Chapter 167: Lauder
The test screening had just ended, and Fox staff were still collecting audience questionnaires. Some attendees couldn't wait to leave, and Mike Scott was among them. He needed to hurry back and compile his data to submit to his sponsors. Getting paid to do a job was the industry's most basic rule.
This was an unavoidable reality of every test screening. Just as Warner and Fox could pay informants for details on Braveheart, the power of money was all-pervasive. Nobody paid much attention to the early departures. The promotional and PR staff from Fox had already thrown themselves into their work, preparing for the massive press conference scheduled shortly after.
The press conference was held in the grand banquet hall of a hotel next to the theater. When Duke, Tom Hanks, and the others walked onto the stage, the audience exploded like a boiling pot, clamoring incessantly.
Every arrangement was tailored for promotional needs. After Duke, Tom Hanks, and Leonardo DiCaprio sat down, their respective publicists moved to the front of the stage, ready to prompt their clients at a moment's notice.
The host rattled on for a bit, and Charles Roven introduced some basic information about the film before moving on to the Q&A session the reporters were most interested in.
The biggest draw on stage was, of course, Tom Hanks.
It was easy to guess the nature of this press conference. Many of the questions had actually been coordinated and planned by the organizers' PR team.
After being called on by the host, a reporter stood up and asked directly, "Mr. Hanks, if I remember correctly, you received many offers last year. Why did you choose this film?"
"I have always been fascinated by the history of World War II, and I've been looking for books and scripts that depict the war from the perspective of human nature or emotional experience, rather than just strategic operations."