Chapter 138

“That sounds like an unorthodox approach,” Beth told her son.

“I’m trying to hone my reputation as a maverick,” Phil replied.

“Have you met with Tracey Lewinberg?” Beth inquired.

“Today,” Phil answered.

“And?” Beth pressed.

Phil let out a long breath. He didn’t know what sort of relationship his mother might have with Tracey Lewinberg. He knew that Barton routinely helped agencies Tracey’s non-profit supported and that his mother had recommended her for the job. He decided it really didn’t matter.

“I can’t really put my finger on it but I wasn’t favorably impressed,” he answered.

“Really?” Beth asked in surprise. “You weren’t impressed but you can’t say why.”

“It’s more of a general feeling,” Phil told his mother. “I’m not sure what you told her but she was of the impression that I planned to walk away and never look back. She started talking about changes she’d want to make, money she would need to spend, benefit programs she would probably have to cut. We both know one of the costliest areas in running a large business is the benefits. But I’ve structured them here the way you’ve structured them at Barton. She was a bit perturbed when I told her that I would not permit cuts but instead I would expect her to live within the budget I supply. I pretty much told her that she wasn’t going to get to play around with my money just because I put her in the big office.”

“It’s the curse of the non-profit,” Beth said with a sigh. “They live off donations. They make their money by pandering and if they want something else, they just come back with their hands out. I’ve known Tracey for a few years. I mean, we’re not friends but I’ve interacted with her periodically. I know she is a good administrator and a good fund-raiser. That’s why I pointed her in your direction.”

“I need a good administrator,” Phil admitted. “But I don’t need a fund-raiser. We have the ability to create our own revenue streams. Oh, sure, we’ll still hit up investors for our major productions but that’s proven to be pretty easy if the picture is worthwhile – particularly once people see that they are almost guaranteed a return when they put their money with us. What I need out here is a leader, Mom. I need someone who is willing to listen to other’s points of view and reach a good decision. I need someone who is willing to accept direction from ... well, me. I need someone who isn’t going to have his or her ego hurt when I tell them no. I really believe Tracey Lewinberg would stay here only until she found something better at a studio more to her liking.”

“And you believe Jenvieve Borchard is willing to see things through and do them as you want?” Beth asked.

“I do,” Phil said.

“Are you sure you weren’t taken in by her fame and a pretty face?” Beth pushed.

“No,” Phil said with a light chuckle. “I’m not sure of that. She is a force of nature, Mom. She absolutely owns any room she’s in. She can be charming and sweet and intimidating and scary at the exact same time. She’s ... she’s sort of like you in that way, I guess. She’s sharp. I mean, she doesn’t come with a series of letters after her name but she has a pedigree out here that makes degrees and educational theories meaningless. I’m sure a lot of it was because she was telling me what I wanted to hear. I’m not immune to flattery any more than anyone one else is.”

Beth heard her son expel air forcefully from his lungs.

“Of everything I’ve done so far, this is the most important decision I’ll make here,” he continued. “If I put the wrong person in place then I might have just as well closed the doors in June and not gone to all the pain and heartache of the last few months. I ... can’t ... get ... this ... wrong. Over the last few months, I’ve made this place resemble a typical Barton property as much as I can. I just can’t see me giving someone the ability to tear it down in a week or a month or a year. That’s what Tracey Lewinberg was asking for. She wanted to know if she would have the autonomy to make the changes she viewed necessary. I told her it would be on a case-by-case basis but the answer is really no. Maybe in a year or two, I’ll feel comfortable enough with someone to give them that ability. Maybe I will never allow it.

“Minor changes? Sure. But she was talking about the integral parts that I’ve put in place to make Lambswool into a profitable, sustainable business. I want someone in place to continue what I’ve started and move it forward. I don’t want someone that plans to hit the reset button and put us back to where we were a year ago. I know this might sound petty but I don’t want to bring in a person who’s looking to put his or her stamp on the place. I’m looking for someone that will be OK with putting his or her name below mine on the stamp already in place.”

“I don’t think anyone can argue with the choices you’ve made so far,” Beth said consolingly. This had moved from a business discussion into a familial discussion.

“Mom, everyone argues with every single decision I make,” Phil said bitterly. “If it’s not internal, it’s another studio. If it’s not another studio, it’s the bloggers or the critics or the tabloids. I have been dissected, critiqued, analyzed and appraised over everything from switching the cantina to self-serve to urging Carmen Lopez to file harassment charges against the director that touched her inappropriately.”

“You didn’t mention that,” Beth said.

“It was two days after I got here,” Phil said. “That very morning, I circulated a memo explaining the relevant sexual misconduct codes – both civil and criminal – and this jackass grabs a woman’s boob in front of a dozen witnesses. He was fired on the spot. Well, as soon as I caught wind of it, he was fired. He threatened a lawsuit, of course, because ... well, apparently there are 15 lawyers out here for every single actor but I had security toss his butt off the property anyway. He didn’t sue – because he knew he’d lose – but he did run to the tabloids. That was the first ‘it’s just a way of life in Hollywood’ lecture I got – but it has been far from the last one.”

“I worried about the lifestyle out there,” Beth admitted to her son for the first time. “It’s ... looser ... than you’re used to. There is a different set of rules.”

“No,” Phil said firmly. “The rules are the same. The rules that apply to you and me and Hailey apply to every single person in this town. What you have is a different mindset. It’s like a feudal system out here, Mom. The lords and dukes can do as they damned well please and the peasants can like it or find themselves in the dungeon. It’s crap and I won’t put up with it anywhere my family name is associated. I don’t care what people allow to happen at other places. So long as Lambswool is owned and operated by the Barton and Warner families, it’s going to be held to a higher standard – not necessarily by the public but by me. I expect the people around me to act better than the average barbarian. I expect them to behave with the sort of dedication to family and their profession that I’ve seen in every one of your businesses.”

Beth felt a surge of pride as she listened to Phil’s words. She knew his outlook and expectations had come from her and David.

“And you think Jenvieve Borchard is the right person to put in charge?” she asked in order to move the conversation back to the topic of her son’s phone call.

“I think she has all the intangibles I’ve been looking for,” Phil admitted. “She’s savvy and she’s tough. She isn’t any happier that Hollywood still seems stuck in the 1950s casting couch culture than I am. She’s looking for a platform to launch a crusade and I’m willing to offer it to her.”

“But can she run a business?” Beth cut in. “You’ve just said that you’ve put your heart and soul into turning the studio into something that is profitable and sustainable. I understand crusades and I agree with your stance. But does she have what it takes to keep Lambswool away from the wolves?”

Phil chuckled at his mother’s awful pun.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “In a way, I’m not sure her business acumen is really going to be tested. A pretty big percentage of the people that work here have bought into what I’ve been preaching. The last couple of weeks, I’ve turned my attention away from overseeing every single facet of ‘Kismet’ and let the people in place run with it. They’ve done great work. I think she’s smart enough to keep out of their way. That took me some time to figure out. Mostly, I think she understands a lot better than I ever will what makes a film worth seeing and worth producing. That is the role I had in mind for the COO long before I knew she was interested. I want her to be the face of the business. I want her to make decisions on the quality of a production along with its profitability. I want Lambswool to move back to the days when we’d put out one or two solid movies a year; produce one or two good TV shows a year; and also be able to afford to do a project like ‘Iconoclast’ where the profits are negligible but the quality is outstanding. Do I think she would know how to do that?”

He paused as he reflected on the question he’d just asked.

“Yeah,” he decided. “I do. I think she has the ability to recognize quality. That’s one thing I’ve learned. Consistent quality will ensure financial viability. I think she will be able to bring in quality directors and producers. I think she’ll be able to bring in potential investors – not in the studio but in its products. Further, I think she understands that major decisions will have to stay within budgetary constraints and that we will never forsake the worker for additional revenue to support the executives.”

“That sounds fair enough,” Beth said. “You’re sold on her qualifications and her potential. That should make the choice simple enough. Now, one other question: Can you afford her? She makes $30 million a picture. Will she be willing to work a full-time job for a fifth of that?”

“I don’t know,” Phil confessed. “I knew when I started this process that the salary would cause a lot of good people to shy away. I knew the limits I’ll place on them will push more out of the running. I guess all I can do is tell her what we’re offering and see how she responds.”

Hailey heard someone in the kitchen as she exited the apartment and was surprised to see Anna Goldblum sitting at the table with a bagel and a grapefruit in front of her.

“Tiffany said it would be OK if I just spent the night here instead of at a hotel,” Anna said.

“Oh, sure,” Hailey agreed as she poured a bowl of cereal. “I’m sure Phil will appreciate your budgetary choices.”

“Tiffany charged me $50 more than the hotel,” Anna joked.

“In cash, I’m sure,” Hailey rejoined.

“Yeah, I thought that was weird, too,” Anna replied. “This is a really nice place. I like the way everything is set up. How’d you find it?”

“Like a lot of the good things in my life, I owe it to Phil,” Hailey said, sitting down opposite the newcomer.

“It’s hard for me to picture him in this environment,” Anna admitted. “I don’t mean this house. I mean as ... a college kid. When I picture him, I don’t see him lounging around a pool with a textbook. I see him as ... this prodigy ... that walked in one day, upturned the apple cart and then went about stacking the apples back up in a way that was better than before. I see him as the guy that told one of the most influential directors in Hollywood to get the hell off his lot and to never come back. Yesterday was ... a revelation. I wonder if he’s playing a role out there or back here.”

“Neither,” Hailey answered. “He’s doing what has to be done. He’s not a guy who lets people inside very easily.”

“Yeah,” Anna agreed. “And Tiffany told me that I’m unlikely ever to see the ‘real’ Phil Warner.”

“True,” Hailey admitted. “I’m not sure I can explain him. He has a code of conduct, I guess, that he holds himself to. He expects others to uphold that code, too. It isn’t easy. I’ve made mistakes and so has he. It took a long time for us to work out a way we could both be ... I don’t really know how to explain it except to say that he and I work best when we’re together. He’s the one that sits down and figures out the long-term ramifications. I’m the one that keeps us moving forward and having fun.”

“That’s crap,” Katelyn said from the doorway. “You’re just as smart and capable as he is. He’s just as fun and spontaneous as you are. Anna, if he’s told you anything about me, it’s probably that I’m not much of a diplomat. The truth is, Tiffany is right but not for the reasons Hailey has mentioned. You’ll never really know him because, honestly, I doubt he likes many of the people he’s met out there. The code of conduct thing is spot on. His is pretty rigid and he won’t back down if he sees something wrong happening. And it’s not because his family is loaded. He was that way when his mother was a glorified secretary and his father a mad scientist. I think it’s just ingrained in his DNA.

“He and I talk at least twice a week and he’s tried to get his mind around the situation out there. But it’s just too foreign for him to understand. He says that everyone out there is a sheep. You keep doing the same stuff over and over knowing it’s wrong. He says that no one has stepped out of the Dark Ages long enough to notice that the world has moved on. Women aren’t property to be exploited. Everyone has a value in one way or another. L.A. is all about façade. It’s about being seen and getting noticed. It’s about everyone wanting a pat on the head for getting up, going to work and doing your fucking job. Well, truth is, you don’t get a gold star for doing what you should be doing. I’m not sure if you fall into the category or not. The first time I heard your name was today. But Phil doesn’t put a lot of credence in who gets applause and who gets the blame. He’s about results. He puts the same effort into having fun as he does into making sure you still have a place to work next year. Right now, he has to focus on keeping the doors open. God forbid, if he ever got comfortable out there, you might see a different side to him. But, then again, maybe not. I think it all depends on how he views you right now.”

Anna blinked at being upbraided – yet again – by a college junior.