side… well, let's just say they're less forgiving than most."
Sam nodded, his pen scratching more notes. "Got it. Coffee orders are sacred and avoid bothering producers."
"Exactly," Mike chuckled, taking another swig from his thermos to warm himself.
"And don't even think about talking to the lead actors unless they talk to you first. Some of them.. they're okay. The others—" he raised his brows meaningfully—"they can get prickly if you interrupt their 'process.' So it's just better to give them a wide berth, when and if you come across them."
Sam scribbled it down. "Understood."
"Then there's the crew chiefs. You'll be working with them a lot, so make sure you remember who's who. Learn their names and the little things they like—Dave from Lighting always asks for black coffee, no sugar, just FYI."
"Smitty on sound, she's vegetarian, for religious reasons, don't ask, just respect it and follow it to the T. If you ever find yourself getting food for her just let the caterer know that it's for her, and they'll cook it on a separate utensil."
"Mark, the prop guy, he can't handle dairy one bit. He still loves cheese and pizza, though, and it's a fast rule that we can't serve him dairy unless we want the set to smell like someone chucked a grenade down the toilet and blew it open. So beware, make the wrong snack run, and you'll hear about it for weeks."
"That should be enough for now. Take a look at this place, Sam," Mike said, gesturing around them. "I know, all this might seem a little too new to you, but doesn't it feel… different?"
Sam nodded, his eyes drifting toward a cluster of crew members raising a massive green screen frame. "It does feel. There's this energy in the air. I thought it was just this fresh countryside air. But after you pointed it out, I feel like… like we're on the edge of something huge, but I can't figure out what."
Mike chuckled. "That's what has been bugging me as well. Alex usually tells everyone what it is that he'll be working on a few months in advance."
"It gives us some time to read up the material, get acquainted with any new crew members like you, and give you all a rundown of how we run things properly and integrate them into our crew."
"But here I'm.. having signed an NDA that doesn't even allow me to tell my wife what film I'm working on.. not that I even know that or even tell her where the hell I'm.." He said with a fake exaggerated sadness that made Sam quietly chuckle, "while giving you a crash course on the dos and don'ts of our crew."
He patted Sam on the shoulder as he stood up and smiled as he said it with confidence, which displayed the immense faith he had in Alex, the director. "But trust me, whatever it is, it'll be worth it."
Sam's eyes lit up at the mention of the name. "Alex Masters," he breathed, shaking his head in awe.
"It's crazy that I'm even here. Working under him... I mean, I heard people say that he's done nearly every job there is on set. I wish I knew more about him, but sadly, I've never seen him in an interview."
"Well, that would be because he has never done one." Mike replied with a knowing smile.
"Wait, really?! No way!" Sam was shocked because they were in the business of filmmaking, and he had only found out about the shadowy figure that was Alex Masters after he had joined the industry proper and was out looking for a job.
Usually in the movie industry, everyone was out there trying to get their name on the wall, to be known for something. Yet the man they were talking about was only spoken about by industry insiders like them, as if he were some kind of well-kept secret.
Despite his production studio [MONARCH] rivaling and even surpassing most of the Big Six of Hollywood in terms of box office records and accolades, the true owner of the studio was never known.
What the world only knew was that Alex Masters was a partner who owned a significant part of the studio and was also one of its more prominent and active partners, almost acting like an owner on behalf of the silent, anonymous partners.
Sam's eyes lit up. "So, what can you tell me about him?"
Mike let out a low whistle, scratching his chin. "Well, he's a man of contradictions, that one. Our boss.. is both the most feared and the least feared person on the set. He's got the patience of a saint, I'll give him that."
"Ask him a question, and if it's about the shoot or work, then he'll definitely indulge you, unlike some other directors that would just snob you. He actually takes the time to explain things and doesn't just expect you to know everything on the first day on the job."
"Wow," Sam breathed, visibly impressed. "So he's… approachable?"
Mike chuckled, shaking his head. "Approachable.. is one way to put it. He's kind enough, sure. But don't be fooled by his gentle exterior, as that's just the calm before the storm."
"I still remember that one time," Mike recalled, "a young camera assistant messed up fix takes in a row—an absolute nightmare, considering each one was costing us thousands of dollars per shot."
"Everyone was braced for the explosion. But Alex, who was the A.D at the time, didn't lose it. Instead, he pulled the kid aside, told him to take a deep breath, and walked him through each part of the shot like it was a lesson in a classroom."
"You're kidding," Sam replied, incredulous. "Did the guy get it right?"
"You bet he did. Nailed it on the sixth take, and after that, you couldn't pry that kid away from his side."
"He's now working as Alex's DOP, Francois. He likes his coffee black with no sugar. Though, unlike how he prefers his coffee, he is a very passionate Frenchman, and you can't miss him or his well-groomed mustache."
"Damn, I still can't believe how fast that kid rose through the ranks, and I was there to see him climb." Mike sighed with a proud smile as he reminisced about old memories.
"But you know something? That's just what he does—if you've got the will to learn, he'll make you a damn expert. But, if you screw up because you're sloppy or careless.. or just don't care enough to improve.. or worse, break one of his rules." The man shuddered in fear at the end.
"Well, that's when he becomes the most terrifying person in Hollywood and trust me when I say this.. he's not someone you want to be on the wrong side of."
"Alex, doesn't lose his cool often, but when he does… let's just say no one that has seen or worse been on the receiving side of it could ever forget it. Happened once or twice, years ago, and I swear, the whole crew just froze."
Sam absorbed this, nodding slowly, the caution evident on his face. "He sounds intense. But fair and very inspirational."
Mike nodded his head in agreement as he said, "You see.. Alex.. he's got this way of inspiring people to bring their best. Many people love him or hate him because of how high he has raised the bar of filmmaking."
"But it is an undeniable fact that he's one of the most hardworking and versatile artists of this generation."
"That's why the whole industry respects him and why people stick around him. And that's why we're all here, standing around in New Zealand, on the set of a film that none of us knows a thing about."
Sam laughed, but his face soon turned serious. "Mike, you've worked with him on more sets than I know of. What do you think it is about him? What makes him… him?"
Mike glanced out at the landscape, the rolling hills and looming mountains that felt more like the backdrop of an artist's painting than a real place. "The boss.. Alex.. He's got a fire in him—a love for storytelling that's as real as it gets. And unlike most other people, he's not in this for fame, money, or awards."
"He's here because he wants to tell stories—stories that stick with you. And he gives everything he's got to make that happen."
He paused, gazing over at the crew, who were assembling everything with an almost reverent energy. "If you ask me, we're about to witness something legendary."
Sam looked out across the set, trying to process everything Mark had just told him. Alex's rise from practically nothing to becoming such a renowned name in the industry and with this film being his directorial debut, it felt like something out of a movie itself.
The mist was starting to thin as the sun climbed higher, casting light on the sprawling setup that stretched across the hillside.
"You know," Sam said thoughtfully, "it's amazing that someone like him—someone who started out hauling gear and sleeping on the set to save travelling money—could get this far."
"The stories people have told me about him since I joined [MONARCH]… he sounds like he just lives and breathes for this."
– To be continued...
{2.2k words}
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