Jumping Around

Chapter 62 Jumping Around

Companies in rapid growth often lack sufficient funds, and Gray Film Company is no exception.

Kelly Gray saw the vast potential of the studio rental business through this collaboration with Hollywood.

Of course, the fundamentals of film and television production cannot be abandoned.

Kelly was intrigued: "Tell me about it."

Martin had already considered this: "The owner of the place I used to work for, Wild Beasts, was Vincent Lee, and his stepmother was Sofia, a muscular woman who was passionate about fitness. They came from Savannah."

Kelly immediately grasped the key point: "Their ability to launder their image through nightclubs, rather than other high-end methods, is limited."

Martin said, "To the vice president of the ATL Freedom Society and future members of Congress, they are just rats in the gutter, but to me, they are behemoths."

Kelly didn't joke with Martin and asked directly, "What's the daily revenue of the Wild Things House?"

"I'm not entirely sure of the exact figure," Martin said, only able to estimate based on ticket sales and merchandise: "At least $40,000 a day."

Kelly picked up her phone: "Wait a minute."

She made a phone call: "Brother, could you spare a moment of your precious time to ask me about something? Vincent Lee and Sofia from Savannah, the former opened the House of the Beasts Club on Saijo Avenue, and I'm planning to get them to invest in a movie, the Hollywood model I mentioned to you. Do I have any issues with that?"

Martin had heard Louise mention that Kelly's family was well-off, but the family's resources were mainly distributed among the male members.

Not long after, a phone call came in, and the person who answered was simple and direct: "They're involved in smuggling; any problems they encounter are just minor troubles."

"Thanks, I'll bring you a gift when I go home sometime." Kelly Gray put away her phone and, getting down to business, said, "If you can secure enough investment, you'll be the lead actor. The more money you raise, the higher your salary will be. I can offer you a production manager position so you can earn double the salary."

Martin confirmed: "A theatrical release?"

Kelly smiled and said, "As long as the funding issue is resolved, everything else is negotiable. There's the Savannah Film Festival in the second half of the year, and the film can be screened there. Louise and I have connections all over Hollywood, so inviting distributors to watch the film won't be a problem."

"Will this have a negative impact on you?" Martin asked, sounding particularly concerned.

Kelly felt a surge of warmth in her heart, took Martin's hand and kissed it lightly: "You're not the only one who wants to transcend social classes, I am too, and money is one of the best tools."

Martin pulled her onto his lap: "Let's work together."

Kelly sighed softly, "If only you were from a wealthy family."

This unrealistic thought flashed through her mind quickly, and she asked, "Do you have any other good ideas?"

Martin told the truth: "I can only come up with despicable and shameless rotten methods."

Kelly snuggled into his arms: "As long as it works."

Martin said, "I'm only responsible for coming up with bad ideas."

Kelly propped herself up, glanced down, then sat back down, letting out a long sigh: "I suddenly don't want to let you go to Los Angeles."

…………

In the afternoon, Martin left Kelly's apartment building, drove her BMW 7 Series, and headed towards Saijo Street.

He spent the entire journey considering what to say.

You can speak directly with Kelly Gray, because Kelly Gray won't reveal a single detail to outsiders.

But for Vincent, it would be best to use a different approach.

As they approached Saijo Street, Martin called Vincent, saying he wanted to talk to him, and Vincent told him to go to the club.

Martin arrived at the club, went straight to the second floor, and entered his office.

Vincent, wearing a rolled-up cowboy hat, sat behind his desk, leisurely smoking a cigar. When he looked up, his sharp, hooked nose was right in front of Martin: "Make yourself at home."

Martin pulled out a chair and sat down: "Boss, long time no see. I heard the club's business has been booming."

Vincent was quite satisfied with what Martin had done, and a rare smile appeared on his face: "You've made a great contribution."

"Boss, I'm here with a new opportunity." Martin avoided mentioning money laundering: "It can make the club famous throughout Georgia, and if we're lucky, the fame can even spread across the United States."

Bruce had mentioned that Vincent had visited Las Vegas: "Boss, you can open a club in Las Vegas then."

Because of their previous success, Vincent took Martin very seriously and asked, "What opportunity?"

Martin said, "Investing in a movie, a movie set in a gigolo club, with Benjamin, the director of Gray Films, spending months polishing the script, filming and production, and then releasing it in theaters across the United States."

Vincent remained silent; he was unfamiliar with this industry.

Martin took out the script and handed it to Vincent: "Boss, you know me. I won't do anything I'm not sure I can handle."

Without his previous successes, Martin wouldn't have come so quickly.

Vincent flipped through the script quickly, and after only a few pages, he was certain that the story was indeed set in a male strip club, and the circular stage and other features mentioned therein matched the Beast House remarkably well.

This was originally created with Martin's part-time work background in mind.

So, Vincent's story seems to take on the appearance of a wild animal house.

Even as a layman, he could imagine that once the movie was widely released, the fame of House of the Wild would skyrocket.

Martin added, "The film project has received Kelly Gray's green light. Gray's company will put up an announcement in the newspaper tomorrow, soliciting investment from the public. Boss, I came to let you know as soon as I got the news."

Vincent asked in bewilderment, "Are they soliciting investment from the public?"

Martin explained, "This is quite normal in the film industry. For example, the famous *The Godfather* reportedly received funding from certain Italian entities. *Saving Private Ryan* and *Band of Brothers* had investments from India..."

Vincent was unaware of the latter, but he had heard of the former. Thinking of Italians and movies, he immediately understood what Martin meant.

He took off his cowboy hat and lit a grilled cigar: "You know a lot, investing in movies..."

"Boss, I said when I left that I would always be a member of the club!" Martin interrupted Vincent. "I've always been a poor kid living in Clayton. If you hadn't taken me in and given me a job, I wouldn't be where I am today."

"You know what a piece of trash Jack Davis is, boss. Of the three people who have helped me the most since I became an adult, two came from the club: you, boss, and Old Brooks. You two saved my life several times!"

If we only consider Old Bu, that's not an exaggeration.

Martin added, "The owner of Gray Films is Kelly Gray. She's from Atlanta, and both her home and company are in Atlanta. The Gray family has always had a good reputation, which is why I dared to recommend this project to you, sir, so you could invest."

Local people and local companies are definitely more reliable than outsiders. Vincent remembered hearing about the Grey family somewhere.

Martin said, "Boss, although I come from a poor background, I know how to be grateful."

"That's all?" Vincent didn't believe anyone was that naive.

Martin scratched his head sheepishly: "Carrie Gray promised me that if I could secure funding, she would cast me as the male lead in the film."

Vincent pointed at him: "You little rascal!"

Martin quickly added, "I also recommended a group of handsome men. Hart and his crew can actually perform as male dancers. It'll be great publicity."

He emphasized, "They will all be paid actors at that time."

The next sentence reminded Vincent: They put their own people in the production crew, and inflated their salaries…

His gaze passed over Martin and fell on the club’s lobby. The club served as a film set during the day and a regular film studio at night, claiming to be a one-to-one scale studio, which was another large “normal” expense!

No wonder those Italians are investing in investment godfathers, no wonder Germans and Indians are investing so heavily in Hollywood.

Even someone like him, an amateur, can think of many ways to make reasonable accounting entries.

After a long pause, Vincent said, "I'll think about it."

As Martin left the office and went downstairs, he put his hand in his pocket and turned off the recorder.

I just feel mentally exhausted. It's so hard to get the lead role in a theatrical film; it's like jumping around like a monkey.

(End of this chapter)