Decadent Heartthrob

"Phone Booth" was simple to shoot. After selling off the European distribution rights, the markets Aaron valued were the United States and Japan!

With Christmas approaching, Los Angeles was filled with a festive atmosphere everywhere.

Meanwhile, after Sony acquired Columbia TriStar Pictures and formed Sony Pictures Entertainment, it poached the two producers of "Batman," Peter Guber and Jon Peters, from Warner Bros. Pictures to serve as co-CEOs!

Taking advantage of the recent lawsuit between Paramount and Time Warner, Sony had been talked into poaching their people?

In downtown Los Angeles, on the set of "Phone Booth," applause broke out after Nicolas Cage finished a take!

Nicole Kidman and Adam Sandler had both come for cameo appearances. Adam Sandler in particular had quite a few scenes as the police officer he played.

"That was filmed so quickly—less than twenty days, right?"

It was also Nicole Kidman's first time encountering such an unusual script.

"Two more days are set aside specifically for exterior shots. The scenes inside the phone booth are pretty much finished," Aaron said, looking at Nicolas Cage. He truly felt that the guy had a gift for acting!

"Which distributor did you find?"

Aaron shook his head. "It hasn't been decided yet. Both Miramax and New Line are interested, but I want to hold a screening after the film is completed."

Aaron's plan was clearly to draw the attention of major distributors. After all, "Phone Booth" had one final fallback: Legacy Entertainment, which had a partnership with Propaganda Films!

That evening, Aaron took everyone to a Hollywood nightclub to unwind. From the director to the actors, they were all young people under thirty anyway.

Dance music, rock, and electronic beats combined into a tidal wave of sound that battered the senses of the crowd immersed within it;

Under dazzling neon lights, dancers in extravagant outfits gave energetic performances on the dance floor!

The smells of alcohol, hormones, and hallucinogens filled every corner. Aaron sat on the sofa, sipping tequila as he watched the wild revelry on the floor.

"Aaron, now that you've brought me here, are you regretting it a little?"

Nicole Kidman sat beside Aaron and kissed him with a smile.

"Why would I regret it? I brought them here to relax in the first place!"

"With so many young, beautiful, sexy women in a nightclub, don't you think it's a waste?"

Aaron smiled and pulled Nicole Kidman into his arms. "With you here, how could I possibly have eyes for any other woman?"

"Your face, your figure—don't you have any confidence in yourself?"

Nicole Kidman kissed Aaron, then seemed to remember something. "By the way, I heard Director David Lynch say that 'Wild at Heart' has been invited to next year's Cannes Film Festival."

"What do you think? Can it win an award?"

Aaron nodded. "There's a very good chance. Director David Lynch's work has an excellent reputation in artistic circles, and France is the center of European cinema—it suits his style perfectly."

"Besides, Lynch's films all have European financial backing!"

Come to think of it, David Lynch's work was more popular in Europe than in the United States. Hollywood's commercial nature was plain for all to see;

None of the films nominated for Oscar Best Picture had particularly low box office returns, at least until Kathryn Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker" broke that record in the future.

"The Hurt Locker," with a box office of just over ten million dollars, set the record for the lowest-grossing Best Picture winner;

The main reason was that it was a pure American patriotic political tribute film, and it also coincided with the rise of feminism—Hollywood needed a Best Director winner who was a woman!

"Aaron, Nicole, let me introduce you to two friends."

At that moment, Nicolas Cage appeared from nowhere, bringing along the couple Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder;

Nicolas Cage had known Johnny Depp for a long time. Compared with Nicolas Cage, who came from an exceptional background and found fame earlier, Johnny Depp had only risen to prominence in the past couple of years through the TV series "21 Jump Street."

"Good evening!"

After Nicolas Cage made the introductions, the group sat down and drank together.

"Depp, Aaron used to be the most capable agent among CAA's young people. Too bad he quit;"

"Now he's started a film company, and his first movie is the 'Phone Booth' we're shooting!"

After hearing Nicolas Cage's words, Johnny Depp was startled. "A film company owner at such a young age?"

Aaron smiled. "It's just a low-budget thriller drama. I'm trying my hand at being a producer."

"Ah, Aaron, you left CAA?"

Winona Ryder, sitting beside him, asked in surprise. Not long ago, he had taken Jennifer Connelly to audition for the "The Godfather Part III" production.

"Yeah, not long ago," Aaron said, deliberately glancing at Winona Ryder with some confusion.

"Didn't you get the role of the daughter in 'The Godfather Part III'?"

"You should have. I heard Director Coppola thought highly of you!"

Winona Ryder smiled awkwardly. Johnny Depp, beside her, took a sip of his drink. "It seems you've been too busy lately, Aaron. You haven't been keeping up with these things;"

"Director Francis Ford Coppola had his daughter, Sofia Coppola, play that role. Winona didn't go to the Italy set."

"Ah, is that so?" Nicole Kidman, beside Aaron, had heard her man say before that Italians liked using their own people when making films. It seemed he had been completely right.

"All right, let's have a drink," Aaron said, raising his glass.

"Actually, I'm really looking forward to Director Tim Burton's fantasy romance film this year, 'Edward Scissorhands';"

"I'm sure the two of you will give performances in that film that leave everyone astonished!"

Johnny Depp was only twenty-seven at the time—strikingly handsome, with that brooding, decadent air turned all the way up. 21 Jump Street had made him an American Idol, but overall, he was still a minor figure in television.

Edward Scissorhands, however, was the film that would make his name in the movie industry. And with the male and female leads falling in love offscreen after falling for each other onscreen, it generated plenty of buzz.

"Thank you, Aaron. Perhaps we can work together someday!"

Winona Ryder smiled. Her agent had told her that Aaron Anderson had a very good eye.

Now that he had left CAA and become a Film Producer, Winona Ryder naturally did not mind making a connection with him.

Even if Aaron Anderson accomplished nothing afterward, it did not matter. It was only a sentence, after all.

Aaron smiled and nodded. Hollywood was a Vanity Fair. It seemed that actors capable of breaking out truly were not fools.