America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

After officially signing the contract with the production crew, Martin didn't bother with anything else and immediately dove into the preparatory work.

Compared to any other character he had played before, the modeling work for Benjamin Button was much more troublesome.

Industrial Light & Magic sent a special effects team of dozens of people to Paramount Pictures.

For the first half month after Martin joined the crew, his job was all about cooperating with the special effects team for modeling.

Mainly using his face.

In the special effects room, Eric, the project manager from Industrial Light & Magic, led Martin to a device and sat down, then said to the operator, "Ready to start."

The platform shaped like a human face automatically rotated and stopped in front of Martin.

Eric instructed, "Martin, lean forward, rest your chin on the support, and look straight into the camera. We need to model the smile of an older person."

Martin nodded, "No problem."

This was different from live performances, and it was Martin's first time, so he wasn't quite accustomed to it at the beginning, and the results captured by the motion capture camera weren't very good.

He had a strong ability to self-adjust and decisively said, "Give me a few minutes to adjust."

Having worked with many actors who were accustomed to traditional acting, Eric and his team were used to it taking a while for them to adjust to special effects capture performances.

The modeling work was very meticulous and couldn't be rushed.

Not everyone has the natural talent of Andy Serkis.

Martin stood up, walked around a few times, and then asked Eric, "During the shoot, can makeup be largely omitted?"

"It can save a lot of time. You won't have to apply the somewhat suffocating silicon every day, nor wear a head cover," Eric suddenly fetched a hat and said, "When the time comes, wear this. The hair and other effects will be generated through post-production special effects."

Martin looked at the color of the hat, his face as green as the hat, and asked, "I remember that blue screen can be used too, right?"

Eric said, "If the lead actor's eyes are blue…"

"Mine aren't blue," Martin pointed to his own pupils, "I have dark brown eyes."

Eric didn't fuss about such small matters with stars. He looked closely and saw that Martin's eyes were indeed dark brown, he said, "There's no big difference between green and blue."

Martin said, "Let's go with blue."

Eric nodded, "Alright, I'll have someone prepare it. You'll wear a blue hat during the shoot."

Martin gave him a thumbs up, "Wise decision."

Though Eric didn't quite understand, he felt the goodwill coming from Martin and responded with a smile.

Martin relaxed and sat back in front of the capture camera. This time, he quickly found his footing and, with Eric's reminders, made various expressions of happiness, anger, sorrow, and joy.

The expressions captured by the camera were automatically processed by Industrial Light & Magic's professional software to create corresponding models.

When it came time for the actual shooting, Martin's face would simply be fitted into the special effects model.

Compared to make-up sessions that could last three to four hours every day and had various restrictive conditions for live filming, digital technology saved time and effort for both the crew and actors.

Directors like Nolan who insisted on live-action filming were becoming increasingly rare.

By afternoon, Martin put on the blue hat prepared by the crew and tested the shooting effect.

At the end of a day's work, Eric accompanied Martin out of the special effects room, saying as they walked, "This week, the main task is to sample and model your facial expressions. Next week's focus will be on behavioral capture."

Martin replied, "No problem, I've done a lot of preparation during this period."

Leaving the studio with Eric, he added, "We have plenty of time before shooting starts."

Martin said, "It's my first real exposure to special effects filming. If there's anything I'm not doing well enough, please correct me in time."

Eric smiled and replied, "You adjusted quickly today. Just keep up the state you had this afternoon."

After exiting Benjamin's studio, Martin met up with Bruce and waited momentarily until Thomas emerged, accompanied by representatives of Coca-Cola and Brioni from Los Angeles.

The group went to a nearby cafe and had a brief chat.

The Cola Cult Sect Hierarch's big-budget film would still be sponsored by Coca-Cola.

Brioni, on the other hand, would sponsor the clothing for several of the main male characters.

The savings for the production team and the commercial revenue generated could add up to several million US dollars.

David Fincher's choice of Martin was based on acting and auditions being fundamental, but the underlying commercial considerations were key.

Aside from the rare few with a screw loose, which director wouldn't want their film to sell for a good price?

After seeing off the two business representatives, Martin and Thomas got into the Escalade that Bruce had brought.

Thomas took a call, then, after hanging up, said to Martin, "It was Elizabeth Olsen's agent, also with TMZ. She called asking for a favor. Elizabeth Olsen is preparing to audition for a role in the Benjamin crew, the role of Daisy's daughter Caroline during her teenage years."

Martin remembered the character, a role with not many lines, slightly more significant than an extra, summing up to probably less than twenty lines of dialogue. Perhaps, after post-production editing, it would amount to no more than a face in the background.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "If it's not too much trouble, I'll lend a hand."

Thomas nodded, "I understand."

For such a trivial matter, there was no need for Martin to speak up, his agent could easily manage it, including sneaking a few small roles for actors into the production.

Martin was Thomas's biggest trump card and support.

Soon after, Thomas started making calls, and by the time he got off at Century City, the matter was practically settled.

Martin shook his head silently, realizing it had been a while since he last saw Elizabeth Olsen.

Just thinking about it made his teeth hurt with irritation at Nicholson and Leonardo.

At that moment, he felt he had been too gentle when kicking those two bastards' asses. He should've given each of them a good kick in the rear!

Martin pondered how he could make them ride a dirt-cheap airplane at least once.

Bruce suddenly said, "Shall we go through West Hollywood?"

"Sure," Martin agreed, and then asked, "A detour? Old Cloth, what are you up to?"

Bruce turned the steering wheel and casually said, "Kim's video DVD went on sale yesterday, and there's a Sacred Valley Store in West Hollywood that specializes in selling these kinds of videos. We might as well stop by and take a look."

Martin's interest was piqued, "Let's go, we must go!" he exclaimed excitedly, "Old Cloth, do you want me to talk to Jenna about nominating you for an AVN Best Newcomer award next year?"

Bruce was unimpressed, "My face wasn't even shown."

"It doesn't matter if your face is shown." Martin laughed heartily, "As long as the bird is there, that's what counts!"

Bruce raised his middle finger as a gift to the bastard in the back seat.

Martin accepted the middle finger and offered a reward, "Old Cloth, haven't you thought about it, don't you owe it to Hart and Ivan? Don't you owe it to Sophia's careful teaching?"

Bruce found the first part of the statement normal, but his nose almost became crooked at the second part, stressing, "This has nothing to do with Sophia! Not the slightest bit!" Your journey continues with empire

Martin, seizing his response, refused to let go easily, "No direct connection, but isn't there an indirect one? Just think…"

"Shut up!" Bruce simply threatened, "Keep talking, and I'll drive into a lamppost."

Martin fell silent immediately, zipping his mouth shut, though in his heart he planned to ask Jenna about the AVN matter later.

The Escalade arrived in West Hollywood, stopping near the Stiletto Theater where the AVN awards ceremony was held, opposite was a tape rental and sales shop.

At that moment, the shop had a large poster hanging above, with words announcing the official sale of the hacker's video, and the picture did not use any part of Kim Kardashian, yet anyone could tell it was her just by the silhouette on the poster.

The DVDs and videotapes distributed by Jenna's company were claimed to be from hackers and had nothing to do with Kardashian.

A long queue formed at the entrance of the shop, with hundreds of people waiting to enter and buy. Among them were some entertainment bloggers who, aiming to catch viewers' attention, wore customized t-shirts with phrases like "Kim, I love you" on them.

These quick-witted individuals had already figured out the secrets of traffic and clout from Kardashian's hacker scandal.

As Martin watched, more people joined the line as the end of the workday approached.

People outside queued because the shop was at full customer capacity inside.

Bruce silently counted and said, "Seems like it's selling pretty well."

"Kim is getting rich," Martin casually mentioned, "Aren't you going to ask her for a cut?"

"Forget about the cut," Bruce seemed to have grown a conscience when he thought about how he'd used Kim's most notable parts for years, "Consider it a break-up fee."

Martin presented Old Cloth with a good person card, "I never thought you could be such a good guy."

The nature of Bruce was revealed in his next sentence, "Anyway, Kim is Cohler's blood sister, we'll need to see each other often in the future."

Martin nodded seriously, "I was mistaken, Old Cloth, you're the one with the deep plans."

Bruce couldn't be bothered with this jerk any longer, started the car, and drove onto the main road, leaving West Hollywood behind.

…n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Century City, WMA headquarters.

As Thomas exited the elevator, even before reaching the office, he saw Elizabeth Olsen and her agent Martha coming to the office door.

Martha stepped forward and said, "Thank you, my friend, you've done us a big favor. The Benjamin Button crew just called, letting Liz go directly to a makeup audition. As long as Liz's acting isn't an issue, she could very likely get the role."

Keeping one hand behind her, she gestured with the other.

Elizabeth stepped forward and said, "Mr. Ryan, thank you."

"Don't mention it, and no need to thank me," Thomas, a seasoned agent, knew where all this came from and made a point of saying, "This is all thanks to Martin."

Martha took over the conversation, "I will thank Martin in person."

Elizabeth's face lit up with surprise, murmuring to herself, "So Martin has always remembered me."

That night, she had left disappointed, hoping Martin would take the initiative to invite her out, just as he frequently visited Louise's home. Martin did call her a few times but didn't arrange to meet.

Unexpectedly, Martin had been looking after her from the shadows all along.

Martha, who vaguely heard something but didn't catch it, asked, "Liz?"

Elizabeth smiled sweetly, "I've known Martin for many years, he even saved my life once."