Chapter 703: Cannes Plan

In any case, Duke and Tom Cruise had collaborated in many areas, and since the actor's attitude was decent enough, Duke patiently explained a bit more.

"Everything in the film has to be organized and logical," Duke said. "First, we established one thing: the MacGuffin of this movie—a cinematic term referring to the object, person, or goal that drives the plot forward—must be a person."

Looking at Tom Cruise, Duke continued at a leisurely pace, "Then the next question is, who is this person? The story features a group of wives struggling in a toxic wasteland. They want to create healthy offspring rather than being reduced to a dictator's breeding machines. Who will be their leader?"

If the two hadn't maintained a good relationship over the years, Duke wouldn't have elaborated so much. "Obviously, it can't be a man, because men would only fight over them and completely miss the point. So we have to find a strong, capable warrior to protect them, which means this character has to be Furiosa. Afterward, she leads the group to the Oasis, her childhood homeland. It's a matriarchal society, and they are its remnants. Therefore, the entire story flows naturally and smoothly; it's well-organized."

Tom Cruise seemed to be listening earnestly, occasionally nodding instead of loudly refuting Duke's words as he would have ten years ago.

Duke knew very well that even for directors like himself or Cameron, getting a superstar to willingly accept a role required throwing out a few sweet incentives.

Therefore, he added, "The film I envision will unfold amidst relentless, high-speed car chases. Everything the audience learns about the characters' backgrounds, skills, and personalities, the psychological worlds and emotional shifts they experience, the development of their enmities, friendships, and intimacies, and even the crucial decisions the two leads constantly make—all of it is generated alongside the action. It is entirely accomplished through action."

"And your character is the key to driving that action!" he emphasized at last.

As long as someone reminded him, Tom Cruise wouldn't do anything bafflingly stupid. He thought for a moment, then stood up and said, "Duke, I trust you. I'm taking off. If you have time, don't forget to come to Beverly Hills to see your goddaughter."

Duke patted him on the arm. "I'll go see Suri in a few days."

In reality, according to Duke's plan, Tom Cruise's character would definitely not have less screen time during filming than Charlize Theron; if anything, he would have more. But cinema wasn't just about filming. It also involved a technique that defined the entire movie—editing!

During post-production editing, Charlize Theron's Furiosa would be the key thread tying every scene together.

It was true. The current feminist movement wasn't as booming as it would be a few years later, but the female traits reflected in Fury Road weren't directly opposed to men, nor would they trigger resentment from mainstream male audiences.

Most importantly, for a film like this to have a soul, Charlize Theron's character was the absolute key.

If Fury Road was a subversion of the sci-fi action movie formula Duke himself had sparked, then Furiosa was a subversion of traditional female roles.

Even Duke didn't know how far back the cinematic trope of "beautiful women paired with heroes" traced. From childhood, audiences were accustomed to the Western narrative of the "prince riding a white horse to save the princess" and the Eastern setup of the "hero rescuing the beauty." Most of those famous beauties throughout history, in all their varied forms, merely served as foils for male heroes.

In modern times, as the feminist movement rose, the standing of female characters in film began to elevate. However, in heroic movies, women still played an auxiliary role. Take the classic 007 Series, for example: every film featured a Bond girl—breathtakingly beautiful and wielding various skills—who served both as the object of Bond's flirtations and as someone to cheer on the male lead or offer minor help while he saved the world.

He didn't know when it started, but in every hero flick and every action movie, the hero always had to be paired with a beautiful confidante. While the main plot highlighted masculine charm, it simultaneously required a hot, stunningly attractive woman for him to romance. Amidst the testosterone-fueled explosion of action scenes, a tender, lingering romantic subplot acted as a palate cleanser—just like getting into a thrilling, hearty brawl and returning home to find a wonderful beauty ready to give you a massage and soothe your heart.

But when any film or character became too homogenized, aesthetic fatigue was inevitable. It had to be said that seeing too many plots like that would indeed leave audiences feeling bored and repulsed.

This was a post-apocalyptic film. The world had suffered environmental pollution due to nuclear explosions, turning Earth into a massive wasteland with severe water shortages. Under these circumstances, warlords hoarding the majority of resources emerged, followed closely by rulers standing at the very pinnacle of those resources. These rulers were generally men. Naturally, an extreme totalitarian regime dominated by men was established, and beautiful, healthy women inevitably became male property—

—except for Furiosa.

A unique, one-armed female general under extreme patriarchal rule.

When Charlize Theron—sporting a buzz cut, her forehead smeared with engine oil, and her eyes piercingly bright—stepped into the frame on those long legs, Duke could already imagine the audience's reaction.

In a society ruled by extreme patriarchy, for a woman not to be reduced to a breeding tool, nor exiled to the absolute bottom as a disabled outcast, but instead to rise as a female general second only to one man and above ten thousand others—one could well imagine just how unyielding her strength and willpower had to be!

Only a character like that could serve as the vital linchpin connecting the entire film.

Moreover, the filming of this movie would be different from others. Duke planned to shoot it in chronological order, following the timeline of the story's events.

After leaving the conference room, Duke hadn't gone far before Jamie Jensen chased him down from behind.

"Hey, Duke."

Seeing Duke halt, he sped up, adding, "I have something I want to discuss with you."

Since Jamie was primarily in charge of distribution for Warner Brothers, his approaching him now undoubtedly meant there were matters related to the film's release to discuss. Duke returned to the conference room with him.

Jamie Jensen knew Duke's working style well and cut straight to the chase. "The film's tentative release date is either June or July of next year. I want to ask: can you finish the entire production before mid-May?"

"I can only say I'll do my best."

It was already September, and this was an incredibly complex film. Duke didn't dare guarantee he could finish by May. "Jamie, you know how it is. There are always a lot of uncertain factors during filming and post-production."

"I think that if possible..." Jamie Jensen said very seriously, "it would be best for this movie to make it in time for next year's Cannes Film Festival."

"The Cannes Film Festival?" Duke didn't quite understand. "Are we participating in the competition section?"

"Duke, this film has a relatively narrower target audience," Jamie Jensen explained. "So we have to brainstorm as many promotional strategies as possible. The North America market shouldn't be a problem, but overseas audiences..."

That was indeed the case. A film like this couldn't run rampant across the globe like Transformers did.

Jamie Jensen went on, "The Cannes Film Festival is a great promotional opportunity, and there's still time to submit it for the competition section. The Palme d'Or might not have much of a market in North America, but it still holds a certain degree of influence worldwide. If we can maneuver this film into winning the Palme d'Or or other heavyweight awards, it will greatly boost the movie's future box office and ancillary merchandise."

It had to be said, this was truly a very fitting strategy.

Though he didn't have much interest in European film festivals, Duke was generally aware that participating in a festival's competition section usually required applying half a year in advance. With Warner's influence, pushing Fury Road into the competition section shouldn't be a problem.

He thought about it for a moment, then nodded in agreement. After all, it would help the film's overseas market.

"Jamie, I'll do everything I can to finish the film's production before May." Duke still didn't give an absolute guarantee. "You guys handle the rest of the operations."

It was the same principle as the Oscars: winning at the renowned Three Major European Film Festivals required far more than just film quality.

Just like how Quentin Tarantino, serving as the jury president for the Cannes Film Festival, had forcefully suppressed the opinions of other judges to hand the Palme d'Or to Fahrenheit 9/11, the elements capable of influencing the Three Major European Film Festivals were simply innumerable.

In this era plagued by economic crisis, even though many Hollywood films and production companies were cutting back on promotional trips to Europe due to budget concerns or the risks associated with their movies, the Cannes Film Festival—as the leader of the Three Major European Film Festivals—still managed to attract a massive number of Hollywood crews every year.

For example, after Duke left the Warner Building and returned to Duke Studio, he heard Tina Fey mention that Quentin Tarantino would also be taking his new film, Inglourious Basterds, to compete in next year's Cannes Film Festival competition section.

For films financed by the Weinstein Brothers, chasing after various awards was always a routine procedure.

Additionally, it was said that French actress Isabelle Huppert would serve as the jury president for this upcoming Cannes Film Festival.

In short, to win awards in the film circle—whether in North America or Europe—campaigning was absolutely essential. Setting aside the PR work, media promotion was sometimes the crucial key.

However, the professionals at Warner Brothers had much more experience in this area than Duke did. Furthermore, Duke had almost no overlap with the European Film Circle and had no strings he could pull. He simply instructed Tina Fey to notify PR manager Penny Kalis of the news that he would be participating in next year's Cannes Film Festival, then threw himself wholeheartedly into the prep work for Fury Road.

Like on all film crews, a director couldn't step away from pre-production. The formulation of every plan required Duke's approval. After collaborating with his entire team to draw up a series of work schedules, he rushed off to New Mexico with Hannah Serena and John Schwartzman to scout the desert locations on-site.