You are talking about the people you can find. That's nice, and the choreographer and lead animator from a movie I liked are probably good to have, but... I think I'm confused. I thought you were all going to pitch story ideas?

"That's typically later in the process," says the one who thinks she can get the choreographer. "We don't already have scripts lying around calling for Draak -"

"I do," says another one. "But mine needs at least five, so we're in talks with a claymation studio."

"- okay, we don't have scripts lying around calling for real Draak, because the availability of Draak is new. We'll get someone to write a story around you. Talent makes product, and you're the talent bottleneck right now."

I see. Of course I am good at fighting, and I have even practiced making a show of it sometimes, but I wonder if I am not the most talented Draak but just the most talented Draak who is willing... Though as I told that other guy I can probably get some friends to help for a day or two... Well, that works.

What is the process, then, if choosing the story is not the start?

"Getting together the talent," she goes on. "Screenwriters are talent like anybody else, I'll rope in someone from my studio and tell them what we're looking for and they'll write something and then it'll go into edits and we'll get concept art and hire more people while that's ongoing."

...How long does all this take? I just fought and let them record it the other day. Should I be planning to spend the winter on this planet?

"We can rush it if you need to be offplanet sooner? You'd need to be dubbed anyway, if you mostly do fight scenes we can probably record some of that in a vacuum and put different narration on it depending -"

"If you'd rather do something fast I know the people who did Four Swords, twenty minute martial arts piece with no dialogue, I think we could crank out the parts of that which'd need you on set in - two months but let's say three because there's often scheduling overrun."

Those don't sound as nice as Planet Alone was, but maybe. I'm just worried about falling into a great sleep before we finish. I already feel it a little bit, because of the autumn. It's weird, since we're coming into spring back home.

"We could get some preliminaries handled and plan to film in spring."

"I usually avoid shooting in spring, nobody's on task -"

"Maybe you can afford to just not shoot a quarter of the year."

I'm not sure whether or not I'll do that yet, or how much I'll do it. Nobody's quite sure how very long seasons will affect us.

"Well, we can get everything together, and shelve it till you're ready if you fall asleep, we don't hibernate but things like that happens if actors are injured or something."

Could I do both a fast and slow one?

"Sure, that's a good idea. Most actors and stunt people have a few balls in the air at a time."

Yes-good. I like the idea of having the same choreographer as Planet Alone. I also like the idea of getting money and I'm going to stay here until I have a contract because I have a guarding job.

"I've actually got a standard contract on me."

"How, my yellows aren't even sure Draak can sign contracts -"

"There's a busload of blues around, I'll get one to witness."

I could mark the sigils of my name. I want to know exactly what is being promised before I do something like that though.

"Oh, yeah, I can read it to you, if you're ready."

"I can get something emailed to me for a proxy e-signature, since you want to do both."

I will listen! 

He pays closest attention to the parts about what he needs to do and when/how much he will get paid.

The contract is a hastily edited boilerplate; Sunwind agrees to appear in at least one movie, if the return on the movie is at least yea much he agrees to appear in at least one sequel, only applies if the studio is ready for him under thus and such conditions by thus and such time, he's entitled to this much flat or this percentage of the net whichever's greater as of two weeks after opening unless he wants to cash out with his flat rate early, entitled to unionize, food provided on set, bonus if it goes over so many days of filming due to studio issue or weather or third party action, arbitration with this firm, entitled to yea many vetoes on costars and such, unexpected expenses associated with him such as replacing a makeup artist he doesn't like or fixing stuff he breaks or whatever can come out of his pay, etcetera etcetera.

...This is confusing and complicated and he's not entirely sure he trusts it. Listening to someone who actually knows these things explain it helps but only so much.

He doesn't like promising to appear in a sequel when he doesn't know what doing it the first time will really be like. What's a union? Where will he live during this? Can he get a zero interest loan or a partial advance or something? What happens if everything is a disaster and he wants to abandon ship, does he just not get paid or what?

The sequel clause is only for if the first one makes it unusually big - one of the five most popular movies in a year, is about the magnitude of that figure - and it's not always included even in movies that might have that potential. They can edit it out but would rather compensate him for not liking it in some other way since they think the first movie with a Draak in it could be that popular and they'd like to follow up.

A union is a group of people who all work in the same industry and can coordinate work stoppage or other measures to put pressure on their employers. They're required to let their actors belong to unions.

He's too big to live in a trailer but they can provide a tent or repurpose a prop warehouse depending on whether they're shooting on location or not.

He can get a zero interest loan if he'll take the sequel clause!

Penalty clause is over here - can't go be in another movie for four years, owes them expenses up to this cap, can reduce the money owed by finding them a suitable replacement for the role, penalty is lesser the earlier in the process he bails out.

I'll probably want to do a sequel but I can't promise I will. I know my own mind - I'm not stubborn enough to do it anyway if it's horrible and awful. Same with the penalty thing. And I don't even HAVE any money to do the penalty clause thing.

"I can swap in the sequel clause with a paragraph about permission to use your likeness in animation, would that be better."

-But then I won't have any influence at all over the story I am placed in.

It feels like I am walking into a trap made of words. I didn't think this would be so complicated.

The other producer says, "I could have one of my yellows come in person if that would help? I'm afraid my contracts don't look a lot different by default."

Maybe.

...Can I go see a movie being made? That might tell me if it's likely to be horrible and awful.