"Optimus Prime is brainwashed and tries to kill his best friend, Bumblebee. A human knight teams up with a cynical robot butler named Cogman. Anthony Hopkins rides a mechanical dragon." She laughed. "It’s silly, but the conflict is real: trust has to be rebuilt. Your two main characters agree on everything. That’s boring. Make them enemies who have to work together."

Leo scribbled notes. His drama had two best friends who never argued.

"That’s your assignment," he said. "Don’t analyze it as a good film. Analyze it as a useful one. Find the tools hidden in the wreckage."

Leo sat back. His quiet drama had a brilliant scientist as the lead—cold, logical, perfect. He had no Izabella.

Six months later, Leo’s film got funded. It wasn't a blockbuster. It was a small, sharp, emotional drama that critics called "surprisingly gripping."