“I’m already here; I will talk to you later. Wish me luck. Bye.” Victoria said to the person on the other line before stowing her phone into her purse. The elevator announced her arrival on the 22nd floor of the building housing TriuM Entertainment – Korea.  She took a calming breath before stepping out directly into the reception area. She waved a greeting at the receptionist who greeted her back and told her that she is to go to the conference room. The production company leased the entire floor. She turned to the left and started towards the said room. She met Carol along the way, the woman had files tucked in her arms, she looked a bit frantic and was relieved when she spotted Victoria coming towards her.

“What’s happening?” she asked Miranda’s assistant.

“A mess! A huge freaking mess!” Carol exclaimed, her eyes looking wild. She took hold of Victoria’s arm to usher her towards the conference room. They turned a sharp right and continued walking.

“Oh I don’t know what to do. Miranda is not pleased and everyone is bound to get hurt.” She said worriedly.

They arrived in front of an imposing double door,  Carol pushed it open and walked in followed by Victoria. The room as filled with tension so thick you could slice it with a knife. People stopped talking for a moment as they walked it. Victoria greeted the people in the room and they warmly greeted her back before launching in fresh agitated discussion. The long mahogany table was hosting an emergency meeting. On one end a casting director, a production manager, a script supervisor, a publicist, an executive producer, director and the managing director of TriuM Entertainment were arguing in hushed tones, as Victoria walked by she could hear blaming and threatening voices, while the other end of the table had a complete opposite atmosphere. There at the head of the conference table – reading a file – sat a very calm and collected Miranda.

“Hi unnie!” Victoria greeted her sister quietly and kissed a cheek. The older woman looked up from her file and smiled a greeting. They had agreed to go out for dinner, she was here to meet the actress so that they can go to the restaurant together, initially they were to meet at the venue but the plans changed due to an incident that happened last night that made itself known through a breaking news report early in the morning. She took a seat next to Miranda. The voices were getting louder.

“The network is screaming bloody murder! They want to cancel the drama!” the publicist threw her hands up in a panic.

“Now listen here, we are not cancelling anything! Our ratings are sky high, we did not work hard on this project just to have the it cancelled!”

“I knew that ungrateful brat was going to ruin this, didn’t I tell you?! But you went ahead and casted him anyway. I told you before that he has an evil streak! The day he stood us all up for the first filming, I told you to find someone else!”

“How was I supposed to know that he is going to end up in this scandal?! I already chastised him of his behavior and didn’t he deliver? We don’t even know if it’s true, any of it. His management is going to issue a statement we should at least wait for that.”

“Wait for what?! Wait for our viewers to shun us?! Is that what you want?!”

The voices got higher as the argument got heated. They all flinched when Miranda closed the file she just finished signing and handed it to Carol. She leaned back on her chair and gazed at them with a cool expression.

“Fix it.” She said in a quiet voice.

Victoria involuntarily winced at the tone. Miranda never raises her voice when in a very displeased situation, not even when she is infuriated. She told her once that screaming at the other party does not get you results, they just become agitated and unreasonable thus prolonging an argument that no one wants to lose. She also added that showing your anger towards that person just makes you vulnerable, it is best to keep cool so you have a full bearing of your faculties – so you don’t make mistakes – so you win.

Daniel Park, the Managing Director of TriuM E – Korea, sighed from his chair, “Now Miranda, it’s not that simple.” He is the man in charge of running the Korean branch of the production company. He oversees all the projects the company creates. They partner up with television networks and film studios for the distribution and marketing side but the creative side and the production of the projects are solely controlled by the company. Normally he is responsible of all the decisions except when a more powerful figure of the company is present, namely it’s owner.

“How can it not be simple?” Miranda inquired, she was arching her brow at the man ten years her senior. She moved her eyes around the room that was filled with people who were more than capable at their respective jobs. She hates meddling; one reason why you pay top dollar for talents is to let them do their job, not look over their shoulders all the time.

Daniel looked at Victoria imploringly but turned back to Miranda, “The network wants to pull the plug. This scandal is going to cost us a lot of money.”

Victoria looked at the man sadly. The reason they were not surprised to see her here is because technically she is one of the bosses. She has stakes in the company, a financial investment she made at the urgings of Miranda, a decision she never regretted – A fact, unknown to the public. As far as the world knows, TriuM Entertainment is a flourishing production company established five years ago by a holding company, but the truth is Miranda Lee is the owner. The reason the she is not interested in the fame of being an actress is because it’s not her bread and butter. Miranda owns the majority of stocks with the rest belonging to Victoria, her friends Melissa and Maja and a handful of investors.

In the years after its establishment, TriuM Entertainment has churned out more than just successful films and dramas in Korea, the Philippines and in North America. Most of Miranda’s films are produced by the company. It is worth saying that most of those successful projects were initiated by the actress herself. She has a knack in finding great material; “Renata” was one of her finds. The film grossed more than ten times the expected target, a feat that they have been able to repeat