After spending nearly a week in New York, it was time for Wang Yang to go home. He took a flight back to Los Angeles and Tom Welling along with him. As expected, Tom had been appointed as the leading man of High School Musical. He had officially signed the contract, which promised a remuneration of $300,000. It was his first time starring in a movie; in fact, it was his first movie appearance. His lack of experience and fame justified the entry-level salary, as well as the grueling singing and dancing lessons that awaited him in Los Angeles.
Sitting next to Tom Welling was Michael Pitt. With little or no money in his pocket, he could hardly afford a loaf of bread, let alone a flight ticket. Wang Yang had decided to pay for his trip first. Once Michael Pitt had gotten back on his feet, he would pay him back.
Once the three of them were back in Los Angeles, Flames Films arranged a photoshoot for Tom Welling. His bio and photos were uploaded to High School Musical’s official website alongside the announcement that he would be playing Troy Bolton in the movie. Notwithstanding Tom Welling’s handsome face and winning smile, some movie fans expressed disappointment in the company’s decision to cast him. They had anticipated a well-known movie star to join the lineup, but it turned out to be a no-name model. Not surprisingly, there was also a considerable number of girls who approved of and looked forward to Tom Welling’s appearance. Even before the movie was shot, a devoted female fandom had sprung up around the gorgeous actor.
The media, as expected, was apathetic. Compared to the leading lady, Jessica Alba, who had at least appeared in several movies—albeit small ones—Tom Welling was a completely new face with no credibility or pedigree. He had not evolved from a child actor, nor did he hail from a prestigious acting school. He seemed like a run-of-the-mill model. Could he act? Was the young director out of his mind? Did he think he could save the movie with just a pretty face?
As the cast list for High School Musical firmed up, interest levels took a dive. It used to be that three out of ten people were bullish about the movie; but now, hardly anyone was excited about it.
One article in the entertainment section of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote, “It is as though we are witnessing the fall of the bright young director. The movie was destined to fail before it even began, with all the ingredients for a spectacular disaster—unpopular genre, inexperienced director, amateur actors—all backed by a company recently rescued from the brink of bankruptcy. Judging by the age and experience of the director alone, is there any doubt that the movie will turn out to be a flop?”
An insider even revealed to the media that Jessica Alba had been selected as the leading lady of Idle Hands, a Columbia Pictures production, but decided to sign up for High School Musical, instead. The director, Rodman Flender, was purportedly quite upset about it. Of course, the insider was an employee of Columbia, and the news was leaked in the spirit of “all publicity is good publicity”.
The rumor was later corroborated by the producer of Idle Hands, Andrew Licht, who told the media, “When that girl came back to us with her decision, I thought she was nuts. She’s making a foolish mistake, and she’ll regret it in due time; now, I’m not saying High School Musical is doomed to fail, I just think there’s no comparison. Fortunately, we have Eliza Dushku, who’s a fantastic actress. I foresee her becoming a great movie star.”
Eliza Dushku stated, “It doesn’t bother me that I was the second choice. I’m very grateful for this opportunity. Rodman Flender is a superbly talented director and the script is beautifully written. It’s an honor to be able to star in it. Jessica Alba? She and I are good friends, and I wish her all the best.”
The few media companies that paid any attention to High School Musical wrote articles that were vitriolic. They were so certain that High School Musical would fail, it was as if God himself had dictated it, and they were the prophets who would bring the message to the world.
Wang Yang remained stoical in the face of the invectives with which the media constantly assailed him. But Mark Strong was restless. He told Wang Yang, “Yang, every bad news about High School Musical is another nail in the coffin. If we let the media rail against our movie long enough, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. The masses’ opinion will be skewed. They’ll start to believe it’s a bad film. They’ll think it’s not worth watching. They’ll tell their friends, and when the movie is released, no one will watch it.”
Mark Strong’s argument rang true to Wang Yang. But Wang Yang, not being an expert at branding or communications, was at a loss for what to do. Fortunately, Mark Strong had a solution. They could engage the services of a public relations firm. Alternatively, they could set up an in-house division to enhance the company’s public relations capabilities. The division would be responsible for fostering good relationships with the media as well as the committees of all the major film awards in order to develop a positive image.
To Wang Yang, it sounded like a daunting task at first. But Mark Strong’s proposal was so persuasive and well-thought-out that Wang Yang’s concerns vanished. And so, he decided to invest another million into his company to set up a public relations division.
One million dollars was no small figure. But to Wang Yang, it was manageable as he would soon receive a large disbursement from Paranormal Activity’s overseas ticket sales. His movie, hailed by many as “the first DV movie in the history of cinema”, “the most horrifying of horror films”, and “the movie that grossed $160,000,000 in North America”, had been screening in Europe, UK, Germany, Italy, France, and many other countries for several weeks now. It had lived up to its publisher’s expectations, grossing over $80,000,000 overseas; once it was released in Australia, Japan, and the rest of the world, it would have no problem hitting $100,000,000.
But in order to release the movie overseas, Lionsgate Films had to collaborate with other publishers in the respective markets, which meant that the profits were spread thinner. Various regional taxes accounted for, Wang Yang would be left with a dividend of less than $10,000,000, which was still a respectable sum. Besides, the DVDs for Paranormal Activity had begun to roll out in the North American market. While the sales were good at nearly $30,000,000, Wang Yang would only receive 15% of the profits. Altogether, Wang Yang’s cut of the DVD sales was small, amounting to around $700,000 for every $10,000,000 in sales.
Having more money allowed Wang Yang to pull out all the stops for High School Musical. He could now invest in building a better production team, a task which Flames Films had been working tirelessly on. Now that the main cast had been chosen, all that was left was to finalize the team, rent the equipment, book the filming locations, and finally shoot the movie.
A film production team was a complex organization consisting of numerous positions and responsibilities, many of which could be undertaken by Flames Film’s staff, from finance-related work, such as budget estimation, cost control, and payroll; to menial jobs, such as arranging shooting locations, preparing the set, and overseeing food and lodging for the rest of the crew. Some jobs that required a professional touch would be undertaken by hired specialists, including set decorators and prop-masters, to make sure the set looked and felt in accordance to the director’s vision; costume designers and makeup artists, to make sure the actors and actresses looked their best on camera; and an art director, to make sure the movie had a coherent and recognizable aesthetic.
Finding those professionals was not a difficult task. As High School Musical was set in a high school, there was no need for fancy sets or elaborate costumes. Everything was close to home, and the set-up was very simple. While Wang Yang was busy choosing the cast, the rest of his team at Flames Films had scouted and appointed the required professionals according to Wang Yang’s criteria. In fact, most of them had already signed contracts with Flames Films and were ready to work at a moment’s notice.
Apart from post-production personnel, such as the film editor and sound editor, the only pieces of the puzzle left were the film crew, the choreographer, and the composer. The post-production personnel could wait as they only came into play during the final stages of production. There was no rush in hiring a choreographer or a composer, either, as the singing and dancing sequences should be shot at the very end, in order to give the actors ample time to brush up their singing and dancing skills, and the choreographer and the composer sufficient time to come up with their creations. Flames Films had sent out enquiries to a number of famous composers in search of soundtracks that would complement the fresh, upbeat, youthful image of the movie.
Which left Wang Yang with the film crew as a priority. A film crew consisted of a cinematographer, lighting technicians, a sound engineer, as well as other roles. The cinematographer, being the most important role, had to be chosen with great care and consideration.
If the director were the architect of a movie who dreamt up every frame and every sequence, then the cinematographer was the builder who brought it into existence. If the director were the fashion designer who conceptualized the shape, feel, and look of a dress, then the cinematographer was the tailor who cut the fabric and sewed them together. Without them, a piece of fabric would not become a dress.
For Wang Yang, the most important attributes a cinematographer could have were technical skills, composition skills, and most importantly, patience and chemistry. The director was the brains, whereas the cinematographer was the limb. The two must think and act as one. A good cinematographer should be able to get into the director’s head and, in the absence of a split-screen script, understand fully the director’s vision and needs. He should agree with the director because he shared the same tastes with him, not because he wanted to please the director or was too apathetic about his work. The passion and the competency of a cinematographer were reflected clearly in the end product; if he was no good, the movie was no good.
The chemistry between the director and the cinematographer had a direct impact on the process and the outcome of the movie shoot.
Wang Yang’s professor once said in a cinematography class at USC, “When I was in the industry, my worst fear was working with directors who didn’t know their stuff or were new and clueless. They had a lot of ideas, but they couldn’t express them very clearly; and if a movie didn’t turn out well, they’d think it was my fault. There were times when I had to be diplomatic and agree with them, even though my heart was screaming out to me that it was a terrible idea. As a result, I couldn’t get into my work, and the shots ended up subpar.”
At that time, Wang Yang asked curiously, “Why didn’t you tell the director your views?”
The professor, shrugging his shoulders airily, responded with a smile, “I never bothered to speak against them. Directors are stubborn creatures. They’re like kings, and everyone else—the actors, the cinematographer, the crew—are the servants who work around him. Besides, they’re busy enough having to deal with their producer’s constant harassment. Coming to them with a proposal on how to tweak their movie, no matter how well-meaning it is, is the last thing you’ll want to do, as it usually results in them lashing out at you. ‘Just shoot it the way I told you to. Why don’t you go tinker with something else, like the camera equipment?’ they would say. And then I would say to myself, ‘Fine, let’s make a dogsh*t of a movie, then.'”
The class burst into a great bellow of laughter. Wang Yang was laughing heartily, too, oblivious to the realities that lay ahead of him. The professor went on smilingly, “So to those of you who wish to become directors, here’s some advice: watch out for your cinematographer! We cinematographers are a backstabbing, passive-aggressive bunch. You mess with us, we mess with your movie—a little mistake here, a little mistake there, and before you know it, you’re spending a fortune on film and reshoots and exceeding your budget. Good luck explaining that to your producer!” Boisterous laughter rippled through the classroom.
In front of his computer, reminiscing about his professor’s riveting lecture, Wang Yang broke into a smile. Notwithstanding his sense of humor, Wang Yang knew he would never work with a cinematographer like him, not even when he was his movie’s financier, and there was no producer breathing down his neck or film cost to worry about.
Which was why when a director found a cinematographer whom he could work with, their relationship tended to last a lifetime. The problem was that Wang Yang had no connections. He did not know a single cinematographer, let alone one whom he would be willing to hire. Thankfully, the days of Paranormal Activity, when Wang Yang had had to do everything himself, were long gone. He had a team working for him now. There and then, stored on his computer, was a list of cinematographers that Mark Strong and Sandy Parks recommended.
Wang Yang looked at his watch. It was past eight o’clock in the morning. It was Rachel’s birthday, and Wang Yang, by the powers vested in him as the CEO, had given the entire cast a vacation. No rehearsals, no dancing or singing lessons; just a day of fun-filled celebration at his apartment. Wang Yang looked at his watch again. They should be there any minute. He opened the list of cinematographers and wheeled upon the wicker sofa at some little distance from his desk. “Michael, Michael! Wake up. My friends are coming over!” he shouted.
Wang Yang’s apartment was Michael Pitt’s temporary home, and his sofa was his bed. For the past few days, Wang Yang had been using Michael Pitt to run his errands. After all, being the production assistant, it was his duty to take care of his crew like a nanny to her charges.
“Oh…” A sound, listless, indolent, and sluggish came from the wicker sofa. Moving to Los Angeles seemed to have afflicted Michael Pitt with a bad case of hypersomnia. He had found it increasingly difficult to get out of his bed, not to mention a strong desire to yawn constantly.
“Now!” Wang Yang shouted once more, then gave up. He turned his attention back to the list and went through the cinematographers. Their names were unheard of, which was to be expected. Cinematographers who were established always had long-term partners; it would be unlikely for them to apply for the job. Wang Yang’s eyes moved down the list of cinematographers, reading their bios, each of them as unimpressive as the last one. Then, suddenly, his eyes stopped. Wally Pfister?
The name rang a bell. Wang Yang went through the cinematographer’s bio with a frown of attention. Wally Pfister. 36 years old. He was the cameraman for many R-rated films and pornography, including such titles as Inside Out: Erotic Tales of the Unexpected, Animal Instincts, and the Secret Games series. He also shot Secret Games 3, which was published by A-Pix Entertainment, the predecessor of Flames Films. He and Sandy Parks knew each other very well. They were old friends.
“Secret Games 3?” Wang Yang shook his head and laughed. But there was something else about the cinematographer that resonated with Wang Yang—something that could not simply be explained by his extensive portfolio of obscene movies. Wang Yang searched his mind. The answer that he found struck him like a thunderbolt. “No way! Are you kidding me?” he exclaimed.
To Wang Yang’s astonishment, Wally Pfister would later win the 83rd Academy Award for Best Cinematography for the movie Inception. As fate would have it, his big break would come in 2000 when he shot Memento. Thereafter, he would become Christopher Nolan’s go-to cinematographer, and together, they would produce a series of award-winning movies, including Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and Inception.
He and Christopher Nolan made a formidable duo, as both of them were masters of classical Hollywood cinema. From dreamy scenes with quiet, dark backgrounds and soft side lighting, to intense sequences with compelling visual elements and bright bursts of colors, the two created worlds that felt like no other.
Of course, such dramatic effects, which was the hallmark of Wally Pfister, was a bit of an overkill for High School Musical. Wang Yang’s movie called for a sunny, youthful atmosphere with bright colors and warm lighting—nothing that could not be achieved by a simple adjustment of lighting equipment or manipulation of the film’s color tone during post-production. Lighting should be a cinch for the “world’s best cinematographer”. What Wang Yang was interested in was his technical knowledge, his composition skills, and his understanding and feel for the camera.
Wally Pfister might have been the cameraman behind several R-rated films, but Wang Yang had faith in his cinematography prowess. There was no doubt that Wally would rise to the challenge of shooting High School Musical. He picked up his cellphone with enthusiasm and called Sandy Parks. Beaming, he said, “Hi, Sandy. Are you close to Wally Pfister? Yeah. I’d like to meet him. Is he in Los Angeles? Great. Call him up…”
Right at that moment, the doorbell rang in his apartment. Wang Yang asked Sandy Parks to hold on, twisted his head, and yelled, “Michael, please get the door!” Then, he went back to his cellphone and said, “All right, Sandy. Tell him I’ve seen his work and I like them and the way they’re shot… which ones? Inside Out or Secret Games… you decide…”
The doorbell rang on. Michael Pitt crept out from the wicker sofa with great effort, tottered his way to the door, and opened the door.
“Hi, Yang!” Jessica’s face, which was smiling broadly, froze as soon as the door opened. Standing before her was this blonde kid with his undershirt and boxers draping loosely from his lanky frame and his eyes heavy with sleep. He was not who she had expected. When she saw his naked, hairy legs, her eyes began to open, her lips drew back, and a high-pitch scream broke out. “Oh, my God!” She backed away, furrowing her brows. “Who are you? Where’s Wang Yang?” she questioned.
At that moment, Joshua, Rachel, Zachary, and Jessica’s good friend Erin Elis had caught up with Jessica. And when the four of them saw Michael Pitt, they, too, were agape with shock.
Meanwhile, Michael Pitt was still in a daze. Rubbing sand from his half-opened eyes, he mumbled, “Hi guys. I’m Michael Pitt…”
When Wang Yang heard Jessica’s scream, he wheeled on an impulse and looked across the room at the doorway. There Michael Pitt was, making a fool of himself. Wang Yang cursed his ill fortune, “Sh*t! Did that kid just wake up?” He bade Sandy Parks goodbye, burst around the door, and greeted his friends with a smile, “Hi guys! Good morning.” Then, he turned to Rachel and said cheerily, “Rachel, happy birthday.”
Rachel smiled. “Thanks, Yang. And he is?” she asked, indicating the person in question by her gaze.
“He’s Michael Pitt. I think I’ve told you guys about him before. He’s a “Leonardo” whom I met in New York. He’ll be playing a small part in High School Musical. He’s crashing here for now because he has no place to stay,” Wang Yang explained readily. He turned to look at Michael Pitt and said, “Hey, dude, why don’t you put on some proper clothes?” Michael Pitt nodded with an “oh” and went inside, yawning.
Wang Yang’s friends were less astonished at Michael Pitt’s appearance—he was scantily clad, but not completely in the nude—than at the mere fact that he was there, in Wang Yang’s apartment. But upon hearing Wang Yang’s explanation, they came to realize who he was. Jessica vaguely recalled that Wang Yang had told her about him. She laughed and said, “Yang, you gave me such a fright! I’m used to seeing you at the door. When I saw Michael Pitt, I thought he was a pervert.”
Wang Yang chuckled. Holding out a fist, he said, “Don’t you worry about that. If he gets fresh with you, I’ll knock him out with one punch.” They all laughed. Smiling, Wang Yang unfurled his fist and motioned them to come inside with a tiny bow, “Please, come in.”