Conversation so far:
what happened to gus van sant in 1982?
After spending time in Europe, Van Sant went to Los Angeles in 1976.
He secured a job as a production assistant to writer/director Ken Shapiro.
what did he do with ken?
assistant to writer/director Ken Shapiro, with whom he developed a few ideas, none of which came to fruition.
did he stay with ken?
In 1981, Van Sant made Alice in Hollywood, a film about a naive young actress who goes to Hollywood and abandons her ideals.

Question: was the movie popular?
Self-contained rewrite: Was the movie Alice in Hollywood popular?