From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

The matter is somewhat complicated.

But simply put, Innovative Artists puts the company's interests first, and only then their individual interests. This unique model has established their position.

Other agencies do the opposite, pursuing individual interests first, and then the company's.

From a company perspective, Innovative Artists is indeed a behemoth, the undisputed leader with a profound impact on the entire industry. However, from an individual perspective, choosing Innovative Artists or another agency each has its advantages and disadvantages. Ultimately, it comes down to personal choice.

Different decisions can lead to drastically different paths, a distinction that is both different and very similar for agents and artists.

Edgar's choice of William Morris shows that he has ambition.

Actually, choosing an agent is slightly different for Anson, a separate issue entirely—

Although an agent's job responsibilities are quite complex, in Hollywood, they can be simply divided into two categories.

First, selecting projects.

Second, negotiating salaries, planning schedules, and communicating information.

The former tests an agent's artistic discernment.

For example, in the late nineties, the original "007," Sean Connery, suddenly became interested in science fiction films and asked his agent to find him a project. As a result, he followed his agent's advice and rejected both "The Matrix" and "The Lord of the Rings" because he couldn't understand the scripts.

Another example: in 2007, Matt Damon received performance invitations for both "The Bourne Ultimatum" and "Avatar" at the same time. Because of scheduling conflicts, he had to choose one. After careful consideration based on his agent's advice, Matt rejected the "Avatar" offer of fifteen million dollars plus 10% of the box office revenue and chose the former.

Actors only realize what they missed after the movie is released:

Sometimes it's a box office hit, and sometimes it's a Palme d'Or or an Academy Award-winning film.

Similar stories are countless and continue to unfold, which is the moment that tests an agent's abilities.

The latter tests an agent's negotiation skills and interpersonal skills.

Regarding remuneration, there is no need to elaborate. Innovative Artists' promotion of the "Twenty Million Dollar Club" is the best proof. The other part also has a good story.

Leonardo DiCaprio's pursuit of the Oscar statuette is well known. He finally realized his dream in 2016 with "The Revenant." But before that, he had always wanted to work with Martin Scorsese, but he never found an opportunity.

To work with Martin, Leonardo changed five agents. His only requirement for his agent was to connect with Martin and complete the collaboration.

Anson, as a time-traveler from 2023, clearly knows what works can achieve. Therefore, he doesn't need an agent's judgment, but he urgently needs an agent's negotiation skills and communication skills, including the agency as well.

A hypothetical, if Anson wants to work with Christopher Nolan, can the agent help him achieve it?

Whether it's Innovative Artists or William Morris, the requirements are the same for Anson.

The same goes for Edgar.

Anson looked at the eloquent and confident Edgar, "So, what about you? What questions should I ask you?"

Edgar was stunned—

Is this an opportunity?

Edgar didn't panic. The smile on his lips disappeared, and his face was full of focus and seriousness. "You should ask me, why did I personally visit you before things were clear and act as if I were persuading Brad Pitt?"

Heh.

Anson chuckled.

Simply repeating, "Why did you personally visit me before things were clear and act as if you were persuading Brad Pitt?"

The question was clearly raised by Edgar, and Anson just copied and pasted it. But Edgar didn't rush to speak. Instead, he pondered for a moment.

The pace slowed down.

Edgar, on the contrary, no longer had the tension and haste he had before. A brief struggle flashed between his brows, and then he settled down, revealing a touch of determination.

"Because I believe in you."

Not a slogan, nor a pep talk.

You can see from the light in his eyes that this is Edgar's heartfelt feeling—

Somewhat absurd, right?

As of now, Anson has only appeared in three episodes of "Friends." That's all. The resume, when printed out, is too short to even wipe your mouth with.

However, Edgar says he believes in Anson. Isn't this pie a little too big?

The key is that if it's really just drawing a pie, you should be more restrained so that it's not too outrageous and adds some persuasiveness.

What's absurd in front of him is indeed absurd, but it's not funny at all.

Edgar's sharpness was completely restrained, and even his voice became low. There was no clowning, no joking. The temperament of the whole person was different.

Word by word, he spoke his heart in the simplest and most unadorned words.

"Because I believe you can become a superstar more successful and glorious than Brad Pitt."

"And…"

"Because I believe you yourself believe this."

"So, I came."

"Personally visiting you before things were clear and acting as if I were persuading Brad Pitt."

The words ended here.

Without impassionedness, without raising his arms and shouting, everything seemed very calm. He simply and directly drew a period, as if he had only said half of what he wanted to say. But Edgar didn't continue. He just quietly stared at Anson, accepting scrutiny, accepting judgment, and waiting for an unknown result.

Anson waited for a moment, realized that Edgar's words had ended and that there was nothing more to say. He gently raised his chin, revealing a meaningful expression.

"Okay, Captain Cook, thank you for your visit today."

"Wait, you don't mind me calling you that, do you? Did any children call you that at school before?"

Edgar saw Anson stand up. This was a "sending off" gesture. He also quickly stood up—

Anson didn't respond.

There was no response at all, no positive, no negative, no active, no passive, nothing.

You couldn't see any clues on that calm face.

Edgar took a deep breath and smiled. "Of course, I don't mind."

Indeed, Anson is not in a hurry to make a decision.

Admittedly, Edgar's visit today opened his eyes, and his eloquent speech was very persuasive and infectious, making him feel excited.

But Anson is not a real eighteen-year-old kid who would impulsively nod his head.

He will still visit the two agents at Innovative Artists and William Morris. At least, he will see how many of Edgar's predictions come true.

Then he will decide whether to give Edgar a chance for a formal meeting.

Anson and Edgar exchanged simple greetings all the way, personally escorting Edgar away.

Hearing the noise, James put down the game controller as soon as possible and quickly greeted him. He watched Edgar leave vigilantly before asking.

"How was it? What do you think?"

Anson shrugged lightly, "No rush, no need to rush for now."

Although Anson didn't explain the reason, James nodded repeatedly in appreciation. "Stay calm. The more you are at this juncture, the more you need to be careful not to be carried away. If necessary, I can call my agent. Innovative Artists has many excellent agents."

"Huh? Wait, James, are you attacking competitors for your agency? Something seems fishy."

"Hey, no way! This is being realistic, okay?"

Sixth chapter.