American Entertainment: Starting with playing the role of Little Beaver

Chapter 5 Interview
Susie Figgis is a veteran in the film industry, having entered the business in the 70s.

She was the one who cast the actors for "Gandhi," which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 82. She was also responsible for casting the actors for Downey's "Chaplin" in 92 and Tom Cruise's "Interview with the Vampire" in 94.

Thirty years of experience had shown her many handsome men and beautiful women, but even so, she had to admit that the suddenly arriving Isabella was very beautiful. Her white dress made her look incredibly pure. When she got out of the car, she kept her eyes down and watched her step carefully. After getting out of the car, the way she looked around with her eyes was a perfect combination of caution and agility.

Most importantly, as she introduced herself, Isabella did not show the awkwardness that her peers would feel when facing a stranger. Instead, she raised her head and looked at her, her curious lake-blue eyes a symbol of confidence. Her smiling face and the act of reaching out her hand further demonstrated her personality: extroverted.

Without hesitation, we shook hands and greeted each other.

After a brief chat, Susie's eyes flickered when she learned that Isabella's arrival was unexpected.

Then, she decisively received the two of them as a former casting director of the production team and a friend of the original author.

She led them into her former office and asked them what they would like to drink. Even though both of them politely declined, Susie still asked her successor, Jesse, to get them drinks. While they waited, the conversation continued.

"Oh~ Isa~ may I call you that?"

Susie was a kind-looking middle-aged woman. She was born in the 1940s and was already over fifty.

"Of course~"

Isabella nodded obediently.

Even without being Rowling's friend, wouldn't a smiling, kind-looking person receive more preferential treatment in society than a repulsive one? Of course, the former's status is more important; she loves to tell the truth.

“Okay, Isa, you mean you never messaged us or participated in any public casting before today, and then just came straight here? You came to Livingston?”

“Uh… if this is Livingston, then Aunt Susie, your conclusion should be correct.”

Isabella tilted her head, as if deep in thought.

Susie's eyes crinkled with laughter at his adorable appearance. "Oh, you're quite bold. When others recommend themselves, they send us their resumes and videotapes. It seems like no one actually sends themselves here."

“Hmm… I don’t think my actions could be considered delivery?” Isabella pointed at Catherine and said, “This is my sister, she brought me here, so if I had to describe it, I think what we did today was more like delivering takeout.”

As she spoke, Isabella made a gesture as if she were making a phone call.

"Hello~ Is this Ms. Susie Figgis? Your takeout has arrived."

“What? You’re Susie Figgis, but you didn’t order takeout? Oh, that’s not important.”

"As you know, the standard delivery rule in our food delivery industry is to frequently deliver the wrong items, often deliver less than the required items, and routinely deliver to the wrong place. So, are you hungry? If you are, then come and pick up your food."

"Ha ha ha ha--"

Susie burst into laughter.

“Great, baby, I’m hungry, I’ll open the blind box right now.”

She got the joke Isabella was making.

Delivery services have existed for a long time, but the time and place when it became an industry was in Britain, where the First Industrial Revolution began.

Before the Industrial Revolution, the British generally lived in the countryside, owning their own fields and cattle, and their daily lives consisted of drinking milk.

With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, many British people moved from the countryside to the city. Without fields and cattle, they had no milk, which they found very difficult to adjust to. As a result, milk delivery services between urban and rural areas emerged, which was the earliest form of delivery service.

At that time, there was even a dedicated delivery brand in London called Clarke.

Because communication was not well-developed in those days, delivery drivers could only deliver goods to the addresses left by customers. This was not a problem, and food delivery in the Internet age is still done this way. However, during the First Industrial Revolution, the overall education level in Britain was not high, and many people were illiterate. When these people could not understand the addresses, the delivery became random.

Then--

What? Sir, you're saying I delivered it to the wrong address?
Why do you care if I delivered the wrong thing? I'm just asking if you want some fresh milk? If you do, you pay for it!

Furthermore, we sell everything in a standardized manner, measured in pints!
That's right, the British food delivery industry was that wild back then.

The pint measurement method, which is quite baffling, was also born at that time.

The situation hasn't improved since then, because it's a "deliver first, collect payment later" system. As long as the delivery driver gets their money back, the boss doesn't care if they delivered the wrong meal. For those who ordered the wrong meal, eating it is like opening a blind box.

Yeah~
This is a blind box.
During their conversation, Jessie returned with drinks. After learning that the two had compared their encounter to ordering takeout, she laughed. With everyone present, the interview officially began, and the rest of the process became more formal.

Jesse took out a DV camera, set it up on the table, and pointed the lens at Isabella; all the interviews would be recorded.

Catherine was invited to sit off-camera; minors are not allowed to audition alone, as is the law.

She pulled out a clapperboard, wrote down today's time on it, and then quickly typed a few questions into the camera. The two-on-one questions began to come. After the formulaic inquiries about her name, age, date of birth, and prior acting experience, Susie finally got to the point, asking, "Isabella, I'd like to know, which role are you auditioning for?"

"Hermione Granger."

"Okay, give me a reason why you chose her."

"Because she is the main character in Harry Potter, I came here because I want to pursue the best."

"Oh, your honesty exceeds our expectations!"

Susie and Jesse exchanged a knowing smile, then added, "Honey, this is a formal interview. It's not that you can't joke around, but I think you have other reasons, right?"

“Yeah~” Isabella smiled in front of the camera and nodded, “You guessed right.”

"Besides being the main character, I also like Hermione because of her background."

"Or rather, it's her Mudblood identity."

Ok?
Susie and Jesse were somewhat surprised.

Since the casting for Harry Potter began, they have received nearly 40,000 resumes and self-recommendation letters. Almost everyone described their love for the trio, but no one has ever said that they liked Hermione's Mudblood identity.

"Tell me why," Susie said, intrigued.

"Hermione is the only child of the Muggle dentists, the Grangers, in London. Before receiving the invitation to Hogwarts, she had no idea that magic existed. So, after deciding to join Hogwarts, she eagerly began to learn about the magical world out of curiosity. The Philosopher's Stone states that Hermione was already learning magic before the start of her first year and successfully learned a few simple spells before school started, which she then demonstrated on the train."

"Some people might dislike Hermione because this description makes her seem boastful. But isn't that also what makes many people like her? I'm already excellent, so why can't I show it off? Besides, everything I show isn't something I was born with, but something I learned while you were resting and playing..."

Since it was a formal conversation, Isabella stopped acting cute.

He spoke at a moderate pace, and each word was pronounced clearly.

"In my opinion, all of Hermione's pride comes from her own strength. She doesn't have the noble blood of the Malfoys, so she can't say 'My father will hear about this' all the time. At the same time, she is not ashamed because of her Muggle identity. The fact that she can only rely on herself and only on herself is her most charming point."

"Her intelligence and diligence were key to her success. Or perhaps, the message that J.K. Rowling wanted to convey when creating Hermione was 'Where there's a will, there's a way.'"

"People with families are indeed more likely to achieve success, but people without backgrounds are not necessarily destined to fail. Only those who are content with the status quo will stagnate, remain in the same place, and eventually fall into the abyss."

hiss--

Catherine stared wide-eyed at her sister, while Susie and Jesse gasped in shock.

This insight was not something an ordinary person could possess, much less a world that a 10-year-old child could glimpse. They exchanged a glance, and both saw astonishment in each other's eyes.

The next second, in Harry Potter, the new British casting director Jesse asked curiously, "Is this your own idea?"

"Of course~"

“We allow students to do their homework before the interview, but we don’t like dishonest kids,” Jesse kindly reminded her.

Isabella smiled and shrugged.

“Director Jesse, it’s true that you can preview the material beforehand, but no one can predict the teacher’s entire thought process, right? So, you can ask other people. I believe I can show enough sincerity.”

Yesterday, Isabella told her older sister about her desire to join the industry. How could anyone else possibly do her homework for her when her mother was still unaware of her sneaking off? Of course, she admitted that she did cheat.

Her judgment of Hermione was entirely based on her memories from her previous life.

She liked Miss Beaver a lot in her past life, not only because Miss Beaver came from an ordinary background but reached the pinnacle of life, and her life trajectory had a kind of exhilarating feeling like a wish-fulfillment novel, but also because Miss Beaver had a very distinct personality and was a person with flesh and blood.

When Hermione first appears in Rowling's novel, she is somewhat arrogant and domineering. In many people's eyes, this is pride and arrogance. However, as the story unfolds, you will find that these are all superficial.

Born into the Muggle world, she was never part of the magical world, and standing next to those with family heritage made her seem out of place. However, she did not accept the status quo, but instead proved herself with her own hands. Because she was still inexperienced, her methods might not be as gentle as those that most people would like.

This complexity and contradiction gave her life.

Or, in Isabella's view, the little beaver's resilience can be described by a line from a Mayday song:
You're not truly happy; your smile is just a protective facade.

It was precisely because Rowling truly brought her to life that Isabella liked her. After thinking for a moment, Susie asked, "So what kind of person do you think Harry Potter is?"

"Uh... Saint Potter?"

Isabella and Susie looked at each other and said, "I think he will be the greatest Gryffindor, without a doubt."

In Harry Potter, Malfoy once said that Harry was a saint.

Isabella thought the young master was right.

This is not meant to be insulting.

In Harry Potter, many characters went astray because of the tragedies of their families of origin, but Harry is different. Although he suffered a lot of scorn and torment in his childhood, he never went astray. You know, Dumbledore dreamed of ruling the Muggle world when he was 17, but Harry? He faced death calmly. What an absurd character!

During the Deathly Hallows era, everyone wondered why Dumbledore didn't just tell Harry the secret. Dumbledore explained that he was afraid Harry wouldn't be able to resist the temptation, so he needed Harry to discover it himself.

Finally?

In the Witcher world, the GOAT, in his later years, couldn't resist wearing the Resurrection Stone because he missed his deceased sister.

Harry, after collecting all the Deathly Hallows, deliberately threw them away.

If this isn't a saint, then who is?

Since the Deathly Hallows have not yet been released, Isabella can only discuss Harry based on the existing novels.

After she finished speaking, there was another moment of silence. After a while, the interview continued. Susie gave Isabella a page of a novel to read aloud and then asked her to make some expressions in front of the DV camera.

From the start of the clapperboard to the announcement of its end, the entire process took about an hour.

After getting Isabella's contact information, Susie told them they could go back.

The simple result left Catherine, who had witnessed the whole process, somewhat bewildered. She noticed that while the two casting directors were initially very excited when they first met her sister, they became increasingly quiet and reserved as the meeting progressed.

and so……

Does this mean I like it or I don't?

Catherine was conflicted.

But as I was waiting for the shuttle bus after leaving the gate, a horn suddenly sounded beside me.

Looking in the direction of the voice, the casting director named Jesse was looking at them with her hands on the steering wheel. When she saw the two looking at her, she immediately turned her head and said, "Get in the car, I'll take you home."

"Hmm?" Catherine asked, puzzled.

Jesse laughed and said, "Katherine Heywood, right? You're definitely not eighteen."

"Don't deny it, and don't doubt the eyes of a casting director."

“We didn’t explicitly say it was for work purposes before, but now that we’re laying it out, it’s because…”

Jesse paused, then finally raised an eyebrow and said, "If anything happens to you on your way back, Susie will kill me."

"Really???"

A huge smile of joy spread across Catherine's face.

"Oh, Isa, did you hear that? You've gone too far!"

She understood Jesse's implication.

Isabella smiled and nodded; she wasn't surprised.

If an adult can't beat a minor in reading comprehension, then she's really wasted her life.

And today's win was just a small win, right?

Whether it's a big win or not depends on the subsequent interviews; the real power broker for the project hasn't shown up yet.

and so……

"Calm down, darling, today is just the first test."

After replying to her older sister, Isabella brought Jesse back into the conversation, "Right, Director Jesse?"

"That's how it works according to the procedure."

"Look, the road ahead is still long... so let's go home..."

As Isabella boarded the bus with the expected joy, Susie, standing by the window on the third floor, was frantically pressing the shutter button on her camera. She had intended to take some photos of distant scenes, but unexpectedly, she saw the little girl's mature and unassuming side.

"Oh~ What a cute expression~"

"Does he think he has victory in his grasp?"

"Tsk tsk tsk, quite interesting."

(End of this chapter)