Chapter 45: A Story of the Past

A cacophony of voices surged outside the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco. Reporters packed the space beneath the domed entrance and its white pillars. The crew's press officer gripped a microphone, shouting desperately to maintain order, but the swarm of journalists remained a chaotic, surging mess.

Duke stood behind his three lead actors. Although he had answered a few questions, the three men in front of him were the media's true focus—a fact reflected by his physical position. Duke deliberately stepped back. He had officially entered his shooting mindset and didn't need the press fracturing his focus.

As much as he wanted to emulate James Cameron and start filming in absolute secrecy, Duke cooperated with the promotional plans laid out by Warner Brothers and the production team. He had to consider the movie's marketing.

"You're unbelievable," a voice with a slight nasal tone murmured from behind him. "Spacing out at an event like this!"

"I'm just thinking about today's and tomorrow's shooting schedules." Duke's mind was indeed entirely consumed by the production. "I'm a director, not a star."

Seeing the microphones and camera lenses locked firmly onto Ed Harris, Nicholas Cage, and Christopher Lee, Duke took another step back. This small press conference for the opening ceremony had dragged on too long. Any further delays would disrupt his schedule.

"Director Rosenberg," a reporter suddenly called out to him. "This is your first time directing an A-list blockbuster. Are you confident?"

"Of course I am." Duke instantly flashed his brightest smile. "Next Summer Season, you're going to see a thrilling, explosive action blockbuster."

After answering, he shot a look at the press officer. Only then did the Warner Brothers representative reluctantly announce the end of the press conference.

"Clear the set!"

Checking his watch, Duke realized the hotel had only given them three hours. He turned to Sofia behind him. "Tell everyone to speed it up. We don't have much time."

A Hummer H1 pulled up and parked at the hotel entrance. Duke checked its positioning, then grabbed a megaphone from another assistant director and raised it to his mouth.

"Center the vehicle facing the doors!" He glanced up and instructed Sofia, "Coordinate with the hotel to set up a camera on the third-floor balcony. We need an overhead shot."

Once Sofia left, Duke walked over to the cinematography team. "John, is camera one in position?"

"All set!" John Schwartzman handed his immediate task to an assistant. "We've laid the tracks on the left. Camera one is ready for a fast pull-back shot."

"The street is too narrow." Duke pointed at the hotel entrance. "Set up camera two inside the lobby."

Turning around, Duke stepped behind a camera and peered through the lens at the hotel doorway. He shouted, "Zack, the lighting is still too washed out! I need it richer and brighter!"

Zack Snyder, who was handling the lighting and color composition, immediately flashed Duke an "OK" gesture.

"John, the camerawork is in your hands."

Duke hadn't set up a dedicated director's viewfinder for this shoot; he planned to sit behind the monitors for the entire process. He returned to the side of the hotel entrance and approached Christopher Lee.

Fresh out of makeup, Christopher Lee wore a crisp suit. His towering frame cut an imposing figure. Even at seventy years old, he radiated an undeniable, razor-sharp presence.

"Chris, the opening scene isn't long." Duke pointed at the entrance. "You charge out from inside, ignore anyone trying to stop you, and get straight into that Hummer."

"I understand."

For a veteran actor like Christopher Lee, this scene was a walk in the park.

"Bring out that feeling of your old days as a secret agent." Duke raised an index finger at him. The old man let out a hearty laugh and shot Duke a thumbs-up.

Returning to the monitors, Duke waited for the extras to get into position before having the assistant director call action for a test run.

A crowd had gathered at the hotel doors. A white-haired old man rushed out from inside. With only a brief glance, he locked onto the Hummer parked out front, bolted straight toward it, and yanked out the valet who was preparing to park it...

"Cut!" Duke yelled to halt the scene, then immediately declared, "Print it!"

Nailing it on the first test take felt like a great start. Given Christopher Lee's advanced age and physical limits, fewer takes meant he could better preserve his energy and state of mind. In that shot, his mix of urgency and inherent ferocity proved he hadn't lost a step from his real-life days on the battlefield and in intelligence.

Judging by the footage fed to the monitors, Christopher Lee wasn't acting at all. He was simply drawing on a chapter of his life he would likely never forget. A true-to-life performance could never be matched by mere acting.

Perhaps being forced to cast him had been the right decision! Duke was gradually becoming optimistic. Sean Connery was in the past now, and Duke had no intention of bringing in someone to split his own pie.

Although they had briefly cleared the set, the moment Duke called cut, the camera shutters of reporters and bystanders began clicking incessantly. It was a common issue with location shooting. As long as they didn't interfere with the production, the crew generally wouldn't stop them too aggressively; it counted as free marketing for the film, after all.

After capturing Nicholas Cage running out of the hotel doors and a shot of two stunt doubles speeding the vehicle down the street, the first day of filming officially wrapped.

The day's shots had truly posed no great difficulty. Duke had communicated extensively with Zack Snyder and John Schwartzman beforehand. That, coupled with the experience he had gained from directing Speed, ensured the first day went off without a hitch.

The crew then prepared to rush back to Burbank for the second day of filming inside the Warner soundstages.

The decision to shoot on location in San Francisco on day one was driven partly by promotional needs and partly by the demands of their sponsors.

Indeed, the film had secured a substantial amount of advertising. Duke had survived the crucible of highly commercialized cinema before and held no aversion to product placement. As long as the sponsors didn't force their products into illogical scenes, he generally didn't object.

Hummer, Ferrari, and a handful of other companies had brought a total of $3.5 million in advertising sponsorships to the film. And that was only because Duke's name wasn't quite renowned enough yet. If he had another movie break the $100 million mark at the North American box office, Robin Grande and Charles Roven were confident they could double that figure.

Unlike the tax rebates exclusively enjoyed by Warner Brothers, these sponsorships were factored into the film's overall revenue. As one of the investors, Duke naturally had no reason to refuse them.

Just as Duke was watching the crew pack up the set, Christopher Lee strolled over, his makeup freshly removed.

"Duke, I heard a rumor." He looked at Duke. "The production was eyeing Sean Connery for this role. Is that true?"

Frowning slightly, Duke quickly covered it with a smile. Given CAA's influence, filtering that kind of news to Christopher Lee's ears was a breeze. Their goal was obvious—to mess with Lee's state of mind.

"I did consider Sean Connery."

For some things, Duke didn't even need to draft a script in his head. "But after hearing about your background from others, I realized you were a far better fit for the role than Connery."

Christopher Lee chuckled at that, and Duke laughed along with him. He knew perfectly well that such empty pleasantries couldn't fool a wily old veteran like Lee.

"Chris..."

If the behind-the-scenes footage of Lord of the Rings hadn't lied to him, Christopher Lee was a man of advanced age but fiery pride. So, Duke prodded, "Are you worried that when the movie comes out, everyone is going to compare you to that washed-up 007?"

"007? What is 007?" A dismissive smile crept across Christopher Lee's aged face. "Duke, I don't think you know this, but Fleming is my cousin. We fought side by side in the British Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. 007 was created by Fleming based on his own experiences and those of our comrades. How could those fictional tales ever compare to what we actually lived through?"

"Oh?" Duke's interest was instantly piqued. "Care to elaborate?"

This Gary Stu was truly full of surprises. On the drive back, Duke simply corralled Robin Grande, Charles Roven, the production's press officer, and Christopher Lee into a large commercial van, settling in to listen to the Gary Stu recount the stories of his past...

This was all premium material for future marketing hype!

Film promotion was naturally best left to the professionals. Duke gave it only a passing glance before throwing all his energy back into the shoot. November was already more than halfway over. If he wanted the movie to hit the Summer Season schedule on time next year, he had a mountain of work ahead of him.

Producing one film a year was already considered insanely prolific for a Hollywood director. As for the kind who could shoot three or more multi-million-dollar blockbusters in a single year, with all of them turning out to be critically acclaimed mega-hits? You couldn't find a single one on the face of the earth.

Even if such a director existed, it would be impossible under Hollywood's current system. A film was the product of teamwork, not a solo piece belonging entirely to the director. Perhaps the director themselves possessed that kind of boundless energy, but what about their crew? And if they swapped to a different crew, where would they find the time to build chemistry and sync up?

Setting everything else aside, Duke had communicated extensively during pre-production with Zack Snyder and John Schwartzman, whom he'd hired because they shared similar visions. He had already worked on a previous film with Sofia Coppola and Robin Grande. Yet even so, the early days of shooting The Rock were full of stumbles and friction, plagued by a host of coordination and chemistry issues.

There were no shortcuts to solving these problems. They had to be worked through with time and heaps of practical, on-set experience. People were distinct individuals, not cogs in a machine that flawlessly turned together by design the moment they were assembled.

"John..."

In the soundstage, Duke called cut and strode over to the main camera. "Swap to the soft-focus lens, give me a close-up on Ed!"