Chapter 342: Important Turning Point

"Stop! Set it down gently!"

On the open-air set, a crane lowered a giant mammoth trunk as over a dozen crew members swiftly bolted it to the model lying on the ground. Built at a one-to-one scale, the colossal beast was taller than a man even on its side.

Duke stood nearby, having a camera assistant film the entire process. It would make excellent promotional and behind-the-scenes material during post-production.

"Hi, Duke."

The greeting came from just over his shoulder. Alessandra Ambrosio walked up, dressed in a trench coat, jeans, and knee-high leather boots.

Duke gave her a nod. "Hello, Corinne."

Ever since her casting as Arwen, Alessandra Ambrosio frequently visited the set when she wasn't studying her script. She showed up almost every time Duke shot scenes related to the elves, coming to observe a race that did not exist in the real world.

As one of the lesser-known Victoria's Secret angels, she naturally seized every opportunity to raise her profile.

"This mammoth looks completely real," she said in an incredulous tone, standing just behind him. "Before we started shooting, I couldn't even imagine a scene like this."

"It's a shame it can't move," Duke said with a sigh.

Aside from using CGI, the crew had built a large batch of mammoth models in varying scales. The one on the open-air set was among the largest. The prop team had hand-carved them out of Polystyrene at their Wellington workshop. Supported internally by a lightweight steel frame, this behemoth had been divided into eleven sections and hauled to the set by trailer.

Once the mammoth was assembled, the crew drove spears and arrows into the corpse. All this strenuous work was just to shoot a few ultra-realistic shots of the dead beast.

If one wanted to produce a high-quality film, there were no shortcuts in time or effort.

The rear of the model was dressed to represent a gargantuan mammoth turned into a pincushion by the Rohan Cavalry, while the head section served an entirely different setup—the mammoth crashing down after being killed by Legolas.

Duke would never waste money where practical savings could be made.

Assembly had taken half the afternoon, yet the actual shoot lasted only twenty minutes. Leaving the rest of the crew to film behind-the-scenes footage, Duke and John Schwartzman returned to the soundstage. Seeing no objection from Duke, Alessandra Ambrosio walked alongside Tina Fey and followed them in.

Inside the soundstage, Orlando Bloom had already transformed into Legolas. He stood in front of a green screen, discussing the choreography with action director Jimmy Carter. The next shot was Legolas single-handedly taking down a giant mammoth.

In his past life, this specific reshoot had been torn apart by North American critics who deemed it pointless fan service for the actor's looks. Under Duke's direction, however, he not only refused to cut it but wanted to make it even more polished, letting Orlando Bloom show off his skills and face as much as possible.

Walking over, Duke asked directly, "Do you need a stunt double?"

"No," Orlando Bloom said with total confidence. "I can do it myself! I did the training for it!"

To everyone on the crew, Orlando Bloom was incredibly lucky. He had landed such an important role straight out of drama school.

Orlando Bloom wasn't yet the star he would later become; right now, he had no leverage or fame. The only thing he could rely on was working hard to prove himself to Duke.

After a brief exchange with art director Hannah Serena and action choreographer Jimmy Carter, Duke crossed the blue-screen-wrapped set and sat down behind the director's monitor. He had an assistant notify the crew to make final preparations for the shoot.

Although they were filming Legolas soloing a mammoth, they couldn't possibly have Orlando Bloom stand on the actual mammoth model. It would be too dangerous to safely control the shaking of such a massive rig.

Therefore, they used the simplest, safest method: blue screen filming.

Standing behind Duke, Alessandra Ambrosio looked like she had a question, but just as she opened her mouth, Tina Fey held up a finger in a shushing gesture, making her swallow her words.

Even though Tina was just an assistant, Alessandra Ambrosio had spent enough days on set to know that she held considerable decision-making power whenever the director was absent.

Anyone who could claw their way up the fiercely competitive modeling ladder was inherently shrewd.

Once the crew was ready, filming commenced. There wasn't much need for deep acting here; Orlando Bloom just had to maintain his balance while ensuring he looked as handsome and dashing as possible.

The background was a massive stretch of blue screen. Suspended on a wire harness, Orlando Bloom jumped onto a pile of stationary blue sandbags, exaggeratedly swaying left and right while fighting off the stuntmen...

As with all action sequences, the takes filmed here were very short. On average, Duke called cut every ten seconds or so. Then, Jimmy Carter would gather Orlando Bloom and the stuntmen to explain the choreography for the next move.

During a break, Duke waved a hand backward, and Tina Fey immediately had Alessandra Ambrosio come over.

"Legolas is the representative for the male elves in the film." Pointing to a nearby chair, Duke waited for Alessandra Ambrosio to sit before asking, "And Arwen is the representative for the female elves. Corinne, you've been watching for a few days now. Do you have any takeaways?"

Alessandra Ambrosio thought for a moment, looking at the ridiculously handsome Orlando Bloom on the blue screen set.

"I need to fully display the ethereal, agile, and beautiful side of the elves," she said softly.

She put on a confident smile. "And fully utilize the actor's physical advantages."

"Not bad," Duke said, nodding in approval. He then reminded her, "Arwen's father is King Elrond, and her grandmother is Queen Galadriel. She inherently carries an aura of pure nobility."

"I understand," Ambrosio said, flashing what she believed to be her most beautiful smile at Duke.

Unfortunately, Duke had already turned his attention back to the set.

"All departments, get ready!" he shouted. "We're rolling on the next shot!"

For these CGI-heavy scenes, the current footage was just raw material; it would undergo extensive post-production processing later. Perhaps his grueling half-year training was paying off, but Orlando Bloom had been in excellent form since filming began. Since his role didn't involve difficult dramatic acting, the shoot was proceeding smoothly.

After finishing the scenes on the mammoth's back, the crew transitioned to an adjacent set. Just erected within the blue screen zone, this setup was for a single shot—Legolas sliding down the mammoth's trunk.

Of course, this was still achieved using props wrapped in blue material as stand-ins.

After a few practice runs, Orlando Bloom signaled that he was ready. His physical condition was perfectly primed. Even as he slid awkwardly down the blue ramp carrying his short bow, he remembered to strike a handsome pose...

After shooting three takes, Duke called it a print, and the afternoon's work came to an end.

Leaving the monitor and film for the assistant director to pack up, Duke walked onto the set and patted Orlando Bloom on the shoulder.

"Great job," Duke said. "Even better than I expected."

Orlando Bloom scratched his cheek and smiled, looking slightly bashful.

"Keep up the good form," Duke instructed.

He waved a hand in Tina Fey's direction and headed out of the soundstage.

Seeing Tina Fey tuck away her Mobile Phone after a brief call, Alessandra Ambrosio stepped closer.

"May I come along?" she asked tentatively. "Can I ask Duke a few questions?"

Tina Fey gave her a glance and a gentle nod, then quickened her pace to catch up with Duke.

"I just got off the phone with Warner Brothers," she said, falling into step beside Duke. "The global box office for Daylight surpassed $200 million yesterday."

"Rare good news," Duke said.

Despite his words, Duke shook his head slightly. Just as the media claimed, if he hadn't been the director of Daylight, there was no way it would have achieved such high box office numbers.

However, Duke didn't belittle himself. Fame and box office appeal were inherently part of a director's strength.

Even with Alessandra Ambrosio following alongside them, there was no need to keep this kind of data secret. Duke signaled for Tina Fey to continue.

"The DVD and Videotape releases Warner issued for the film have reached $6.75 million in North American sales so far."

These numbers seemed etched into her brain; Tina Fey didn't even need to think as she continued, "Warner Brothers also signed a first-run television broadcast agreement with the NBC Television Network, bringing in licensing revenue of $1 million."

She added, "The film is currently still screening in multiple overseas markets, so overseas merchandise sales won't begin until later."

The box office and merchandise revenue for Daylight weren't considered high; in fact, they set record lows for Duke's film career. However, relative to a production budget of just $10 million, the film's return on investment remained stellar.

"Tina, remember to remind me to call Jeff Robinov and Doug Walter at an appropriate time," Duke said.

With the time difference between New Zealand and North America to consider, he needed a reminder. Even as a major shareholder of Warner, Duke still had to properly express his gratitude for the full support of Warner Brothers' top executives.

A social network always required a give-and-take.

The fantasy of a single person absolutely dominating Hollywood on their own was impossible—not just for Duke, but even for someone like James Cameron.

Back in his office, Duke answered a few more of Alessandra Ambrosio's questions about her character. The girl, having stood out in the modeling circle at such a young age, was undeniably smart; she had basically grasped what was needed to play Arwen.

However, when Duke prepared to shoot Arwen and Aragorn's scenes the next day, an unexpected accident forced him to alter his plans.