"Why is it a pity?"
Aiden couldn't help but ask, and Jeremy was quick to respond as other actors simply listened to their conversation.
"Well, simply because learning about movies could actually make you a better actor. I dropped out, but the things I learned in college stayed with me. The technical side of stuff and how a movie is made. I know that you don't need a formal education to be an actor but trust me, those things help even if most of it is just theory. You get experience by working, but it's backed by the theory you have learned."
Hearing that, a few other actors nodded.
"Yeah, that's true. I have a Bachelor's in performing arts, and I wouldn't have gotten my first role if not for the years in college."
"I have a degree in filmmaking, so I think it's going to help me out in the future."
"Dammit! I have not even gone to college."
As people threw their opinions around, Jeremy again opened his mouth.
"Well, a degree might or might not help but just learning about these things helps. Acting is pretty simple if you think about it. You come on the set, you do the scenes, and then go back to your hotel room, but if you know more on the technical side, there's a whole new horizon out there that could help you in many ways. It's also beneficial as an actor in the longer term."
"How?" Aiden asked, getting interested in the conversation.
"Well, as an actor, you are going to have a turbulent life, so having extra skills help in having work all around, but for actors like you who are slowly going towards earning the big bucks, it would help if you ever tried to get into production."
Aiden finally got the whole context of it. Acting was a good job, but for a lot of actors, they also wanted to dabble in filmmaking and production later on in their careers. It was to get more power in their hands as a producer could easily change parts of the script or the story and have a say as to who will be cast.
Because of that, a lot of actors would start their own production studios to control the movies that they were working on.
As the producer, they would put their own money and control most of the aspects of a film which was way better than having no power over the movie they were working on.
At the same time, a lot of them also just become filmmakers, directing movies. Jeremy himself had directed one in his career, but he realised that he liked acting better.
"Learning more about movies and acting in general sounds like a good idea."
Aiden said in the end, and Jeremy nodded.
"You should think about it, Aiden. You are a good actor, but you have a lot of other capabilities. I heard you have a book out too, so you do seem like the type of person to embrace such a thing truly."
Jeremy said, and soon after that, the topic changed to something else as the actors discussed different things about movies and the general trends in Hollywood. A few of them even talked about their next movies and their expectations of them.
All this time, Aiden was only thinking about the conversation of filmmaking and learning acting. He was sure that going back to college to learn acting wasn't going to help him.
His system would do that faster. After every level up, he could feel himself getting better and better.
His mind would also get clearer on how he should approach a certain scene. Like at first, Aiden always had trouble in romantic roles during auditions, but after levelling up, he had a better idea of how to do them.
Charisma also played a huge part in it.
But…
'Filmmaking — It might get me another skill.'
This was the idea in his mind.
Aiden was quite motivated to explore more skills, knowing full well that they could come in handy in any situation and skills related to filmmaking sounded like something that would make him a complete package.
He would be able to act, direct and compose in a movie.
For now, it was still a pipe dream as Aiden was way more invested in acting, and directing would mean getting huge funds to produce a movie himself until he found an investor who would be willing to bet on a young actor who turned director.
Even Omar, who was his friend, would be skeptical of something like that.
'In the future, for sure.'
He thought in his mind.
***
"Okay, let's wrap up today. Everyone, you all did a great job! Let's go get some drinks now."
"Yay!"
"Thanks, Phineas."
"Director, you sure know how to take care of the crew."
After the filming for the day ended, Phineas invited all the crew and cast to go have drinks with him. It was something he would frequently do to get a good relationship with those who he was working with.
He was someone who understood work relationships quite well, so those who were busy could just say no and go their own way.
There was no forcing.
Aiden was also not going with the rest of the crew today as he had to meet Wade, who had returned from his trip to LA and wanted to talk about some important offer.
Knowing that it was a hurried situation, Aiden had told him that he would meet in the hotel right after the shooting ended.
"Ah, you two are here."
Wade said as both Tom and Aiden entered his hotel room. The burly agent had just returned a few hours earlier and looked tired.
Both Tom and Aiden greeted him and sat down on the sofa.
"How's the shooting going?" Wade asked, and Aiden replied with a shrug.
"Tiring. It's just one scene after another. Pretty fast as Phineas doesn't like wasting time. I also think that I'm getting more into the character." Wade nodded with a satisfied smile at those words. "So, let's cut to the main topic. You and I both look tired. What's the offer you got?"
Aiden said, and taking a deep breath, Wade leaned towards him and started talking.
"It's a reality TV show offer."
"X-Star?"
"No, I don't think they will call you this year. They have good ratings for now, and because of you, the perception spread that those who lose out do better than the winners. One of the ex-contestants gave an interview saying, 'I will be better than the winner. Those who win are just cursed'. It made headlines."
Wade rambled on about it.
Aiden smiled at that. He wasn't the one who actually started the perception. He just solidified it by doing way better than any other person in a short time.
"So, what reality TV show is calling me if not X-Star? Is any other singing show running currently?"
"Not a singing show. You got an offer to participate in the weekend special episodes of 'The Million Dollar Game'. You do know about it, right?"
Before Aiden could react to it, Tom's eyes shined. As an avid viewer of most reality TV shows, he obviously knew about it.
"'The Million Dollar Game' is pretty much the staple game show where a common man goes in the hope of becoming a millionaire. Though the show doesn't talk about the rigorous rounds before a contestant features on the show and the heavy taxation, it's still one of the best game shows to watch. Fuck taxes by the way." Tom said. "It's my favourite program. I even tried to get into it so many times. I still remember so many episodes of it, especially that one in which a man, after winning a million dollars, talks about going to Las Vegas and blowing it all on strippers and casinos. His wife beat him a lot after that, according to internet articles."
Wade was a bit stunned hearing all that from Tom, who was mostly silent in his view.
"Ah, yeah, you are right, Tom. You seem to know a lot."
Tom quickly realised that he spoke too much and corrected himself. His hobby was something he wanted to keep to himself.
"Ah, just a little. I used to watch it a lot, you see."
"Anyway." Nodding, Wade looked at Aiden.
"I know about it. India has a version too. Pretty good show." He tilted his head. "They want me there?"
"Yeah, let me explain…"
After that, Wade told Aiden about the talk he had with the producer and the format they were going for in an effort to raise ratings.
There were also a few other things like how even if the celebrities won some money, they couldn't keep it as the whole idea of the show was to give the common man a chance to be rich, and celebrities are mostly rich.
So, all the money won would go to a charity, and producers would publicise what amount went to which charity.
It was a good chance to earn brownie points from the audience for the celebrities.
In the first place, a lot of donations done by celebrities were really just for names, and a few of them even run fake charity foundations to scam people. Only a few people do it because they want to help people.
A lot of the reasons were just to make yourself look good in front of the public.
"It seems like something interesting. I am not really in the public eye outside of live shows and movies. A change of pace for me."
"Yeah, you are just continuously shooting after the album release anyway," Wade said, then asked. "So, should I say yes to the producer? It won't be hard to get a few days off the shooting, and it's a good idea to get relations with producers in TV channels for the future."
"Yeah, I will do it."
….
