Before accompanying Charlize Theron to South Africa, Gilbert finally met with a new director he had been wanting to see for a while—Christopher Nolan.
Ever since noticing Nolan at the Sundance Film Festival, Gilbert had quickly forgotten about him due to his busy schedule.
Meanwhile, Nolan was also struggling. After participating in Sundance, he stayed in Hollywood to seek opportunities.
However, Hollywood was overflowing with aspiring directors, and he was just another name in the crowd. He carried around the script for Memento, which he had co-written with his brother, looking for investors everywhere, but faced rejection at every turn.
After repeatedly failing to secure funding, it was only under the reminder of his wife, Emma, that Nolan recalled a major Hollywood figure who had shown interest in him.
That person was none other than Gilbert Landrini, a renowned Hollywood director who was only a month older than him.
After much hesitation, Nolan finally stepped through the doors of Melon Studios.
For Gilbert, who was always on the lookout for talent, Nolan reaching out was a pleasant surprise. Naturally, he gave him a warm welcome.
Although this was their first time meeting in person, it felt as if they were long-lost friends, instantly finding endless topics to discuss.
Nolan had graduated from University College London with a degree in English Literature, which actually had little to do with filmmaking.
His passion for directing was sparked at the age of seven when he used his father's Super 8 camera to film his toy soldiers.
The film he had screened at Sundance, Following, was a project he had shot in college with his friends on a budget of just $6,000.
Gilbert had seen it. While the filmmaking techniques were still raw, the pacing and cinematography already carried Nolan's distinct style.
After chatting about his background and experiences, Gilbert asked, "Chris, do you have any short films I can watch?"
"Of course! I brought one with me," Nolan said excitedly. The fact that Gilbert was interested enough to ask meant he was taking him seriously.
Gilbert immediately arranged for a screening room. Inside, they watched a three-minute short film titled Doodlebug.
Despite its brief runtime, the film was a compelling story of an infinite loop. It was highly engaging and already displayed Nolan's signature storytelling approach.
Gilbert had seen this short film in his previous life and had always kept an eye on Nolan's work.
In the increasingly fantastical landscape of Hollywood, Nolan was one of the few directors who remained grounded.
Of course, at times, Nolan was overly confident, and some of his films had their flaws. Take Oppenheimer, for example—despite the widespread acclaim, Gilbert and a few of his friends had gone to see it together.
But within thirty minutes, all his friends had fallen asleep in the theater, completely unfazed even by the explosive sound effects.
Later, they remarked that the film was far less engaging than Inception or Interstellar—it was boring, and they couldn't understand why so many fans were hyping it up.
As a director, Gilbert understood Nolan's creative intentions.
However, the market dictated the box office. In China, biographical films like Oppenheimer were never particularly popular. But in the global market, Oppenheimer still achieved impressive box office results.
One film critic had an interesting take on its success.
He believed that Oppenheimer became a hit because Western audiences were growing tired of Hollywood's obsession with ideological correctness—after all, there was already a Black Little Mermaid and even a Black Juliet.
Supporting Oppenheimer, in their view, was a way of pushing back against Hollywood's relentless agenda, sending a message that they didn't want their entertainment ruined any further.
Unfortunately, unless things swung to the other extreme and triggered a backlash, this trend was likely to continue.
Before Gilbert's rebirth, he had even heard rumors that, dissatisfied with the "Goddess" version of Mulan, Disney was planning to reboot the film with a Black actress in the lead role.
When he first heard this, Gilbert was speechless.
A Black Mulan? That sounded even more absurd than a Black Juliet.
Fortunately, he had been reborn before he had to witness such a film. Otherwise, seeing a Mulan like that would have felt like an outright insult.
Now that he was back, while he couldn't control other companies, if he became a shareholder in Disney and Warner Bros., he would make sure they stayed on a sane path.
After watching Nolan's short film, Gilbert was quite satisfied.
"I heard you've been struggling to secure funding?" Gilbert asked.
Nolan pulled out another script. "This is a screenplay my brother Jonathan and I wrote. It's called Memento. It's a suspense thriller."
Gilbert skimmed through the script before handing it back to Nolan and said, "Submit a production plan, Chris."
Nolan's eyes lit up. "You've decided to invest?"
"I like the script. It's pretty good," Gilbert nodded. "Melon Studios will fund this film."
Nolan was overjoyed. The opportunity he had dreamed of had come so easily—just a casual conversation with Gilbert, and he had secured an investment.
This gave him a deep sense of appreciation for Gilbert. In modern internet slang, he would have said, He gets me!
Nolan wasted no time. After receiving Gilbert's promise, he immediately set to work.
Eager to prove himself, Nolan immediately set to work. Less than a week later, he submitted a complete production plan, along with a manuscript, a storyboard outline, and other necessary materials.
Since Melon Studios was wholly owned by Gilbert, its approval process was not as complex as that of larger companies.
Usually, once Gilbert made a decision, the investment would proceed. This was how Rush Hour and Good Will Hunting had been greenlit.
Because both films had been huge hits, Gilbert's eye for investments had earned widespread praise, so no one questioned his authority.
Besides, as the sole owner, Gilbert had no shareholders to answer to.
Once he made his decision, pre-production on Memento began immediately. Nolan requested a $5 million budget to complete the film.
For casting, Nolan brought in Guy Pearce and Carrie-Anne Moss, who had previously lost out on the role of Trinity.
Since this was a low-budget film, it wasn't something Gilbert needed to devote too much attention to.
The main reason he was personally involved was because of Nolan himself. Looking at it from his past-life perspective, Nolan had great potential and was worth keeping an eye on.
After wrapping up his meeting with Nolan, Gilbert took a trip to South Africa with Charlize Theron, treating it as a vacation.
Charlize Theron was born in Benoni, Gauteng Province, South Africa. However, their destination this time was not her hometown but Johannesburg, the provincial capital and the largest city in Southern Africa.
Johannesburg is situated on the high plains near the upper reaches of the Vaal River in northeastern South Africa.
In 1886, a white man named George Harrison was taking a walk on a farm north of Johannesburg when he stumbled over a rock—only to discover it was a gold nugget.
This triggered a massive gold rush, drawing prospectors from all over the world.
As more gold seekers arrived, the area grew into a bustling settlement. Originally just a mining outpost, the city rapidly expanded following the discovery and extraction of gold.
Johannesburg is at the heart of the world's largest gold-mining region and South Africa's economic hub. Within a 240-kilometer radius, there are more than 60 gold mines, continuously attracting prospectors for over a century.
When people think of Africa, the first words that often come to mind are poverty, famine, and war.
However, upon arriving in Johannesburg, Gilbert found that it was not much different from Los Angeles or New York. The city might have been smaller in scale than L.A., but it was undoubtedly a modern, international metropolis.
Still, Charlize Theron pointed out that this was only the surface.
Johannesburg was home to Africa's largest slum, housing millions of impoverished people.
South Africa's demographics were complex, with the country's white population holding the upper hand. Charlize Theron herself was part of the privileged white elite.
Meanwhile, the millions living in the slums were mostly Black South Africans.
South Africa was one of the few countries to have openly implemented racial segregation, which had led to heavy criticism from the media.
Located 27 kilometers from downtown Johannesburg, Soweto was the city's largest Black township.
In 1976, the South African government committed the infamous Soweto Massacre here, shocking the world.
Charlize Theron was visiting this very place for charitable outreach efforts.
Gilbert's reaction to this was straightforward: "If you're going to do it, why put on a show? Who actually believes in this kind of staged goodwill?"
Charlize Theron responded with a helpless smile. "A lot of human rights activists still oppose inequality, and I want to do my part to help."
Unlike Gilbert, who had little interest in politics, Charlize Theron was an active political participant.
She and Scarlett Johansson were the two people in Melon Manor most passionate about discussing political issues.
According to Theron, she wanted to use her influence to help bridge racial divides and contribute to her homeland.
Gilbert couldn't argue with that. After all, wasn't he doing the same—using his position to give back to his homeland from his previous life?
However, when he heard that Theron wanted to adopt several Black children and expected him to be their godfather, he flatly refused.
It wasn't that he was prejudiced, but he had no interest in raising children who weren't biologically related to him, especially ones from a completely different background.
Gilbert also advised Theron against it, warning her that it could bring unexpected trouble.
Theron listened to his advice and dropped the idea.
While accompanying her to the slums, Gilbert witnessed firsthand the extreme poverty, chaotic environment, and rampant crime.
At that moment, a particular film came to his mind—one that had been shot in South Africa and carried deep social commentary: District 9.
Many elements in District 9 were direct metaphors for the conditions in South African slums.
When he had first watched it, he had been blown away.
Gilbert had long been anticipating District 10, which the director had mentioned but never materialized.
Perhaps in the future, he could try making District 9 himself.
Even if he didn't direct it personally, he could still hold onto the idea and find another director to bring it to life.
With Nolan now part of the studio, he could be a potential candidate.
After all, Gilbert planned to take a few of Nolan's future projects for himself, so offering him another one in return seemed like a fair trade.
But that was a matter for the future.
After spending two weeks in South Africa, visiting gold mining sites and taking a trip to the Cape of Good Hope, Gilbert returned to North America.
By then, casting for The Lord of the Rings had officially begun.
With his vacation over, Gilbert was about to dive headfirst into this massive project.
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