Hollywood Road

The event deliberately chose a banquet hall at the Beverly Hills Hilton Hotel, held in the form of a buffet. Media journalists were essential guests, and the invited fans were also specifically targeted, more precisely, there was a relatively high entry threshold.

This almost zero-distance meeting with the cast was not something just anyone could sign up for; those selected needed to be targeted.

First, there were representatives of the original book fans, a task measured by Short Chicken Publishing House, and then there were supporters of people like Murphy, Sean Bean, and Jessica Alba.

Such supporters were without exception die-hard fans, including various fan organization leaders, to ensure the meeting went smoothly without any unpleasant incidents.

"Unfortunately, I don't have many supporters," lamented Margot Robbie, dressed in a refreshing young girl's outfit, as she looked around the bustling banquet hall. "It seems the 'dumb blonde' isn't popular in this drama."

Standing next to her was Robert Downey Jr., who shrugged, "Your image is more suited for Hollywood blockbusters."

Having met several times before, Margot Robbie understood the implications of Robert Downey Jr.'s comment, "You want me to be a 'dumb blonde' trophy?"

Robert Downey Jr. did not deny it, "You need to grow up a bit more, become a real blonde bombshell."

"Damn it!" Margot Robbie hissed like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "Can you not use that term to describe me?"

She rolled her eyes and looked towards the center of the hall where Murphy was surrounded by numerous media journalists, enviously saying, "Being a director wouldn't be bad either."

No one responded. When Margot Robbie turned to look, Robert Downey Jr. had already walked away and was now courting a blonde actress not far from the crew.

"The kind of guy who can't move his legs when he sees a pretty woman," muttered Margot Robbie as she walked towards Murphy, intending to listen to how he dealt with the questions from the media journalists.

A large group of journalists was interviewing Murphy, and although the session had been going on for a while, the questions showed no sign of abating.

"Director Stanton, you're self-taught," said a journalist with a 'Hollywood Reporter' badge. "What do you think are the benefits of self-learning compared to studying at a film school?"

If possible, who wouldn't want to study at a formal film school? Most self-taught directors are forced into it by circumstances.

But such words were not suitable for journalists, Murphy thought for a moment and replied, "Self-learning means understanding all about filmmaking in the most primitive way. I am interested in every aspect of filmmaking because I like to handle many things in my own films, from sync sound recording to studio dubbing to editing and scoring. This has a significant effect on my overall control of the film. All this means everything I do is driven by full passion and curiosity."

He emphasized, "Remember, interest is the best teacher."

The interview was well organized. After Murphy's response, another journalist asked, "In your early works, you've done scriptwriting, cinematography, editing, and set design, but never acting. How do you communicate with actors?"

"I try to meet their needs," Murphy never overlooked the importance of actors to a film, nor did he subscribe to the notion that any actor could fit a role, "Sometimes what they ask for may not be what they really need, or even the exact opposite, but I still try to help every actor. I create a comfortable working environment to help them perform their best. You might have heard of many directors deliberately making things difficult for actors, but I definitely won't. I make them believe the role is tailor-made for them."

'Premiere' magazine's journalist handed him the microphone and asked, "You've made many films and even more substantial projects like 'Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire,' but you've never reshot scenes. How do you avoid it?"

"Yes, I never reshoot scenes; everything can be completed during editing," Murphy first acknowledged the journalist's statement before continuing, "I spend a whole day with my editor, pondering over the footage, doing basic edits, removing unnecessary scenes, and reducing excessive shot language. I always write extra in my scripts, so there's plenty of room to cut during editing. Interestingly, sometimes explaining something three times doesn't make the audience understand, but explaining it once does. So for me, shooting and editing are all about being concise and guiding the audience directly to the right path."

No matter the question, Murphy was always composed.

Later, a journalist from the official magazine of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences asked, "What is the most pressing issue in the film industry today?"

Murphy glanced at the journalist and suddenly remembered that the Academy was vigorously campaigning against piracy and had sued several companies and websites.

This was undoubtedly a hot

 topic, especially for the Academy.

"Copyright infringement is a very serious issue. When film studios still remain indifferent, I am very reassured by the leading role of the Academy. I believe both directors and producers should realize the importance of protecting copyrights."

"Depending on your position, you will consider issues from a corresponding standpoint," Murphy said righteously. "You could find a few friends and make a movie almost for free. But when someone pays you, and you make your living from filmmaking, you need to hire talented people to help you complete your work, and this often involves significant expenses. The only way to ensure you get paid is to manage your finances well. Those who steal others' copyrights must be sued, imprisoned, and compensate for others' losses. There are many laws about this already, so the current issue is to enforce them effectively. Judges and juries should understand what it means to steal copyrights."

This was a fan meeting, and not all the time could be given to media journalists. With Grace's reminder, Murphy timely ended the well-organized joint interview and stepped into his supporters' community for more direct contact.

In reality, there wasn't much special; most of the time, Murphy was just repeating two things: taking photos with fans and signing autographs.

Compared to the media journalists who occasionally threw difficult questions, dealing with these people was much easier for Murphy. Those who could enter the banquet hall were undoubtedly carefully selected hardcore fans, calling them obsessive fans wasn't too far off, and given the relatively calm atmosphere of the venue, they were unlikely to do anything too fanatical.

After signing autographs and taking photos, Murphy's main feeling was that his hands were tired and his face was stiff from smiling...

As he was about to find a place to rest, a blonde girl suddenly appeared in front of him.

This was a blonde girl in her early twenties. Although she wasn't as stunning as Gal Gadot, she was also bright-eyed and beautiful, definitely not older than twenty-five.

"Hi, Murphy." She greeted him enthusiastically, almost to the point of fanaticism, "I'm so happy to see you!"

"Hello."

Murphy saw the blonde girl eager to rush over and preemptively extended his right hand, "It's my honor."

The girl seemed surprised by Murphy's affability, paused, then scratched her cheek and hurriedly extended her hand, gripping Murphy's right hand firmly. Perhaps too excited, her hand was shaking, and she didn't know what to say for a moment.

Murphy, always friendly and patient with his supporters, took the initiative to ask, "May I know your name?"

"I... I..." The blonde girl stuttered several times, took a couple of deep breaths to steady herself, and finally said, "I'm Daisy Cruz, from your IMDB discussion group..."

Hearing this, Murphy immediately remembered a super hardcore supporter organization Grace had mentioned to him, and quickly said, "You're the group leader of the IMDB discussion group, right?"

"You know me?" Daisy's face lit up with surprise, "Murphy, you know me?"

"Of course!" Murphy nodded solemnly, "I know you are my staunchest supporters."

"Wow... wow..." The girl's face was incredulous, and in her excitement, she turned in circles opposite him, exclaiming, "Oh my God! Jesus! Allah! Murphy knows me, Murphy really knows me."

"Hey!" Murphy saw her excitement and couldn't help but remind her, "Calm down! Calm down!"

"Right! Calm!" Daisy took another deep breath, her emotions slightly settled, "I need to be calm so I can have a proper conversation with you."

Murphy certainly wouldn't neglect an important leader of one of his supporter organizations. He beckoned a photographer to take a photo of the two together and then chatted with her for a few minutes about the IMDB discussion group.

In just a few minutes of conversation, Murphy could tell, from any angle, that this girl named Daisy was indeed one of his obsessive fans. She spoke knowledgeably about his movies and gossip, mentioning some rumors he wasn't even aware had been circulated by the tabloids.

Murphy talked with her for about five minutes, preparing to end the conversation since he was one of the main attractions of the evening and couldn't spend all his time on just Daisy.

"I've mailed you many letters," Daisy suddenly said, "but never got any reply. I've always wanted to discuss some film-related issues with you..."

Responding to fan letters was always handled by a specialist at CAA. Knowing they might have overlooked her, Murphy comforted her, "What issues do you have? We can discuss them now."

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