“Sadie and Ralf commissioned some market research into my script,” RJ explained, and I resisted the urge to let out athat’s spendywhistle. Research like that could run into the tens of thousands and to commission it for what was essentially a spec script was a gamble. “Results are in, and my writers need to hear it.”
“Are we ready?” Sadie demanded. She was yet again dressed in luxury athletic gear but today had decorated her pixie cut with several large barrettes dotted with pearls and diamantés. Her gaze darted around the room. “Where’s Elliot?”
All eyes turned to me and I started to lift my hands innocently but remembered my semi-sheer top and I clamped them back down. “Ah … he’s on his way.”
“Is he giving you trouble?” Ralf asked sympathetically.
“Trouble?” RJ pounced. “What trouble?”
Oh God. My brain emptied itself of all words as I frantically raced through my options. I couldn’t drop Elliot in it, could I? I’d give anything for him to take me seriously. At that moment, he came bounding into the room and I was so relieved, I gestured towards him.
“No trouble, because here he is!”
“Sorry I’m l—” Elliot’s words stumbled as his eyes flicked to my chest and back away almost instantly. “—ate.”
I instantly folded my arms again. Shit. Stupid water-spewing coffee machine. I’d managed to give Elliot an eyeful of my breasts and look completely unprofessional.
“What’s this I’m hearing about trouble?” RJ’s voice was icily calm and as I turned to Elliot to hear his response, I took stock of his appearance properly. His normally golden skin seemed pale, his eyes reddened and hollowed. Shockingly, he also had a cut on his lower lip.
“No trouble,” I said quickly.
“Because I need you two in sync with me on this,” RJ went on threateningly. “And if you two aren’t getting along …”
“We are!” I wasn’t sure why I felt the need to defend Elliot after the way he’d treated me this week, but there was something rushed and hopeless in his eyes that spurred me to lie for him. “He was just …” I clocked the gym bag in his hand. “… getting me something to wear after the coffee machine exploded on me.”
Elliot froze, visibly baffled. I locked eyes with him, urging him to just go with it. He nodded, extending his bag towards me. “Uh, yeah, there’s my hoodie, like you asked.”
“Thanks,” I said with forced brightness. I opened the bag and tried not to react as a faint smell of sweat drifted out. Sure enough, there was a plain black hoodie balled up on top. Affecting a relieved grin, I pulled it out, faltering as it snaggedon something … a book. A book on alcoholism? The way Elliot’s breath audibly hitched told me he knew I’d seen it, so I did my best to ignore the book as I extricated the hoodie and put it on over my shirt. “That’s better.”
“Are we all done here?” Sadie said. “I have a call with our lawyers in fifteen.”
“Sorry.” Chastened, I dropped back into my seat. Elliot took a seat too.
“Go ahead, both of you,” RJ ordered.
Ralf stepped forward, relishing his moment in the spotlight. “At RJ’s request, we undertook a series of market research interviews last week for theUntitled Love/Warscript.” Elliot sat close enough to me that I could hear a frustrated growl. “We asked focus groups to feed back on the themes discussed in the script, gauging interest.”
“RJ, we talked about this,” Elliot said. “We shouldn’t let these findings skew our vision for the script.”
“You know how careful Janice Kittredge is,” Ralf interjected. “She’ll run research on the finished film anyway, why not get ahead of her now?”
“Because research at such an early stage can compromise creativity,” Elliot pressed.
“So, what, wait until first cuts and reshoot the parts that don’t work?” Ralf snorted. “I don’t know what kind of budget you think this is going to have.”
“Budgeting for reshoots is standard,” Elliot said calmly. “Janice knows that.”
“Can we just!” Sadie flicked her wrist in ahurry upgesture.
Ralf nodded, shooting Elliot a triumphant look. “The focus groups were told the plot of RJ’s script and asked to elaborate on what they did and didn’t like, what elements they would want both in the movie as well as marketing that would make them go to see this movie.”
Elliot looked aghast. “This is an original story – do we really need to be thinking about how wemarketit right now?”
“Elliot, you know the state of the industry,” Sadie said impatiently. “Studios are almost totally risk averse when it comes to non-IP. I only got us this meeting because Janice loves RJ’s work as a director. As a writer? He’s untested.”
She made a valid, if depressing, point. With so much accessible entertainment available – quite literally – in the palm of one’s hand, moviegoing had more competition than ever. Movie makers had to be sure whatever they created would have a broad enough appeal to make money – it was as simple as that.
“Come on,” she urged Ralf. “Just give us the top lines.”
