Chapter 20 Non-violence

The sun was shining brightly, and the streets were bustling with cars and people.

James Wong, carrying a briefcase, glanced at the office building in front of him. Among the various nameplates, he spotted the name of Sandsea Entertainment, confirming he was at the right place, and quickly made his way inside.

Finding the corresponding office, he knocked and entered. A freckled-faced girl greeted him and, upon stating his purpose, she asked him to wait for a moment before going to inform someone in another office.

Sitting in a chair, observing the few people in the office, James Wong wasn't surprised. He and his friend Glenn Morgan had been in the film industry since the 1980s, and he had encountered many small production companies like this.

His agent had mentioned this company and project a few days ago, and he had some understanding of it. A $11 million investment - quite the headline.

But that wasn't his concern. There were too many instances of Hollywood inflating production costs, involving messy situations like marketing and conflicts of interest.

In fact, this wasn't his only option.

He had been contacted by the folks at Diemen Films, wanting him to direct a spoof version of "Scream" titled "Laughing Screams." He hadn't accepted yet because one of his conditions had been flatly rejected by Diemen Films.

Thinking of the script he and Glenn had worked on, James Wong furrowed his brow. Did he really have to give up on it?

Having been in the industry for over a decade, he knew a good idea when he saw one.

The problem was, there were too many good ideas in the industry, and too many people waiting for their good ideas to turn into movies. When would it be his turn?

As for selling scripts or story outlines separately, he wasn't considering it. Between the mid-80s and 1993, after countless rejections, he finally managed to sell a youth comedy script called "The Boy Next Door" to a production company. Then he and Glenn participated in writing commercial films and series like "The Demon Dancer" and "The Dragon Tiger Youth Team."

Unfortunately, by 1993, he, a seasoned screenwriter, was struggling to make ends meet due to the lack of respect for screenwriters in the industry. He had to find a way to pivot.

So, James Wong was well aware that scripts didn't sell for much.

At this stage, James Wong could only think of one way: to sell himself alongside the script.

After all, he wasn't an unknown. He had directed and served as an executive producer on "The X-Files" and had been a co-producer on projects like "Beyond the Universe" and "Millennium."

"Director Wong," the freckled girl approached him and informed, "Mr. Anderson is ready to see you now."

James Wong nodded and followed the girl into an office where his agent Edward was already waiting.

"James, this is Ronan Anderson, the CEO of Sandsea Entertainment."

"Ronan, this is Director Wong I mentioned to you."

Seeing the black-haired, yellow-skinned man, Ronan immediately surmised he was of Chinese descent. He shook hands with him and asked, "Director Wong, are you Chinese?"

James Wong replied, "I was born in Hong Kong."

Ronan got to the point, "You worked on 'The X-Files' crew?"

This was a highly successful TV series on Fox, and upon learning the director's name, Ronan had specifically watched a few episodes that James Wong was deeply involved in.

From the quality of the TV series, James Wong did a pretty good job.

"I was with 'The X-Files' crew from the first season to the fourth season," James Wong spoke modestly, "During the first and second seasons, Glenn and I mainly worked on adjusting and correcting the outlines. In the latter half of the second season, I started working as Chris Carter's assistant director. By the third and fourth seasons, I directed several episodes independently..."

When James Wong finished, his agent Edward added, "Many plots and content of 'The X-Files' involve thriller and horror genres, and Wong is very familiar with this aspect."

Ronan nodded. Among the directors he had interviewed face to face, James Wong had the best resume and had truly participated in well-known projects.

More importantly, Ronan felt that this Wong person's name was somewhat familiar. He must have achieved considerable success in Hollywood to be remembered by him.

After discussing James Wong's resume for a while, Ronan took out the script and handed it to him, saying, "Take a look at the script first, and then we'll talk."

James Wong took the script. It wasn't too thick, about eighty pages or so, labeled "Human Purge" on the cover, with Ronan Anderson's name listed as the author.

This was something James Wong had known before he came and hadn't paid much attention to. He opened the script and started reading.

After reading for a while, James Wong had a rough judgment. The background setting of the script was good, but fundamentally, it followed the traditional American horror movie style, filled with violence, slaughter, and bloodshed, categorizable as a splatter film.

Regarding horror alone, it was average.

In his eyes, true horror was something intangible and unseen.

Subconsciously comparing, the horror script he and Glenn wrote seemed much better than this one.

However, upon further thought, besides the horror and violence elements, this script seemed to touch upon social issues that resonate with Americans.

As he progressed through the script, James Wong found himself scratching his head a bit. How did Arabs become heroes? While there were some initial setups about Arabs, it didn't quite fit the usual Hollywood tropes.

When have Arabs ever been portrayed positively in Hollywood movies? Moreover, there aren't many Arab-American moviegoers, right? Writing it this way, wouldn't it be better to target a wider audience, like the Chinese?

It took James Wong a long time to finish reading the script.

Seeing James Wong close the script, Ronan poured him a glass of water and asked, "Any thoughts?"

Because he might take on this project, James Wong directly addressed, "There's a bit of an issue with the Arab characters."

Ronan chuckled, "The investment comes from Abu Dhabi."

Having mingled in the industry for many years, James Wong understood the implication. Money talks.

"The setup is good," he no longer mentioned the Arab characters, slowly stating, "This story should resonate with many Americans."

Ronan turned back to his desk, "Tell me more."

James Wong spoke from personal experience, "For the past few years, I've been with various production crews, spending some time in France and Canada. Watching the news on television, I felt quite unfamiliar because the news in these two countries is very different. In France, I saw various reports about Europe. But in Canada, there's hardly any real news; it's all trivial gossip. Later, when I returned to the US, every day's news was filled with violent incidents."

He suddenly laughed, "As an outsider, during my early years here, my biggest feeling was that in America, it felt like I was living in violence every day."

"Yeah," Ronan nodded lightly, "America's public safety is really bad."

Suddenly, Edward interjected, "With so many violent incidents, why don't people feel repulsed by violent movies?"

James Wong continued, "A movie against violence must depict violence!"

Hearing this, Ronan looked at James Wong with a bit more respect. Directors, indeed, were people who liked to think outside the box.

"Director Wong," he straightforwardly asked, "If you were the director, how would you make this film?"

"I would make it a film with many violent scenes, but against violence," James Wong's thoughts became clearer after reading the script, "You've written a good story. Although the film is set in the future, it's not a doomsday movie. In the future, people are living well, but violence remains an unshakeable shadow. That is to say, violence exists not only in poverty but also in affluence. This is something worth pondering, as everyone would feel that they are a part of violence."

What a mind! Ronan was speechless.

Having seen James Wong's directed episodes, verified his credentials, and learned about his thoughts on the film, Ronan gradually felt that this Director Wong was a good choice.

He tested the waters, "Wong, join my project."

James Wong glanced at Edward, and Edward flashed a sincere smile, "Before you came, Ronan and I discussed the salary issue, $300,000, payable in two installments."

Ronan was satisfied with James Wong, so Edward brought up the salary increase; otherwise, it would be meaningless.

Negotiations for such independent small projects were not so formal. As long as both parties had no objections, they didn't care much about some overly rigid industry regulations.

"Alright..." James Wong pondered briefly, then suddenly said, "Edward, I'd like to speak with Ronan alone."

Edward immediately thought of Dimen Pictures and stood up, saying, "You're going to..."

James Wong interrupted him, "I know what I'm doing."

Edward shook his head and left the office directly.