Actor in Hollywood

A soft drizzle hung in the air, but it didn't obscure the sun's face. Golden light filtered freely through the fine rain, with the lush greenery in the distance spreading out like a misty veil. Bright red and yellow maple leaves peeked through, adding splashes of vibrant color.

Clean, crisp, rich, and refreshing.

It was a delicate moment. October was nearing its end, yet the weather captured the last remnants of summer, the briskness of autumn, and even hints of winter, with three seasons intricately intertwined. Staring at the forest of trees surrounding the city, one could easily drift into a trance.

The scenery resembled a watercolor painting.

Though standing in Vancouver, his thoughts lingered not far behind in Seattle, where an indescribable poetic charm seemed to slow the pace of life.

Wait, was that... Chinese?

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Chinese characters. As he refocused, another familiar character flashed by. It was only then that he realized this was entirely normal in this city.

For a brief moment, time flowed backward, drawing his thoughts into a dream of a past life.

Time and space seemed to merge and shift like a flowing river as the car moved forward.

After careful consideration and selection, the filming location for "The Butterfly Effect" was chosen to be Vancouver.

Georgia's film production industry was still in its early stages and somewhat underdeveloped. In simple terms:

Some welcomed film crews with open arms, while others didn't, and some didn't even know what was happening.

It was a chaotic scene.

As a result, policies implemented by some departments were not consistently enforced by others. Some verbal agreements never saw the light of day, and even those willing to help often didn't know how to proceed.

Difficult. Troublesome.

It was the pioneer stage.

For a small production like "The Butterfly Effect" and a small company like New Line Cinema, they lacked the clout and resources to push policy changes. Being in Atlanta felt like being stranded in the wilderness without any survival tools.

Unsuitable.

The situation wasn't as expected.

Later, Anson inquired with Darren Star and learned some background.

Everything stemmed from AMC.

AMC is a cable television network known for broadcasting classic films, with rights mainly from Paramount, Universal, and 20th Century Fox. In 1996, AMC began venturing into original movies and series, showing potential and earning multiple Emmy nominations.

After the turn of the millennium, AMC sought to break free from the control of movie companies and fully develop its original content. But they soon realized—

In Hollywood, obstacles were everywhere.

They had to rent studios from other companies, use other companies' production teams, and constantly navigate between major players.

This led AMC to consider new options.

Perhaps they could leave Los Angeles and carve out a new territory?

The idea wasn't too bold, as other film companies had also realized Los Angeles had limited space and had started exploring other cities like New Orleans, Seattle, Philadelphia, and Boston.

However, so far, these cities and their states hadn't offered many incentives, with the exception of Pennsylvania, where films like "Rocky" and "Philadelphia" were shot on location.

AMC needed new ground.

After negotiating with various states and officials, Georgia came into view.

AMC teamed up with Lionsgate, a Canadian company, to establish a new filming base in Atlanta. Georgia showed keen interest, but turning this concept into reality required overcoming numerous hurdles.

Currently, it was still in the preliminary stages. AMC and Lionsgate alone weren't strong enough to push policies through; they needed a giant like Disney on board.

Darren leaked some information to Anson: Warner Bros. had shown some interest.

The success of "Spider-Man" had finally prompted Warner Bros. to dig out its DC Comics rights, locked away in storage, and reboot the superhero series.

But these films were expected to be costly, and Warner Bros. didn't plan to gamble everything like Sony-Columbia did. They needed to control costs.

If they could build a studio in Atlanta and secure tax breaks from the state, Warner Bros. could develop Atlanta into a second film production hub, exploring more possibilities for superhero adaptations at a relatively controlled cost.

However, this was just interest and rumors for now.

AMC and Lionsgate weren't yet strong enough to push policies forward, so Atlanta's production environment remained chaotic.

This was the situation McKee and Eric encountered.

They'd never seen anything like it before. After seven years of seclusion, the two reclusive men were suddenly faced with chaos. Overwhelmed, they quickly retreated and eventually made their way north to Vancouver.

Vancouver, although part of Canada, is known as "Hollywood North."

Since the early 1990s, Vancouver had welcomed Hollywood's film industry with open arms. Starting with "The X-Files," which was filmed in Vancouver, the city gradually became a favored destination for numerous productions.

In addition to tax advantages and low costs, Vancouver's diverse landscapes, modern urban settings, and surrounding natural environments provided rich filming locations for various film genres, making it an attractive option.

Thus, many film crews chose to shoot on location in Vancouver, similar to Philadelphia. However, what AMC and Lionsgate intended to do in Atlanta was set up a studio.

There was a slight difference.

Not only "The Butterfly Effect" but Chris Evans also came to Vancouver last month to film "The Perfect Score," half-jokingly saying he came to visit—

So Anson decided to drop by for a visit.

"The Butterfly Effect" hadn't started filming yet, and Anson arrived in Vancouver early, taking the opportunity to visit the set and cheer on his friend.

The car slowed to a stop, and he could immediately see the designated filming area, marked by signs and cordoned off with tape, clearly informing passersby that filming was in progress.

But that wasn't all.

Outside the tape, a security guard in uniform was patrolling, ensuring no curious kids or oblivious pedestrians wandered in.

However, from outside the tape, nothing could be seen of the school's interior—it just looked like an ordinary high school. So there were no crowds gathered, and the area was relatively quiet.

Clearly, for Vancouver residents, this was no big deal. Like in Los Angeles or New York, countless productions were filmed here yearly, so there was no need to make a fuss.

Anson stepped forward, only to be stopped by the serious-looking security guard.

"Sorry, this area is closed for filming. No unauthorized personnel are allowed."