I became a son-in-law in the United States

Chapter 47 Casting

After the project was finalized, the next step was casting, and that's when another problem arose.

The current box office hits feature veteran actors who, while possessing good acting skills and rich experience, lack an image and temperament that aligns with the story itself.

The male lead is fine; the company has a few young people who can handle the role, and with a little makeup and styling, it's no problem. But when Luther thinks about the female lead, he immediately runs into a dilemma.

The film currently has about ten actresses, six of whom are over thirty, two are over forty, and two others, although young, look like Jia Ling, so he really can't muster any interest in them.

This time, we're filming a romantic love story. Since it's a romantic drama, the male and female leads definitely can't be lacking in quality.

So Luther thought and thought, and could only look for a solution elsewhere.

"Perhaps we can bring in actors from elsewhere, like Hollywood," the fat director suggested.

This fat man is called Neil Young. He is a middle-aged man in his forties, not very tall, and loves to laugh. He is always joking around at the company.

He's quite capable and has worked with Reynolds for many years, but for some reason, the movies he made before weren't very successful.

Everyone knows that he was just a little bit unlucky, but it was precisely that little bit of luck that wasted twenty good years of his life.

Even though all his other colleagues had left, leaving only half the crew at the box office, Neil Young still chose to stay.

As for why he stayed, it's quite simple: his ideas aligned with Luther's.

Sound movies offer a better experience, and if you don't make them, someone else will. So why not be yourself? What if you become a hit?

However, Reynolds shook his head the moment he heard Neil Young's suggestion.

"No, there are a few suitable candidates in Hollywood, but I don't dare to make an offer. Their weekly salary is at least $4000, which we can't afford..."

Upon hearing this, everyone present fell silent; most of them didn't even earn that much in a year.

Compared to MGM and Paramount, it can't compare. Box office films are ultimately a small company, and it simply can't afford to pay such salaries.

It's important to know that in 20s Hollywood, actors enjoyed unprecedented status, and stars earned enviable incomes.

Putting aside everything else, just the income of Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford alone has already exceeded one million dollars.

A million-dollar annual salary in 1927—its value is self-evident.

Reynolds can handle small-scale operations, but when it comes to actually finding people in Hollywood, he himself isn't confident.

Other people's managers all look radiant and frequent high-end hotels, but I, even in a suit, have wrinkles. There's really no comparison.

"Is there really no way to help this...?" Jia whispered.

It was her first time attending such a meeting, and she was excited and curious, occasionally chiming in with a few words. However, the supervisors were discussing very serious topics, which contrasted sharply with Jia's state of mind.

Upon hearing this, Reynolds said with a helpless expression, "Miss Gia, if we had an actress as beautiful as you, that would certainly be possible, but unfortunately we don't..."

Reynolds only mentioned it briefly; he dared not think about it in that direction. Jia wasn't an actress; she was a female boss.

The group discussed the matter for a while and almost settled all the other details, except for the actress, whose fate remained undecided.

Hiring someone outside would exceed the budget, and whether they'd even agree is another matter; our company doesn't have one right now...

There's no other way but to call in reinforcements!

Although he had only been in Boston for a short time and his social circle was just beginning to expand, he was already quite adept at finding people to help him.

In fact, as early as when he first saw Gia's story, he already had a candidate in mind.

In this story, the most suitable person would undoubtedly be Gia herself, but Luther didn't want her to be in the public eye, so this option was immediately abandoned.

Besides Gia, among the people Luther knew, only Alice from the New Youth Club was another.

That's right, Alice and her brother both joined the club.

As we mentioned before, Alice is dignified and quiet, and quite beautiful, making her very suitable for playing the female lead.

Upon realizing this, Luther did not hesitate and immediately called Tom Flint.

In 1927, the telephone was already a relatively common communication tool in the United States, with tens of millions of telephones installed nationwide, averaging one telephone for every ten people.

The call was quickly connected, and Tom Flint's voice came through. Luther briefly explained the situation, and the response from the other end was very positive.

"Yes! Alice would definitely agree! Okay! We'll be right there!"

Luther was not at all surprised by Tom and his sister's attitude.

As mentioned before, being an actor in the 20s was an excellent thing; one could say that one could fully benefit from the era's advantages.

This led to a nationwide love of watching movies, which essentially became a lifestyle, and the film industry experienced unprecedented prosperity.

Irish people like Tom and his sister are destined to be unable to reach higher circles, so they might as well go straight into acting; if they become famous, that's another path.

Furthermore, although the economic crisis has not yet arrived, the dock business has already been affected to some extent.

In addition, Tom's family has recently been embroiled in a murder case, and the union is also very aggressive, leaving no room for negotiation. The whole family is anxiously looking for a way out.

If Alice could act in movies and achieve some success at this time, everyone would naturally be happy to see it.

So Tom Flint agreed without much hesitation and planned to bring his sister to the audition.

About forty or fifty minutes later, a Ford car stopped downstairs at the movie theater, and Tom Flint led Alice slowly upstairs.

When they saw Luther again, Tom and his sister greeted him first.

"Luther! Thank you for taking care of us! Thank you for giving us this opportunity!"

As a fellow member of the New Youth Club, Tom was receiving benefits for the first time, and he was in a great mood.

Alice, standing to the side, whispered, "But Luther, I can't act at all!"

At this point, Neil Young couldn't sit still any longer. He sprang up from his seat and walked around Alice several times.

As they walked, the middle-aged director couldn't help but exclaim, "That's right! It's her! This is the Trisla (lead actress) we've been looking for!"

Without further ado, the staff quickly set up the venue, and the audition officially began.

Neil Young was in front, constantly making gestures to make Alice do various actions and expressions, and the expressions on her face were impossible to hide.

Alice actively cooperated, sometimes appearing sad and distressed, sometimes smiling slightly, her every move reflecting the heroine's style.

Auditions back then were just auditions, unlike in later years when there were so many complications, where auditions would end up in bed, bathtub, in front of a French window, or on the stairs.

Of course, due to the different historical context and standards, in this era when profound acting skills were not highly valued, directors only had one requirement—to look alike.

Without a doubt, Alice was a near-perfect fit for the character in Gia's story, so she passed the audition very quickly.

With the female lead cast secured and all the staff finally in place, project preparations were finally complete.

After a brief meeting in the afternoon, the "Waden Lake" program officially began!