"Ronald, you said that the dream of those girls is to be on the big screen, so what is your dream?" Gail asked after they finished cleaning up the garbage.
"My dream? I don't think I have found my dream yet. All I want now is to have my name in the credits of 'Rock n Roll High School' so that I can charge higher prices for my portrait photography business and take audition photos for the handsome men and beautiful women in Hollywood."
"Why? You're very talented in this field." Gail was a little confused as to why Ronald's "dream" was so realistic and had little to do with the film industry.
"To be honest, I don't know if I have talent in this field, but I know that people without talent in this field can't make money. Only those at the top of the pyramid can make big money, and most people in the industry don't have much money. And I need money, I have to make some money to go to college."
"Ah? How old are you this year, Ronald?" Gail looked Ronald up and down, a little unconvinced.
"Yeah, it's hard to believe, this guy just graduated from high school this year, he's four or five years younger than us, and he took a gap year to work to earn tuition." Jim added with a smile, "I was also surprised when I first found out."
"Can you really take portrait photos?" Gail looked at Ronald.
"Yes, I help people take audition photos, wedding photos, family photos, and so on in New York. But I don't know anyone in Hollywood or Broadway circles, and the clients don't trust me, so I can't make an offer. I can only charge $30-50 for each set of audition photos.
So, I took advantage of my gap year after graduating from high school and decided to try my luck in Los Angeles. It happened that New World Productions was recruiting screenwriters, so I applied. Unexpectedly, I was accepted and later became an assistant on the set of "Rock 'n' Roll High School."
"Then why don't you take some photos of the crew and use them for marketing later? I'll talk to Mr. Coleman. You won't be the temporary director at the end of today, and you can make a little more money this way."
"I would be very happy if I could take photos for the crew. I can also take photos of the stars and hang them in my photography studio. Thank you, Gail." Ronald thanked Gail with a smile.
"That's nothing," Gail shook his hand. "What's your dream, Jim?"
"As for me? I hope to make a science fiction film like Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey' one day." Jim said, "When I was in community college, I saw the re-screening of this film and was fascinated. I watched it several times and said to myself, 'Jim, you must also make a film like this."
"Then, I went to Los Angeles and studied on my own by copying all the books I could find on filmmaking at the UCLA library. You all know the next thing you know. I found 12 dentists and raised money to make this short film. Unfortunately, they only wanted to be refunded their investment in my short film. After watching the sample film, they rejected the plan to make a feature film."
"What about you, Gail? What is your dream?"
"Me? I love movies, so after graduating from Stanford, I did not go to a financial institution like my classmates, but came to New World to be an assistant to Mr. Corman. During this time, I learned a lot about his work, and I prefer being a producer rather than a director. I prefer the financing, negotiation, and marketing parts because my father is an investor, and I hope to be a producer of blockbuster movies in the future." Gail's dream came true because she graduated from a prestigious university, had a family background in movies, and loved movies."
"Then I wish all of our dreams will come true!"
"Yeah, let's make our dream come true."
…
The one-hour lunch break passed quickly, and the crew and extras gathered again. Ronald planned to rehearse the remaining two scenes first and shoot them at the magic hour of sunset in the evening.
Ronald invited Mary Woronov, who played the role of Principal Toga, and said, "Ms. Woronov, we designed the shot like this: you and two security guards are walking from a distance, and students are dancing disco along the way, and rock music is playing on the speakers. You are trying to get them..."
"Cut the wires and put the students in solitary confinement." Mary Voronov acted very arrogantly and swung her hand down fiercely.
"You're in great shape, that's it. You're such a good actor." Ronald praised repeatedly, then pointed to the grass on the other side of the playground, "When the time comes, you and the security guards will walk over from the grass, from the full shot to the mid-shot. I'll arrange a few female students to dance on both sides so that when you see them, you can make eye contact with them, and then finally walk to the close-up."
"This lens is well designed." Mary nodded.
"This scene is your entrance shot. We will shoot a close-up first, which will be your final appearance. The long shot of you approaching from a distance will be shot at sunset after 4 o'clock, so..."
"No problem, I'll cooperate with the rehearsal first."
Unlike the old-fashioned Principal Toga, actress Mary Woronoff is a very "progressive" person. In fact, she is the one who likes rock music the most among the actors, but her acting is very good, and she plays a female principal who hates rebellious rock music and is determined to clean up the school.
Especially her facial expressions, which were well controlled. The little she showed just now showed a mixture of contempt, hatred, and the desire to ban rock music. Ronald didn't understand acting, but he knew she acted well.
Maybe she is the legendary acting talent?
Next, we rehearse the last scene of the day: the protagonist, rock hottie Riff Randell, and the good girl Kate Rambeau are punished by Principal Toga to stay in school. It is the first time for the good girl to be punished, and she is unhappy. Riff comes to comfort her, "It's no big deal to stay in school. I stay in school often."
The two of them walked slowly towards the teaching building. Riff held a portable tape recorder, playing the Ramones' music, and joked around with Kate to make her happy. Finally, the picture was fixed on the backs of the two good sisters in the sunset.
I have to say that this part of the script and the director's lens design are of a very high standard, and it doesn't look like a crude, low-cost exploitation film. Roger Corman always finds truly talented people to work for him and only pays them the minimum wage.
After rehearsing the two shots several times, the director of photography, Dean, felt that it was good enough, and Ronald announced that the crew would take a break and wait for the next scene.
This is a common thing in other crews. Some big-name directors can wait for a whole day for a certain light. But in Roger Corman's crew, waiting for light is very rare.
The actors hid in the dressing room, and the extras went into the teaching building and did not come out. Only a few staff members were left on the scene. Ronald did not sit on the chair marked with Director Allen's name. Although, as a temporary director, no one would say anything if he really sat down.
Thinking that he would be a crew assistant next week, Ronald was very satisfied with his current status. He was in charge of a crew, and everyone was waiting for him to make decisions. This feeling was very addictive. There were only a few shots left, and Ronald wanted to store the feeling at this moment and take it out to relive it at any time in the future.
The winter sun was very kind, and the Arri 35 BL camera sat quietly on the gimbal. The clapperboard lay on the table next to it, the long recording rod, the furry microphone... Ronald couldn't tell for a moment whether the equipment or the people who operated them were the protagonists of the film.
What was my dream? Would I have the chance to become a real film director? The profession of director was too difficult to enter. Allen and Joe spent more than five years...
Maybe I can try to be an actor or a photographer? After having tasted the feeling of making a movie, I really want to do it again. It is difficult for other professions to provide this feeling of heroism.
In peacetime, you command a team, spend a huge amount of money, and then wait for the day when the movie is released. Box office, film reviews, success or failure are all in a moment. Perhaps this is the job that is closest to commanding a general in battle. "
No wonder everyone wants to be a general or a director. These are jobs that men are born to love.