comfortable silence.
“Different how?”
“I don’t know yet.”
I thought about it for a minute, then in a
conversational tone said, “Maybe it’s the boobs?”
Choking on his food, he coughed for a good minute
while I sat there serenely, looking straight ahead.
At last, in a strangled voice, he said,
“Yeah. It might be the boobs.”
Yup, he had noticed my boobs.
Score one for my boobs!
***
When Tom finally came around, it was almost
nine o’clock.
“I’m sorry I’ve kept you guys waiting for
so long. I was with another client.”
“Please, I should be the one thanking you
for sparing time for me in your hectic schedule, and I have no idea what
percentage you take for these kinds of things, but please let me know so I
can—”
“That’s been taken care of, you don’t have
to worry about it,” Jason cut in.
“But—”
“It’s okay Miss Taylor—”
“Please call me Olive,” I interjected as I
reached out for the papers he had pushed in front of me.
Smiling, he continued. “Olive, it’s a
pretty standard contract, but we’ll still go over it so you can decide if there
is a clause you aren’t feeling comfortable with.”
I nodded. I knew nothing, nothing at all
about this stuff.
“The first good news is,” Tom started as
Jason got up from his seat next to me to get Tom a drink. “This project is
never hitting the ‘development limbo’.” When I stared at him blankly, he
explained in a bit more detail.
“After a producer or a studio options the
movie rights to a book, the timeline is usually around twelve to eighteen
months or sometimes even longer to get the production started, and even after
that, there is no guarantee that it will ever happen. In your case, they want
to capitalize on the buzz that’s been going around your book, meaning since
they’ve already secured a big name like Jason, the rest of it will come through
quickly.”
Reaching up, he accepted the whiskey—or
maybe bourbon, either way they both tasted terrible—from Jason and kept going.
“Jason will be in Canada for a while for
another shooting, then he has press junkets with the other cast members of The
Witness . Because of that, they are aiming to start filming when Jason is
back in the city. So, Olive, if you sign the contract, this is definitely
happening. The casting for the smaller characters will get done while Jason is
in Canada, but they will hold off on choosing the right person for Evie until
Jason can spare a few days and come back to LA.” He turned to look at Jason.
“We need to arrange your schedule accordingly. They want you to sit in on the
auditions for Evie and do a screen test with the remaining few. You can come
back on your day off from the filming.”
“Screen test?” I asked, looking between
Jason and Tom. When I said I knew nothing, I meant it.
“A screen test is a method they use to
determine the suitability of an actor or actress for the role. Since the book
is centered on Jason and Evie’s relationship, they have to have a strong on-screen
chemistry. It doesn’t matter if someone aces the audition. They need to see how
she works with Jason, so he’ll have to come here for those last steps of the audition
process.”
“They don’t want me to audition at all?”
Jason asked, frowning at Tom. “I can do a reading from Olive’s book instead of
waiting for the screenplay to be done.”
Tom took a sip of his drink and shook his
head. “Since they know you are interested, they want you in it, and you’ve
already established yourself as a strong actor. They don’t need you to audition.
But the other stuff…” Tom glanced at me before hardening his gaze on Jason
again. “The other stuff we need to talk about. Otherwise, everything you’ve
worked on will go up in flames. You haven’t seen your contract yet; the studio
has some restrictions over your personal life.”
“Fine. I get it,” Jason snapped at him. “Leave
my shit out of this. You’ll
“Different how?”
“I don’t know yet.”
I thought about it for a minute, then in a
conversational tone said, “Maybe it’s the boobs?”
Choking on his food, he coughed for a good minute
while I sat there serenely, looking straight ahead.
At last, in a strangled voice, he said,
“Yeah. It might be the boobs.”
Yup, he had noticed my boobs.
Score one for my boobs!
***
When Tom finally came around, it was almost
nine o’clock.
“I’m sorry I’ve kept you guys waiting for
so long. I was with another client.”
“Please, I should be the one thanking you
for sparing time for me in your hectic schedule, and I have no idea what
percentage you take for these kinds of things, but please let me know so I
can—”
“That’s been taken care of, you don’t have
to worry about it,” Jason cut in.
“But—”
“It’s okay Miss Taylor—”
“Please call me Olive,” I interjected as I
reached out for the papers he had pushed in front of me.
Smiling, he continued. “Olive, it’s a
pretty standard contract, but we’ll still go over it so you can decide if there
is a clause you aren’t feeling comfortable with.”
I nodded. I knew nothing, nothing at all
about this stuff.
“The first good news is,” Tom started as
Jason got up from his seat next to me to get Tom a drink. “This project is
never hitting the ‘development limbo’.” When I stared at him blankly, he
explained in a bit more detail.
“After a producer or a studio options the
movie rights to a book, the timeline is usually around twelve to eighteen
months or sometimes even longer to get the production started, and even after
that, there is no guarantee that it will ever happen. In your case, they want
to capitalize on the buzz that’s been going around your book, meaning since
they’ve already secured a big name like Jason, the rest of it will come through
quickly.”
Reaching up, he accepted the whiskey—or
maybe bourbon, either way they both tasted terrible—from Jason and kept going.
“Jason will be in Canada for a while for
another shooting, then he has press junkets with the other cast members of The
Witness . Because of that, they are aiming to start filming when Jason is
back in the city. So, Olive, if you sign the contract, this is definitely
happening. The casting for the smaller characters will get done while Jason is
in Canada, but they will hold off on choosing the right person for Evie until
Jason can spare a few days and come back to LA.” He turned to look at Jason.
“We need to arrange your schedule accordingly. They want you to sit in on the
auditions for Evie and do a screen test with the remaining few. You can come
back on your day off from the filming.”
“Screen test?” I asked, looking between
Jason and Tom. When I said I knew nothing, I meant it.
“A screen test is a method they use to
determine the suitability of an actor or actress for the role. Since the book
is centered on Jason and Evie’s relationship, they have to have a strong on-screen
chemistry. It doesn’t matter if someone aces the audition. They need to see how
she works with Jason, so he’ll have to come here for those last steps of the audition
process.”
“They don’t want me to audition at all?”
Jason asked, frowning at Tom. “I can do a reading from Olive’s book instead of
waiting for the screenplay to be done.”
Tom took a sip of his drink and shook his
head. “Since they know you are interested, they want you in it, and you’ve
already established yourself as a strong actor. They don’t need you to audition.
But the other stuff…” Tom glanced at me before hardening his gaze on Jason
again. “The other stuff we need to talk about. Otherwise, everything you’ve
worked on will go up in flames. You haven’t seen your contract yet; the studio
has some restrictions over your personal life.”
“Fine. I get it,” Jason snapped at him. “Leave
my shit out of this. You’ll
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