With the release of "Run Lola Run," Simon found it increasingly difficult to stay on the set of 'Near Dark.
This was because more and more media reporters were arriving in the small town of Coolidge.
Initially, they were just local Arizona reporters, but soon, media professionals from neighbouring states like California, Nevada, and New Mexico also started to arrive, bustling around the crew, either seeking interviews with Simon or directly shadowing the film production.
Many times, during night shoots, flashlights would suddenly go off around the set, and the results were predictable.
Although there was no evidence, Simon was almost certain that this matter was likely instigated by Edward Feldman, the producer of 'Near Dark'. The other party's objective was clear: to increase the exposure of the 'Near Dark' crew. In the first few days, Edward Feldman was visibly excited by the appearance of reporters and even proactively accepted an interview with the Arizona Daily Star.
During this time, according to news circulating within the crew, De Laurentiis Entertainment Group, the investor behind 'Near Dark', was increasingly on the verge of bankruptcy due to a continuous deterioration of its financial situation.
With the sudden success of 'Run Lola Run', Edward Feldman or the executives at De Laurentiis Entertainment clearly saw 'Near Dark', with Simon's involvement, as a last resort, hoping that the film's future earnings could alleviate the company's predicament. Thus, they secretly leaked the information about Simon being on set.
Now, the name 'Near Dark' was indeed frequently appearing in many newspapers, riding on the coattails of 'Run Lola Run', and it garnered considerable attention for a time.
However, Edward Feldman apparently hadn't anticipated that, since most of 'Near Dark' involved outdoor scenes and the crew simply didn't have enough staff to completely cordon off the outdoor filming locations, with a large number of reporters surrounding the set daily, the movie simply couldn't continue filming.
A parking lot in the western part of the small town, it was still Monday, March 2nd.
11 PM.
They were filming an explosion scene today, where the male lead, Caleb, drives a tanker truck into a vampire, and then the tanker explodes in a huge blast.
The crew had spent the entire previous weekend preparing for this scene. Simon had originally planned to leave last Friday, but he stayed until now to help Kathryn prepare for these more challenging shots.
Inside the parking lot, after re-checking all the arrangements with Kathryn, Simon gave her an encouraging look, raised his hand to point in the distance, and said with a smile, "You start. I'll go watch from over there".
Kathryn nodded, watched Simon walk towards the group of reporters held behind the isolation line at the edge of the parking lot, and then began to instruct everyone to take their positions.
On the other side, Simon approached the gathered media reporters. Seeing someone raise a camera, he quickly made a gesture and said loudly, "Guys, this shot is worth at least $100,000. If it gets ruined by flash photography again, the crew will have no choice but to send you a lawyer's letter. So, could everyone please put down your cameras? I can chat with you for a bit".
Having been in Coolidge for over a week, this young man, who had already caused a stir across the entire federation, had never directly interacted with the media.
Now, hearing Simon say he could chat with them for a bit, although they knew he was trying to keep them from interfering with the upcoming shot, the reporters still respectfully put away their cameras, then pulled out their recorders. A quick-witted reporter immediately asked loudly, "Simon, is it true that you're only getting a $500 weekly salary for this movie?"
Simon stood inside the isolation line and replied with a smile, "I'm just here to help. The salary doesn't matter".
The reporter immediately added, "So, you're really pursuing Kathryn Bigelow?"
Simon wasn't surprised by the question.
These days, more than one newspaper had speculated about Simon and Kathryn's relationship. Simon could only feel helpless about it. He shook his head and said, "Of course not. I already have a girlfriend. You know, Kathryn was the assistant director for 'Run Lola Run.' We agreed to help each other out, which is why I'm here".
Hearing Simon admit he had a girlfriend, the reporters immediately became even more excited.
Celebrity romances have always been the most talked-about entertainment news for gossip enthusiasts. Simon's current fame already surpassed many big stars, and his age and appearance ensured that many female readers would be interested in this.
So, this time, almost everyone started clamouring to ask questions.
"Simon, can you reveal who your girlfriend is?" "Simon, tell us about your girlfriend?" "Simon, is it Sandra Bullock?" "Simon…"
Simon felt the buzzing in his ears, raised a hand to quiet them, and said, "Sorry, I don't know if she wants to be in the spotlight. So, I can't say for now".
The reporters, of course, wouldn't give up, continuing to clamour and press him in various ways.
Simon had been feeling the commotion behind him. As Kathryn called 'action,' he raised his hand, gesturing for everyone to pause, then turned to look at the set.
Under the gaze of many eyes, with a tremendous roar, the extended tanker truck erupted in a huge plume of orange-red flames.
However, despite the impressive display, Simon knew that this kind of explosion was actually very safe. Standing a good distance from the tanker, Simon only felt a very gentle wave of air rushing towards him.
Carefully observing the pre-set camera positions, Simon confirmed that everyone was diligently working, and then he relaxed.
Shortly after, Kathryn on set finally gave Simon an 'okay' gesture from afar.
This was the only shot for tonight, and since it was successfully completed, Simon naturally had no intention of entertaining the reporters behind him anymore. He walked towards the set.
The reporters, recovering from the explosion, saw Simon leaving and loudly called out to him, some even trying to follow, but they were stopped by crew members who were prepared at the edge of the set.
The ten-minute shoot took three days of pre-production and over two hours for post-production wrap-up. Everything was done, and the crew returned to the hotel. It was already two in the morning on March 3rd.
After saying goodnight to everyone and freshening up, Kathryn sat on her hotel bed in her pyjamas, feeling the surrounding quiet, but she wasn't sleepy.
So she picked up her director's notebook and leaned against the headboard, opening it.
On the flyleaf was a line: "Caleb's adventure, Mae's rebirth."
He had said that.
'Near Dark' began filming in late January. He didn't join the crew then; she led the team alone for the first two weeks of shooting.
Then, though she was reluctant to admit it, she found that she was far from as adept as he was. In fact, even with very careful preparation, when the movie actually started filming, she still felt lost.
During the first two weeks, while filming, she would always wonder, "How would he shoot this scene?"
Then she realized she couldn't imitate him at all.
He knew exactly what effect he wanted and had enough confidence to directly give orders to the crew. She, however, had to carefully discuss most details with the other key creative members of the crew.
Because she was nowhere near as proficient as he was in cinematography, lighting, set design, editing, scoring... beyond film, he seemed to know many other things as well.
He was practically the illegitimate child of the goddess of wisdom.
Although she had somewhat disingenuously said that she could manage without his help, after he joined the crew, everything seemed to become smoother.
Sensing her confusion about character development and the main storyline of the film, he helped her summarize the sentence on the flyleaf of her notebook.
'Caleb's adventure, Mae's rebirth'.
In his opinion, the core of 'Near Dark', both in its story and characters, should revolve around these two points. With his insight, she gradually sorted out many things.
When she was on the set of 'Run Lola Run', she merely helped him with some trivial logistical tasks. On the set of 'Near Dark', he was like a patient teacher, holding a child's small hand and helping them learn to draw, little by little.
Whenever a problem arose, he would always say in a suggestive tone, "Perhaps we could do it this way…"
He seemed very patient.
She had indeed benefited greatly from him during this time.
But she knew very well what a strong-willed person he was. Perhaps he had countless times thought about kicking her, this foolish woman, out of the director's chair and doing it himself.
Little rascal.
He must have thought that.
Thinking this somewhat unreasonably, she then realized he was leaving tomorrow. The crew would soon transition to normal daytime shooting, and it would still involve a lot of outdoor scenes. If he continued to stay on set, surrounded by a large group of media reporters, filming simply couldn't proceed.
Sigh.
She sighed softly in her heart.
With the great success of 'Run Lola Run', he was now, regardless of age, a top-tier Hollywood director. With an anticipated North American box office exceeding $150 million, no one would deny his ability and status for achieving that.
The down-and-out teenager she first met on the bus last year seemed to have, in the blink of an eye, left everyone far behind, making her only able to look up to him.
With these thoughts swirling in her mind, she suddenly felt a strong urge to go and talk to him.
He lived right next door to her.
However, even if she had absolutely no other intentions, the thought of those media reporters immediately made her abandon the idea.
Even though it was past three in the morning, no one could guarantee that those reporters, who would do absolutely anything for a story, weren't still lurking outside. The hotel had a very open U-shaped layout, with a dozen rooms directly facing the wide road, so anyone entering or exiting a room would be easily seen.
If they were discovered, it would be impossible to explain.
During this time, quite a few media outlets had already started spreading gossip about her and Simon. She had even seen a few articles, feeling strange inside and somewhat worried about Jenny's reaction, but in front of others, she could only pretend to be unconcerned.
So she sighed again.
She was still not as good as Jenny.
Jenny had casually captured the man she wanted, while she only hesitated.
Thinking this, a small impulse suddenly arose.
So she raised her hand.
She gently tapped on the wooden wall.
Thump, thump, thump.
Her heart also thumped faster.
However.
After waiting for a moment.
There was no response from the other side.
Feeling a bit lost, she couldn't help but feel a little rebellious.
She raised her hand again.
Thump, thump, thump.
Finally, a sound came from next door, clearly with a hint of laughter: "Long night, sleepless. Madam, do you need me to break through the wall?"
His strange, poetic tone, a phrase translated from who knows where, carried a teasing quality that instantly made her face flush. Hearing him say he'd break through the wall, her heart immediately jumped, and she blurted out, "You wouldn't dare!"
"Then be a good girl and go to sleep. It's so late; I thought it was a mouse".
"You're the mouse."
"I've resisted digging through for so long; clearly, I'm a very gentlemanly mouse."
"Pfft."
"Alright, no more teasing, go to sleep quickly."
So she lay down with a strange sense of contentment, pulled up the covers, and turned off the bedside lamp. Thinking of his voice, like he was coaxing a little girl, she still softly muttered, "Little rascal".