America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Chapter 82: Chapter 82: Vanity Fair (Seeking Subscriptions)

The Los Angeles Dome Theater was built in the heyday of grindhouse cinema during the 70s and has always been a holy land in the hearts of countless B-movie fans.

The fan and media meet-and-greet for "Zombie Stripper" was held here.

In the small cinema, the film was being shown.

In the adjoining lounge, Blake, the marketing director from Lionsgate Films, once again emphasized to Martin, Catherine, and Benjamin the dos and don'ts: "You can say less, but absolutely must not speak recklessly. If you encounter sensitive or difficult questions, don't rush to answer. Among the reporters and fans, we have our own people, and they will help you out."

He looked at Martin and said directly, "Your character is the most colorful, and the questions from the fans and reporters will focus on you. Can you face the cameras and them calmly?"

Martin was already prepared upon arrival, "No problem."

Benjamin chimed in, "Our leading man is Atlanta's top dancer, he's seen it all."

Blake bolstered Martin's confidence, "Don't be scared of the entertainment journalists and those online entertainment bloggers. They depend on us for their livelihoods."

Catherine, ignored by everyone, felt somewhat conflicted.

Blake called his assistant over and asked, "Did you notify them?"

The assistant replied, "The focus will be on the male lead."

When the screening ended, Blake clapped his hands and said to the three of them, "Follow me."

The four of them entered through the cinema's side door and went up onto the small stage together.

Those who came today, besides the reporters and bloggers invited by Lionsgate Films, were all die-hard fans of B-movies.

Seeing the three creatives appear, the audience applauded enthusiastically.

The cinema wasn't large; there were just over a hundred people in total. The fan interaction was up close and personal, with many audience members rushing to the front of the stage.

Benjamin and Catherine, who hadn't experienced this before, hadn't reacted yet, while Martin had already taken the initiative to step forward, getting to the edge of the stage and sitting on the edge, smiling and saying, "Don't crowd, we have plenty of time, let's chat slowly."

Most of the audience gathered around him.

Martin definitely wanted to control the pace and the initiative, he asked, "Guys, did you enjoy the movie?"

The bespectacled man at the front laughed, "The plot is as crappy as a pile of shit, and it's shoddily made." He suddenly shifted his tone, "Yet, it's the most memorable B-movie I've seen this year."

Martin couldn't help but take another look at this person, highly suspecting that he was a plant from Lionsgate Films placed among the fans, airing the biggest gripe early so that others would have nothing to complain about.

He had done his homework and said, "No money, no options, we did try to innovate with this film, brought in some new ideas and new tricks. B-movies, you see, are like hitchhiking on a road trip—sounds stylish and looks flavorful, but in reality, we're just broke."

His comment made everyone laugh, and a woman around twenty-five or twenty-six years old said, "You did a great job; your name is...?"

Martin was quick to respond, "I am Martin Davis, you can call me Martin."

The woman said, "Martin, those scenes of yours were fantastic. They'll become classic in the B-movie genre!"

Another bespectacled woman echoed, "The film's all thunder and no rain, but you are the lightning in a drizzly sky, illuminating the entire night."

Martin gesticulated enthusiastically, "Thank you! Thank you!" He waved to the Lionsgate staff in the back, and when someone came over, he said, "Could you get me a notebook and a pen? I want to write all these encouraging words down."

Even the experienced staff member hadn't come across such a request before, but fortunately, he was quick to react and quickly brought over a notebook and pen.

Martin took them, thanked him, and handed them to the two women, "Could you do me a favor? Write down those encouraging words for me. When I was filming this movie, I lacked confidence, and I nearly couldn't go on with many of the scenes. Sometimes I doubted whether anyone would watch the roles I played or the movies I'm in. Whether anyone liked them? Whether my work had any meaning?"

Most of the fans were ordinary people who had encountered countless similar situations in their work and life, which would resonate with them somewhat.

It doesn't take much, just a little to spread the contagion to one another.

The bespectacled woman was the first to take the notebook and pen from Martin's hand and quickly jotted down what she had said earlier.

Martin, originally sitting on the stage, simply jumped down and asked, "Could I have your name? When I see it, I'll know who's encouraging me."

The woman smiled, "My name is Rachel! Martin, you did really well, truly great. I loved your zombie Gatling gun dance, loved your aerial trapeze act. I'll buy tickets to see it again, and I'll recommend it to friends. There's a good lead in this crappy movie."

Martin said, "Thank you, Rachel, I will always remember today."

The middle-aged bald man next to her took the pen and notebook, writing and speaking at the same time, "Martin, you brought a lot of creative ideas to this movie, it reminds me of the glory days of B-movies twenty years ago. Don't doubt yourself, you must have confidence, you're a good actor!"

Martin asked for his name, "Rick, if one day I achieve success, it will definitely be thanks to your encouragement today."

Surrounding reporters were taking photos, and there were bloggers recording the scene with their cameras.

Compared to the buzz around Martin, the vicinity of Benjamin and Catherine was rather quiet.

Benjamin was the director; these days, when half a foot is still behind the screen, maintaining a certain decorum is required.

Before coming to Los Angeles, Catherine was just an ordinary late-night drama actress. Apart from the temporary training by Lionsgate Films, no one had really systematically taught her how to face the fans.

Seeing Martin stealing all the limelight, Catherine was anxious, and the more anxious she became, the more she couldn't remain composed.

On one side of the stage, Blake had been keeping an eye on Martin's side all along.

The staff member who was distributing notebooks and pens approached Blake and said in a low voice, "Boss, Martin Davis is letting the fans sign autographs."

Blake said, "I saw that, this young actor has got something in his brain." He felt he had learned something, "I hadn't thought of that, stirring up fan emotions through reverse autograph signing."

The staff member realized, "A lead actor on the screen, asking fans for autographs and well wishes, would make the fans feel an increased fondness for both the actor and the movie, especially since those we invited today are already B-movie enthusiasts."

Blake said, "Go observe carefully and prepare a report for me when you get back."

The staff member was stunned, thinking to himself isn't this just making trouble for oneself?

Martin easily controlled the pace and communicated smoothly with the fans, the reverse autographing, a little trick though it might be, was readily accepted by the fans under the guise of being inspirational.

So naturally, Martin went on to say, "Guys, if I have managed to impress you with my performance in this movie, please help recommend it to your friends."

A chorus of mixed responses arose.

"No problem."

"I'm a B-movie forum moderator, I'll definitely highlight it."

Compared to the more polished Benjamin and the somewhat flustered Catherine, Martin drew the most journalists and bloggers to his side.

Blake personally mingled, speaking briefly with the invited journalists and bloggers who were mostly turning their attention to Martin.

Martin invited the fans, "Come up on stage, let's take a group photo together."

Numerous fans crowded around Martin and climbed onto the stage.

Martin didn't forget Benjamin and Catherine, waving them over, "Come on, join us."

Benjamin strode over and bumped fists with Martin.

Catherine, a rookie actor feeling displaced, didn't want to serve as a foil to anyone and stubbornly stood her ground.

The trio, who had gotten along well on the way there, had just touched the fringes of the Hollywood Vanity Fair and were already showing fissures.

The fans roared together, gathering behind and alongside Martin and Benjamin, facing the cameras of the media for a group photo.

During the subsequent interviews with journalists and bloggers, when Blake came over, Martin said something to him in a low voice, Blake looked around at the atmosphere on-site and nodded in agreement.

Martin completely took charge of the scene, picked up the microphone, and said, "Guys, our friends from the media and bloggers want to have a chat with us, and standing for so long must be tiring, let's sit down and take our time talking."

Instead of using chairs, he simply sat down on the floor of the stage.

Benjamin, still needing to answer to Gray Company, hesitated only for a moment before following suit and sitting down.

All the surrounding fans sat down with a swish, enclosing Martin as if they were his loyal followers.

The journalists and bloggers, who were supposed to be in a one-on-many, or rather, three-on-many situation, realized something was off—how did it become a dozen facing over a hundred?

Blake did not intervene; he felt that the promotion's effect today greatly exceeded expectations.

Catherine came over hesitantly and sat down beside Martin.

From the fans to the journalists, and then the bloggers, almost everyone ignored the existence of the leading lady.

The leading man shone in the movie and dazzled even more outside of it.

The question session with the reporters began, still following Lionsgate Films' usual routine. The first journalist pointed out the biggest flaw, "Isn't this film a bit too rough? It feels like you've used a big framework but told a story set in a small club."

Benjamin was prepared and said, "If we went for a grand spectacle, like a massive battle between the church and vampiric demons, that wouldn't be a B-movie anymore."

Another journalist asked, "The film introduces some new concepts and designs, such as the sky-high battle between the leading man and a supporting actress, and the life-and-death struggle between the leads. How did you come up with these ideas?"

Benjamin pointed at Martin, "These ideas originally came from Martin."

At that moment, he remembered a phrase Martin often used and applied it, "He's the most versatile actor in all of Atlanta."

A female blogger asked loudly, "Martin, have you had any actual combat experience that enabled you to design those action scenes?"

Martin opened his hands with a laugh, "I wouldn't dare use such difficult maneuvers, only Spider-Man could pull off that kind of high difficulty, maybe Batman too?"

All questions converged on Martin, and another female journalist asked, "Did you use special effects for the zombie machine-gun dance?"

Benjamin shook his head, "No, it was all shot live."

Astonished gasps filled the surroundings.

The female blogger suggested, "Martin, can you perform a part of it live?"

Martin stood up, handed his jacket to the bespectacled Jessica, loosened up his body, and asked for a bit of space, "Just to be clear, I can't take off my clothes."

He snapped his fingers to someone nearby and said to the people from Lionsgate, "Hit me with some music."

As the dynamic dance track played, everyone was dumbfounded, truly amazed.