"Hello, Gilbert, I need your help with something."
Gilbert, busy with preparations, received a call from Francis Ford Coppola: "What can I do for you, sir?"
"It's like this: my daughter, Sofia Coppola, wants to be a director, and I'd like her to learn from you," Francis Ford Coppola explained his purpose.
"Of course, that's fine, but Director Coppola..."
"Just call me uncle."
"Uh, Uncle Coppola," Gilbert had a question: "With your connections, Uncle, you could easily have Sofia learn from a better director, or even let her direct independently. Why do you want Sofia to learn from me?"
Francis Ford Coppola didn't hide it: "She previously worked as an executive director with David on Alien 3, but she came back saying she didn't learn anything. She's acted before, but critics were incredibly harsh, and you know how vicious their words can be."
When Sofia Coppola appeared in The Godfather Part III, she won both the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress and Worst New Star.
Indeed, critics wouldn't hold back just because Sofia was Director Coppola's daughter.
Hollywood in the nineties was fundamentally a man's world. Paramount CEO Sherry Lansing and director Kathryn Bigelow were rare exceptions, truly formidable women.
But not every woman venturing into Hollywood could be like those two powerhouses.
Francis Ford Coppola continued: "Originally, I wanted to send her to Paris to become a fashion designer. But after a few months, she ran back from Paris, still wanting to make movies. I thought you young people would have more in common to talk about, so I introduced her to you."
"No problem, you can send her whenever you like. I welcome her," Gilbert chuckled. "Uncle Coppola, you're helping me solve a big problem; the crew is short-staffed!"
"Hahaha, alright, then I'll send her your way."
"Okay, just give me a call then."
A few days later, Gilbert received a call. A heavily nasal voice came through the phone: "Are you Director Gilbert Landrini?"
"Yes, I am."
"I'm Sofia Coppola; my dad introduced me," the heavily nasal voice said.
"Miss Coppola! Alright, I'll have my assistant bring you up immediately," Gilbert said, arranging for his assistant Anna to bring Sofia Coppola to his office.
Soon, Sofia Coppola arrived at Gilbert's office. Perhaps due to the significant setbacks she had experienced in recent years, Sofia Coppola showed no sign of the arrogance typically associated with a big director's daughter.
"You're Gilbert? Hello, my name is Sofia Coppola."
"Hello, Miss Coppola," Gilbert shook hands with Sofia Coppola.
"Just call me Sofia," Sofia Coppola's heavily nasal voice was still a bit unfamiliar to Gilbert. "My father said I could learn from you here. Please take good care of me."
"Okay," Gilbert agreed: "For now, you'll work alongside me as an assistant director!"
"OK," Sofia Coppola had no objections and readily agreed.
The weather in Los Angeles turned cooler in December. Compared to the bitterly cold winters of New York, Los Angeles' climate was undoubtedly much milder.
Even in winter, simply adding a sweater and a jacket was enough to stay warm. If that wasn't enough, thermal underwear would ensure no one felt cold.
Final Destination finally ended its run in North American theaters, collecting over a million dollars more, closing its theatrical run with a total of $63.025 million. This achievement was truly remarkable, placing it eighth in the North American market in 1992.
But it wasn't too surprising. Famous sci-fi film Alien 3 and superstar Tom Cruise's Far and Away both ranked below Final Destination.
The Los Angeles Times gave Gilbert a nickname: the Little Prince of Horror.
And Sarah, a reporter from the Los Angeles Business Journal, interviewed Gilbert again, learning that the Little Prince of Horror's next film would be an action movie.
This news spread, causing some concern among the Little Prince of Horror's fans.
He's so good at horror films, what's wrong with this Little Prince? Why is he making an action film, which he's not good at? And I heard the lead actor is Keanu Reeves. He's handsome, but he's not really known for action films!
Fans worried, but the film had already been greenlit, so it was just a matter of getting it done.
Final Destination's eighth-place ranking on the box office chart wasn't secure, as many other films were still in theaters, accumulating box office revenue quickly.
These included Disney's own release of Aladdin, 20th Century Fox's Home Alone 2, and Bram Stoker's Dracula, which featured Keanu Reeves as the second male lead.
Fortunately, Speed signed its contract with Keanu Reeves quickly. If they had signed when Bram Stoker's Dracula was released, his fee would likely have increased.
With these films in theaters, Final Destination's ranking would likely drop, but it shouldn't fall out of the top twenty.
Furthermore, the film's overseas run was also nearing its end, with a final global gross of $126 million, making Disney a substantial profit.
Two consecutive horror thrillers grossing over a hundred million at the box office was certainly why the Los Angeles Times crowned Gilbert the Little Prince of Horror.
However, for Gilbert, besides focusing on his share of the profits, all work related to Final Destination was concluded.
Next, Gilbert would fully dedicate himself to making Speed a success, as this film was his ticket into the mainstream North American film market.
On December 12th, Speed began filming at Warner Bros. Studios.
There was no wasted talk, no unnecessary movements. Gilbert immediately started with explosions, blowing things up with utter chaos.
A movie, especially one with a high investment, is like a large-scale battle. Throughout the process, the most exhausted individuals are undoubtedly the screenwriters, producers, and director.
The script had been finalized long ago and wouldn't be easily changed without special circumstances. But as the director, Gilbert had to oversee the entire production.
Fortunately, both producers, Charles Roven and Cain Waxman, were highly capable. Assistant director Annie Burton and the newly joined Sofia Coppola were also excellent talents who understood the film business.
Gilbert only needed to control the broad direction. Once the details were discussed and decided in meetings, he could delegate them to his subordinates.
If he had to do everything himself, Gilbert would surely be exhausted to death.
After two films, Gilbert's nascent team had developed a certain synergy.
However, even so, the crew still needed a period of adjustment.
In the first week, Gilbert didn't film any scenes with the main actors. Using leads to break in the crew was a bad idea, as lead actors also had tempers.
So, Gilbert filmed scenes with extras to allow the crew to get into sync.
Nothing goes perfectly smoothly, so Gilbert needed to identify and resolve problems and conflicts during the adjustment period.
Fortunately, having two films grossing over a hundred million had already established his initial authority, and there were no troublesome individuals in the crew.
Even Keanu Reeves was well-behaved, so the initial filming went quite smoothly.
After over a week of adjustment, the Speed crew gradually hit its stride, and filming progressed quickly.