Kazir and Salvatore Barlo reached a verbal agreement, and the reasons behind it are quite simple, mainly twofold.
Firstly, Kazir genuinely needed an agent.
Se7en's box office was soaring, a massive hit, and various film companies would undoubtedly flock to him like sharks smelling blood.
At such a time, tasks like negotiating terms and handling various complex affairs had to be entrusted to an agent. Once things were mostly settled, Kazir would then step in to finalize the details.
Besides, he was currently busy editing napoleon dynamite and simply couldn't spare the time to deal with all these disturbances.
Secondly, it was the genuine sincerity Salvatore displayed.
He voluntarily lowered his commission to 3%, which for an agent was like cutting off his own flesh—his income was directly slashed by more than half.
However, if Kazir could become successful in the future and become a famous director, then Salvatore's move would be the right one, yielding several or even dozens of times the return.
In Kazir's view, Salvatore was making a big gamble with his career prospects.
'Well, I'm also gambling with my own future, so we're kindred spirits,' Kazir mused to himself.
He knew that all he could do now was to go all out and achieve excellent results, so that this greenhorn agent wouldn't regret the decision he made today.
"Kazir, what about napoleon dynamite?" Salvatore asked tentatively.
"Don't worry, it's almost done editing, about two-thirds complete! There's no rush for this; let's wait until Se7en's box office results for this week are out," Kazir replied.
With a staggering $23 million at the box office in just five days, Kazir still wanted to see if it could push further this week and achieve even better results.
"Alright, I'll wait," Salvatore nodded.
He was still just a new agent who hadn't signed a formal contract with Kazir, so he knew his place and understood that making a movie couldn't be rushed; it had to be taken one step at a time.
"Send the contract to my lawyer first; I'll sign it later," Kazir said.
"That's great!" Salvatore's face broke into a joyful smile.
The two then shook hands firmly.
Years later, countless agents would surely regret it, slapping their thighs—why didn't they rush to sign this promising stock, Kazier Gray?
'In my previous life, I never heard of Salvatore Barlo. I guess he didn't make a big name for himself back then, and his clients were all obscure small-time actors. But then again, I was just as unknown in my previous life!' Kazir sighed inwardly.
There were many famous agents in Hollywood, like Pat Kingsley, Kevin Huvane, Bryan Lourd... but these bigwigs who wielded immense influence in the industry wouldn't even spare a glance for a rookie director like him.
After finishing their discussion, the two parted ways.
This first meeting, on the whole, went quite smoothly and was not in vain.
"I should call my lawyer first, so he doesn't get startled when he hears the news later," Kazir thought as he returned to his studio and immediately dialed his lawyer's number.
"Hello, Terence? It's me. Oh, are you still mad about me giving the house to Cassandra? What? Do you think you lost face because you didn't fight to the end with that cheating woman? Come on, buddy, let it go, don't keep dwelling on it. I have some work for you. Yes, it's important. I'll send you the contract shortly. Okay, thanks."
After hanging up, Kazir breathed a sigh of relief.
He felt that he had finally gotten through the hurdle of communicating with his lawyer.
With Se7en's incredibly strong opening, he could finally relax his tense nerves a bit.
"Hello, Director Gray!"
"Hmm?"
Just as Kazir was about to enter the editing room, he heard someone greet him.
He turned around and saw that it was Reese Witherspoon.
"Reese? What are you doing here?" Kazir was a bit confused, not reacting immediately.
"To do voiceovers!" Reese replied with a smile.
"Oh, right, I forgot."
Kazir suddenly realized; he was probably under too much stress recently, and his mind was a bit slow.
Actors like Reese all had to return to do voiceovers for the film after filming was completed.
Ed Helms had the most lines, but he was very efficient, finishing his voiceover work in two weeks.
Reese, following Kazir's advice, was busy taking acting classes to improve her skills and also working odd jobs to supplement her income, constantly on the go.
During filming, it was inevitable for various noises to get into the audio, so voiceover work was very common in the film production process.
'I just hired a sound effects supervisor last week,' Kazir recalled.
Most of the sounds in a movie, besides the music, are created by the sound effects supervisor through various clever methods.
For example, the sound of a fist hitting a person might be simulated by forcefully smashing a piece of meat against a hard object. The work of a sound effects supervisor is crucial in post-production.
"Today is my last day of voiceovers, Director Gray, could you do me a favor?" Reese smiled sweetly, moving closer to Kazir as she spoke.
A faint fragrance wafted over; to be honest, Reese emitted a very pleasant scent.
A normal man, faced with such a situation, couldn't possibly feel nothing.
Kazir couldn't help but smile wryly.
His original body had just divorced last October, and in his previous life, he had been far from love for decades. The influence of those memories made him genuinely want to stay away from romantic matters at this moment.
But even the most rational man couldn't resist a young woman's Active teasing (active flirtation); there had to be an outlet for emotional release... yet reason was like a shackle, constantly reminding him not to act impulsively.
"After you finish your voiceover, how about I treat you to dinner?"
This time, it was Reese who launched the offensive!
"..."
Kazir still managed a forced smile on his face, but inwardly, he was already thinking about how to refuse.
"Trying to reject me again? Mr. Gray, you're really no fun." There was a hint of coldness in Reese's smile.
Even she couldn't quite explain why she was so persistent with Kazir.
Perhaps it was because during filming, she saw how focused Kazir was on his work, completely unlike those directors who would constantly yell and have short tempers.
He always patiently encouraged the actors, giving them confidence.
Moreover, a man working seriously had a certain charm that was indeed very attractive.
Then there was her competitive spirit at play—she had already been rejected by Kazir three times, and she felt compelled to win at least once.
Women are sometimes like this; they want to conquer a seemingly indifferent man as an interesting and challenging game, to prove their own charm.
"Well, Mr. Gray?"
Saying that, Reese moved closer again, almost pressing against Kazir's firm chest.