The Wind of China Entertainment 2005

Chapter 639: Golden Statue in Progress

Hong Kong Cultural Center.

A giant poster stands at the entrance, with a dark green background. A golden goddess is holding up the blue earth surrounded by film and looking up at the vast sky.

There are not many mainland actors participating in this year's Academy Awards. In addition to Lu Yuan and his group, there are Zhang Guoli, Zhou Xun, Xu Fan, Wuer Eel, and Jiang Yiyan.
The red carpet ceremony had not officially begun yet, and the attendees were waiting outside in groups of three or four, chatting and laughing.

Academy Awards Chairman Chen Jiashang, Chen Baixiang, Zeng Zhiwei and others were gathered together, chatting animatedly.

"Zhiwei, how are the preparations for tomorrow's birthday party going?" Chen Jiashang asked.

Zeng Zhiwei was wearing a suit top and gaudy liver-colored pants, looking out of place. He had a smile on his face and his voice was like a duck.

"Everything is ready. You can't make any excuses for being absent this time."

"No, no." Chen Jiashang responded with a laugh.

The Academy Awards were originally scheduled to be held on April 4, but Zeng Zhiwei will be turning 14 on the 14th. TVB will invite 60 people from the entertainment industry to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center to celebrate his birthday.

In order to prevent stars from running back and forth and affecting the quality of the award ceremony, the Academy Awards had to give way and hold the award ceremony one day earlier on the 13th.

Chen Jiashang sometimes feels that the Academy Awards are really going backwards and even has to give way to artistes when holding a gala.

Just as everyone was about to continue the in-depth conversation, the noisy crowd suddenly became quiet for a moment.

They turned their heads and saw Lu Yuan, Wen Muye and Xu Zheng getting out of the car, instantly becoming the focus of the whole audience.

All the people from the film and television industry present cast their eyes on the figure in the middle.

No one can say with their eyes open that they don't know each other.

He appeared in two Chinese-language films that grossed over 40 billion yuan. It has only been a few years since he made the transition to the big screen, with a total box office of over billion yuan.

The younger generation in Hong Kong is far behind him and are not even worthy of carrying his shoes. He is now taking advantage of the older generation to beat them up.

Suddenly it was a mess!
The Hong Kong artist looked at Lu Yuan with complicated eyes.

On the one hand, they sincerely envied Lu Yuan's data. If this result were put in Hong Kong, he would definitely be a superstar and the king of Asia, and they would praise him to the sky.

But the other party is not from Hong Kong.

On the other hand, they are also very unhappy. Why should mainland artists come to their territory to share a piece of the pie?

"New World" also won 12 nominations!
As the chairman of the Academy Awards, Chen Jiashang has many feelings about this.

Compared with previous years, the reason why this year's Academy Awards was able to raise tens of millions of dollars was largely due to "New World" and Lu Yuan's nomination.

Well-known mainland brands such as Runtian, Jiaduobao, and Wanglaoji have made generous donations, making it clear that they came for Lu Yuan's fame.

This does not mean that Lu Yuan's status has surpassed veteran superstars such as Cheng Long, but it is due to his commercial value.

Brands will conduct in-depth analysis of the additive effects that artists have on themselves from multiple dimensions.

Lu Yuan is extremely popular in the mainland, especially among young people, where his influence is unprecedented. He is able to penetrate into all areas of daily consumer goods, far surpassing these old faces in Hong Kong.

If the same product is endorsed by Lu Yuan and Cheng Long respectively, Cheng Long will find it difficult to compete with Lu Yuan in terms of sales. This is the cruel reality.

Because Cheng Long's fans are older and more rational, verbal support may be feasible, but when it comes to consumption, they are often cautious.

"Teacher Lu, nice to meet you. I'm Wen Yongshan."

"Director Wen, hello, I'm Zhang Lanxin."

"Teacher Lu, I watched New World. It's a great movie."

"Thank you!"

"Is this your first time attending the Academy Awards?"

"Correct."

Facing his colleagues who came over, Lu Yuan greeted them politely. Turning around, he saw Wen Muye standing behind him in a daze.

"what happened?"

Wen Muye clenched his fist, coughed dryly, and said unnaturally: "No, nothing."

Lu Yuan was sharp-eyed and noticed that the guy was holding a business card in his hand. He immediately realized what had just happened.

"Whose business card is this?"

"The one called Wen Yongshan." Xu Zheng interrupted.

"Oh, it's her." Lu Yuan hadn't paid much attention to her before, but now he looked at her carefully. She had a graceful figure, with a curvy figure, and was wearing a backless golden long dress, which she dared to wear and show off.

"She does look good, and her path is similar to Yang Ying's. What's up, Mu Ye? You two happen to have the same last name, Wen. It's quite a coincidence."

He was joking.

Yang Ying and Janice Man both debuted in the modeling industry. They were best friends and inseparable.

The agency they signed with also hopes that they can replicate the success of Ah Sa and Gillian.

However, because of competing for film and television resources, the two resorted to various means and finally became strangers. Yang Ying hooked up with Huang Xiaoming and they became one of the four little beauties.

Wen Yongshan was far behind and urgently needed someone to stand behind her.

Wen Muye's mind wandered, and he didn't hear what he said at all. He muttered to himself: "Boss, why didn't she give you her business card? Am I more handsome than you?"

He narrowed his eyes, puffed out his chest, and looked quite complacent.

Lu Yuan patted his shoulder gently: "Maybe she thinks Director Wen is simple and easier to approach."

Is the boss scolding Wen Muye frowned.

"Director Wen, what he means is that you might be easier to fool in the eyes of the other party." Zhou Xun approached without knowing when.

Wen Muye: “.”

"Aren't you unable to explain it?" Lu Yuan was curious.

Zhou Xun took two Best Actress nominations for her roles in the films "The Whisperer" and "The Great Magician".

Compared with several nominees, Zhou Xun's acting skills are impeccable, but she suffers from being nominated for two films, which is a disadvantage for her. The media generally favors Sammi Cheng and Miriam Yeung, both of whom are representatives of Hong Kong actresses and were invincible in their golden years.

"How can I bear to let you fight alone?" Zhou Xun joked.

Lu Yuan glanced at her.

The red carpet ceremony began and the artists present entered in order.

In addition to the live text and picture broadcasts on major portals, this year's Academy Awards ceremony will also be broadcast live via video on the film website, with simultaneous interpretation.

Therefore, when the red carpet ceremony began, a large number of netizens instantly poured into the live broadcast room of the movie website, making it extremely lively.

A female fan anxiously asked: "Where is my husband?"

"Why hasn't Lu Yuan walked on the red carpet yet?"

"Damn, I don't understand Cantonese. What are these two hosts talking about? Can't they just speak Mandarin?"

"The simultaneous translation on the movie website is not very good. It is choppy and I always feel that the explanation is not complete."

"The Hong Kong Film Awards is originally a film award for Hong Kong. Why do they require the host to speak Mandarin?"

"Brothers, voting has started on Weibo. Who will win the Best Actor award at the Academy Awards tonight? Lu Yuan is currently leading by a large margin. Liang Jiahui is in second place, but the gap is obvious. Liang Chaowei is in third place."

"I think netizens are too optimistic. The possibility of Lu Yuan winning the award is not high." A rational netizen analyzed.

"Don't think so!" Another netizen retorted: "The box office of "New World" is as high as 13 billion, which is the pinnacle of Chinese-language films. The subject matter is still the police and gangster films that Hong Kong is best at, comparable to the classic "Infernal Affairs". Even many friends around me think that the plot of "New World" is more exciting than "Infernal Affairs".

Liang Chaowei was able to win the Best Actor award for Infernal Affairs, so why can't Lu Yuan? If he is not awarded the award at the Academy Awards this time, then this award will become a huge joke in the future!"

"."

The award ceremony has not yet begun, but an uproar has already arisen on the Internet, with netizens expressing their opinions and arguing endlessly.

The shortlist for this year's Best Actor at the Academy Awards.

Zhang Jiahui's "The Big Chase", Du Wenze's "Vulgar Comedy", Liu Qingyun's "The Vanishing Bullet", Liang Jiahui's "Cold War", and Liang Chaowei's "The Whisperer".

And the only mainland actor, Lu Yuan in "New World".

Let's not talk about other awards, for the Best Actor at the Hong Kong Film Awards, Lu Yuan and Liang Jiahui had the highest support. The red carpet for the Hong Kong Film Awards is not long, about 30 meters.

On the left is a poster filled with photos of the selected films and actors, and on the right are reporters from various media outlets.

In the live broadcast room, the translator of the movie website said: "Next, walking on the red carpet are the powerful mainland actor Lu Yuan and the new billion-dollar director Wen Muye. This year's Academy Awards, "New World" received 12 nominations, Lu Yuan was nominated for Best Actor, and Wen Muye was nominated for Best Director. In addition, Lu Yuan's debut directorial "Time Raiders" was selected as the best cross-strait Chinese film!"

Lu Yuan and Wen Muye, along with other crew members, such as screenwriters, action and costume designers, etc., a total of about ten people, walked onto the red carpet in a hurry.

After signing, Lu Yuan and Wen Muye were stopped by the female host called "Stupid".

"Teacher Lu, Director Wen, please stand in the middle and talk to us."

The female host made way for Lu Yuan and asked, "This is your first time attending the Academy Awards ceremony. How do you feel?"

Lu Yuan took the microphone from another male host and looked at the sea: "Not bad, Victoria Harbour is beautiful, and the sea breeze is very comfortable."

"'New World' is a very good film. It has been released for 20 days and has a box office of 13 billion. As the leading actor, do you have the confidence to win the Best Actor award this time?"

Lu Yuan smiled and said, "The box office performance of New World has exceeded everyone's expectations. I am very satisfied. As for whether I have the confidence to win the award, I will answer you after the party is over!"

"Hahaha."

"Who do you think will be your biggest rival among the other five nominees? Or who do you think is the most promising candidate besides yourself?"

"Brother Jiahui!"

"Zhang Jiahui, or Liang Jiahui?"

"Guess!" Lu Yuan would not fall for it.

The female host turned around and asked, "Director Wen Muye set a Chinese box office record in his first directorial debut. Are you confident in being nominated for Best Director this time?"

"Of course!" Wen Muye answered confidently.

Well, he knew he had no chance, the exclusivity of the Academy Awards was obvious to all.

He is confident that Lu Yuan can win the Best Actor award at the Academy Awards.

Because "New World" beats all the Hong Kong films nominated this time, even the best-reviewed "Cold War" is nothing compared to "New World".

Wen Muye had thought it through before coming.

The eldest brother needs to maintain a humble attitude because of his status as an actor, but he doesn't.

If things don't go as expected, he will say what the boss can't say, and he will scold what the boss can't scold.
He knows better than anyone how he became the new billion-dollar director.

If he hadn't had the support of his boss, he would probably be like other classmates, worrying about the hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for his graduation short film.

To use the words in Hong Kong movies, he is the boss's number one henchman, and he can do whatever he is told to do.

loyalty!!
He looked directly into the camera and added: "Because I believe in the vision and professionalism of the Academy Awards judges!"

The female host was stunned for a moment and heard the hidden meaning.

The netizens who were waiting in the live broadcast room were going crazy with joy.

"Everyone, look here. I'll translate for Wen Baobao. The judges of the Academy Awards, please pay attention. If you don't give the award to "New World", don't blame me, the billionaire director, for openly questioning the professional ability of the judges of the Academy Awards and the credibility of the award!"

"Wen Muye is so impulsive. He dares to say this. Isn't he afraid of offending the Academy Awards?"

"Do you understand the value of a billion-dollar director?"

"What's there to be afraid of? The mainland market is so huge, how can we lack his little things? Do you still think it's the past? Times have changed!"

"."

After the red carpet, Lu Yuan and his group entered the venue and a staff member handed them translation headphones.

After several people sat down in the seats arranged by the organizer, they found that the leading actors of "1942" Zhang Guoli and Xu Fan were next to them.

"Sister Xu, why didn't Director Feng come over?"

"He's busy filming 'Personal Customization'." Xu Fan glanced at the camera and lowered his voice: "Is your chance good this time? Did you receive the message?"

Zhang Guoli, who was standing by, tilted his head and came over curiously.

The mainland has not yet produced a Golden Statue Award-winning actor, and Jet Li is not counted as he was not a Chinese citizen when he starred in The Warlords.

Lu Yuan shook his head: "Two days ago, Ying Huang mentioned it on the phone, saying that there is hope, but only Chen Jiashang himself knows the specific list."

Zhang Guoli joined the conversation: "You can't trust what Ying Huang said. Last year, Jiang Wen brought "Let the Bullets Fly" and was also nominated for more than a dozen awards, but in the end it only won one award for Best Costume Design. They are simply treating Jiang Wen like a fool."

"They are different. The subject matter of "New World" is more like a Hong Kong film, while "Let the Bullets Fly" has too obvious mainland characteristics." Xu Fan expressed his dissenting opinion.

Lu Yuan shrugged: "Let's see."

While a few people were chatting, the Academy Awards ceremony officially began. Chin Kar Lok came on stage to warm up the audience, speaking Cantonese.

Most of the mainland actors cannot understand Cantonese and need to wear translation headphones. They are also slow to react to many jokes.

There was laughter in the venue and the atmosphere was lively. Lu Yuan sat in his seat, resting his chin in a daze, not knowing what they were laughing at.

The camera kept scanning his direction from time to time, and this feeling of being out of place made him feel very uncomfortable.

"New World" received twelve nominations this time, namely: Best Film, Director, Screenwriter, Actor, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Costume Design, Best Action Design, Best Visual Effects, and Best Sound Effects.

The awards were presented one by one, and Hong Kong film and television practitioners took the stage one by one.

The Best Newcomer award was given to Xu Jiajie from "Cold War".

New director: Chow Hin-yeung in "The Big Chase".

Best Screenplay: Liang Lok Man and Luk Kim Ching for "Cold War".

"..."

"The New World" was nominated for twelve awards, and clips of the film flashed on the big screen many times, but it was doomed to miss nine of them because they had already been awarded.

Every time an award was presented, someone would cast a secret gaze towards Lu Yuan's row with a meaningful look.

Lu Yuan frowned slightly. Now, the only three heavyweight awards related to "New World" were Best Film, Best Actor, and Best Director.

Next up is Best Director.

Aaron Kwok took the stage and said: "Thank you for giving me this opportunity to announce the best director of the night. In my mind, the best director has to have a good temper."

He talked a lot of nonsense, and finally got back to the point: "Today's Best Director, there are six nominations, but only one award. First, let's take a look at who is on the shortlist."

Movie clips are played on the big screen.

"The nominees for Best Director are Cheang Pou-soi from The Driver, Pang Ho-cheung from Love in a Puff, Law Chi-leung from The Bullet Vanishes, Dante Lam from Invictus Gamble, Leung Lok-man and Luk Kim-ching from Cold War, and Wen Mu-ye from New World!"

The camera on the big screen froze on the locations of several people at the scene.

Wen Muye knew that his chances of winning the prize were slim, but he was still a little excited.

What if, what if the Academy Awards judges come to their senses?

Other local Hong Kong artists at the scene were worried.

They know very well that "New World" is so popular and ranks first in the box office among Chinese-language films. It would be unreasonable not to give it an award, as the netizens' saliva would drown them out.

There were 12 nominations and 9 losses, so will the jury give the award from the remaining three awards?
They were extremely conflicted.

The audience had different thoughts. Aaron Kwok opened the list: "The winner of the 32nd Academy Awards for Best Director is..."

"Cold War!"

"Liang Lemin, Lu Jianqing!"

"Clap clap clap."

Many Hong Kong artists stood up to congratulate the two, feeling relieved but also more worried.

Compared to the Best Director, they couldn't imagine that the Best Actor award was given to a mainlander.

In the guest seats, Wen Muye curled his lips, feeling a little disappointed, and then he complained inwardly.

Rubbish!

(End of this chapter)