“And the Grand Jury Prize for a Dramatic film goes to [Brick],” announced Robert Redford, founder of the Sundance Film Festival.

  A wave of etion filled me the moment I heard the verdict. The entire cast and crew of [Brick] and I leapt to our feet, appuding as our director, Rian Johnson, took the stage to accept his well-deserved win. Uhe Oscars, at most film festivals, the award for best film is given to the director rather than the producer, so I stayed in the audience. I know I might be a bit biased here, but I genuinely believed [Brick] was the best-made film in the Sundance lihat year.

  “Oh my God,” Rian began his speech after receiving the gss trophy. “I ’t believe this is happening. Thank you so much to the jury for loving our film as much as they did. But before thanking them, I’d like to thank one person without whom this film would have been impossible to make. Two years ago, this all seemed like a distant dream, and no one believed in me or wao work with me. It was just my luck that I met an amazing person, and that’s why we’re here today.” Rian looked directly at me, raising his trophy high. “Troy Armitage, this is all thanks to you.”

  He tio thank other people, including our cast, crew, and his family, but I wasn’t listening. The feeling I had in that moment was beyond words. It feels good to win an award, but it feels eveer when someone else wins because of your efforts. This was one of the best feelings I’d had in a long time. Sure, this wasn’t as prestigious as an Oscar, but an award is an award, and for an indie film, Sundance was one of the greatest forms nition.

  “You okay, Troy?” Tobias asked when Rian finished his speech.

  “Yeah,” I smiled at him. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  “You’re unusually quiet, that’s all,” he remarked.

  “It’s nothing,” I shook my head, steering the versation elsewhere. “So, are you happy with our films’ response?”

  “Of course I am.” He gri me. “How could I not be after that generous bonus you gave me?”

  I nodded in aowledgment. Tobias had poured his heart and soul into the produ of both films, so it only felt right to share some of the rewards back with him. I’d given him, along with most of the crew, a little bonus. Besides Rian Johnson and Stephen Chbosky, Tobias had received the rgest bonus of all, and he definitely deserved it. If I didn’t pensate him fairly, it wouldn’t take long before he jumped ship—he was simply too good at film produ to let go.

  “When is your sister’s wedding?” I asked, remembering what he’d mentioned a few days ago.

  “It’s the same week as the release of [Perks], but I’ll have to leave week,” he replied. “My parents arely responsible, so I’ll be managing everything. I know you pn to start movie promotions soon, so I’ve arranged for a rept assistant while I’m gone.”

  "Don't worry about it,” I reassured him. “Take as long as you need.” I hummed as a sudden, wild idea popped into my head—crazy, maybe, but now that it was there, I had to try it.

  “I’ve got a great idea,” I grinned.

  Tobias didn’t look too thrilled. “Why do I have a feeling I’m not going to like this?”

  “Oh, you’ll love it,” I waved off his . “Or do you not wao crash your sister’s wedding?”

  “You’d be a huge distra,” Tobias pointed out. “Everyone would be talking about you, not the bride.” He paused, then added, “On sed thought, Diana would probably love that. She hates being the ter of attention. But I don’t think you’ll have the time. The wedding’s in New York, and you’ll be all over the world for the film promotions.”

  “I’ll make it work,” I assured him. “I’ll make sure I’m doing the promotions in New York that day. Warner definitely aodate this small request for me.”

  Tobias tilted his head thoughtfully, then nodded. “Alright. You e. So, what exactly is this genius idea of yours?”

  I grinned, expining my pn. To say he was surprised would be an uatement.

  (Break)

  Patty was bored. She’d finished her homework and had nothing to do, so she did what any sane person would: turned oV. After mindlessly surfing els for a bit and finding nothing iing, she was about to turn it off and go see her best friend Cire a few blocks away. Then something caught her eye—something she’d been waiting for a long time. Ever since she’d seen those leaked set photos of Troy and Emma kissing, she’d known she had to watch the film, no matter the reviews. Patty was a big Harry/Hermione fan, after all. With the way the series was going, it seemed uhey’d end up together, so she’d settle for the actors being together in a different movie, even if Harry and Hermione didn’t.

  Then, when the film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, it received overwhelmingly positive reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, it had a 93% positive rating with an average score of 8.2—higher even than the 85% that the festival winner [Brick] had received.

  And now, the trailer for [The Perks of Being a Wallflower] was finally here. From start to finish, it erfect.

  Watg Troy transform from the fident Harry to the meek, soft-spoken Charlie was amazing. His voice, his walk, the way he looked at Emma—all of it seemed to say he was airely different person from Harry Potter. Then there was Emma. She might have been a bit young for the role, but she looked perfe the trailer. Both Troy and Emma he Ameri at, as far as she could tell.

  The trailer gave Patty a sense of nostalgia, and she wasn’t even that old. Little did she know, that was the film's magic—it evoked nostalgia and longing in everyone, even those who hadn’t lived through that era.

  Wherailer ehe words “Releasing on 25th February 2005” appeared, followed by another s announg that all profits from the film would be doo charity.

  “Oh my God!” Patty shrieked. “That’s tomorrow! How did I miss this trailer until now?”

  Without wasting a sed, she grabbed the phone and dialed her friend Cire.

  “Hello?” Cire answered.

  “Did you watch the trailer for Troy and Emma’s new movie?” Patty asked without preamble.

  “Of course I did,” Cire replied immediately. “It’s been out for a month already. Everyo school was talking about it st week. Have you been living under a rock or something?”

  “Ugh!” Patty groaned. “I ’t believe my best friend didn’t tell me about it. You know how much it means to me.”

  “I thought you knew,” Cire said in a ft tone. “If a die-hard Potterhead like you didn’t hear about it, they probably didn’t promote it that much.”

  “You’re right,” Patty agreed. “Anyway, we’re going to see it tomorrow.”

  “Of course, girl,” Cire said right away. “Do you even have to ask?”

  The day dragged on for Patty. She just wao get through it so she could finally see her favorite on-s couple together. Somehow, she persevered, and finally, it was time to go watch the film.

  (Break)

  That week was a busy one for movies. Major titles like Will Smith’s [Hitch] and Keanu Reeves’ [stantine] had already been dominating the box office for weeks. Additionally, four new movies opened iers. First was [Cursed], a horror flick from the same creative team that made [Scream]. Then there was [Diary of a Mad Ban], featuring Tyler Perry cross-dressing as a woman for edic effect. The third was [Man of the House], a family edy. All three films had received scathing reviews, sg less than 20% on Rotten Tomatoes.

  Then there was the fourth release of the week: [The Perks of Being a Wallflower], which was already a critical darling. Critics almost unanimously praised it. With a star-studded cast that included Troy Armitage, Emma Watson, and even a cameo from Bruce Willis, it was bound to attract attention.

  Though Warner Bros hadn’t ied mu promoting the movie, one undeniable factor was Troy Armitage’s loyal fan base. His fans had grown up with him, watg him in films like [Harry Potter]. Beyond that, he also had an older following who admired his performances in movies like [The Sixth Sense], [Billy Elliot], and [AI]—all of which were already sidered cssics with their dedicated cult following.

  So it came as a shock to Patty when she found out she couldn’t see the movie on its first day.

  “What the hell!?” she excimed at the ticket ter. “I’ve waited so long for this movie, and now you’re saying it’s sold out?”

  "I’m sorry, young dy,” the middle-aged man offered her an apologetic smile. “I get you a ticket for tomorrow if you’d like. Or maybe you could watch [Cursed]? It’s a horror movie, and it’s really good. You’ll love it for sure.”

  Patty gave him a deadpan look. She was ready tue further, but Cire, the more sensible oepped in front of her. “It’s okay,” she said to the older man. “What’s avaible tomorrow for [Perks]?”

  “Only the m show,” he replied. “Everything else is sold out. We’re actually pnning to add more showtimes for this film, but it seems like everyone else is trying to do the same, and we don’t have enough prints. Maybe you could cheother theater—though I doubt they have as left.”

  “Fine,” Cire interrupted. “We’ll take two for the m show tomorrow.”

  “Good decision,” he nodded, handing them their tickets.

  “Aww, man!” Patty groaned as they walked away from the ter. “I wao see it so bad today!”

  “It’s just half a day,” Cire reminded her impatiently. “e o’s go to Mald’s. I’m craving a burger.”

  (Break)

  This wasn’t an isoted case of fans uo watch the film. Warner Bros had badly mishahe release of [Perks]. The film had received minimal promotion, with only 12 million allocated to its marketing and distribution budget, 2 million of which went to printing costs. It opened on just 2,500 ss across North America—the lowest iputed by the tract Troy and Warner had sighe huge demand took them by surprise, and they were unprepared to meet it.

  “Are you sure about this?” Barry Meyer asked An Horn, Warner Bros.’ COO.

  “Very sure,” An nodded. “Most theater s and even small indepe ss are calling our distribution offiore copies. And it’s not just urban areas; evee small-towers want to show [Perks] because it’s all the rage with teenagers.”

  “The day isn’t over yet,” Barry noted. “Shouldn’t we wait for first-day results before more prints?”

  An shook his head in frustration. “I told you we should’ve ied more in promotions. I knew we had a hit on our hands, but you wao save the budget for an Oscar campaign ter in the year. We could’ve easily doubled our spending and easily recouped it through increased profits.”

  Barry fell silent. He’d held ba promoting [Perks] aggressively, partly due to Warner’s three-picture deal with Troy, whicluded [Perks], [Brick], and an untitled musical. A major marketing budget was already itted to the musical, so he’d scaled back spending oher two films. Warner had ied 25 million in acquiring the films; with another 25 million in marketing and distribution, they’d o make over 120 million to see a profit—an ambitious target for suique teen movies, even with Troy’s star power. It was a decision Barry was nretting.

  “So?” An pressed again. “Should I order more prints?”

  “Let’s wait for the first-day numbers,” Barry said decisively. “If we make over 2,000 per theater, that’s 5 million on day ohen we’ll order a thousand more prints and add 5 million to the promotion budget immediately. If it’s less than that, no additional promotion, but we’ll order 500 more prints for the theaters who are requesting it.”

  “Okay,” An agreed. Barry’s strategy was sound, and as the mastermind behind one of the industry’s biggest studios, his instincts were rarely off.

  That night, An stayed up past midnight, as he often did on a movie’s opening night. Though he hadn’t been directly involved in the produ of [Perks], he knew how crucial this film could be for the studio. Troy was a remarkable actor and an emerging producer with two successful films under his belt, and he was on the verge of starting produ on his third. Maintaining stroionships with talents like Troy was essential if Warner wao ensure loyalty—and prevent him from moving to audio.

  Just as that thought crossed his mind, his ndline rang, and he picked up immediately. “Yes?” he spoke clearly.

  “The numbers are in,” said An’s assistaement evident in his voice. “[Perks] debuted at number oh 9.5 million today.”

  “Holy shit!” An excimed, a wide grin spreading across his face. This was eveer than anticipated. With 2,500 ss, the film had brought in an average of 3,800 per theater—nearly double Barry’s threshold for boosting distribution and marketing.

  “Go ahead with the increased marketing and distribution pn,” An instructed his assistant before hanging up.

  A smile lingered on An’s face as he finally went to bed. Troy Armitage was one lucky son of a bitch, and An was now more certain thahat Warner should do everything possible to build a long-stiionship with the teen. He was one of those on-a-lifetime types of superstars who had already left a mark on the history of ema at such a young age. Only God knows what he would have achieved by the time he is old and wrinkly.

  _____________________________________

  AN: Visit my Pat reon to read ahead, or participate in free polls about the story.

  Link: (dot)pat reon(dot)/fableweaver