Huayu: The director just wants to save money

Chapter 887 Unexpected, but reasonable

Despite the impressive box office performance of "Parasite" in China, according to company statistics, the film's reception was quite polarized.

This doesn't mean that some people think the movie is good and some people think it's bad.

Overall, the audience approved of the film's quality.

The point of contention lies in whether Parasite truly deserves the Oscars for Best Picture or Best Director.

Some viewers believe it is certainly worthwhile. Even films like "Moonlight" and "The Shape of Water" can win major awards, so why can't a film like "Parasite," which focuses on class, win one?

Some viewers disagree, arguing that several films this year were quite excellent, and that "Parasite" was not significantly better than its competitors.

Neither of these viewpoints is nonsense; both have some merit.

Zhou Mo's preparations for "Parasite" to win awards had two aspects:

One is to showcase as many of the buffs contained in "Parasite" as possible, which is also his forte.
Another point is to showcase the commercial value of "Parasite" as much as possible.

Although the Oscars emphasize the pursuit of art every year, their fundamental focus on theatrical releases has never changed.

One reason why George R.R. Martin's "The Irishman" received ten nominations this year but won none is its collaboration with Netflix and its decision to forgo theatrical release.

Then, the long-awaited Oscars ceremony officially began.

This year's Oscars have seen many changes.

The award that had been held for many years, Best Foreign Language Film, has been changed to Best International Film.

Before the official awards ceremony, a compilation of classic works was played.

Two of the films are closely related to Zhou Mo and Zhang Yimou.

Both of these films symbolize milestone achievements for Chinese-language films on the international stage, or more specifically in America.

A film that was hailed by countless American viewers as the pinnacle of Chinese-language cinema.

One film, which won the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar the following year.

The moment Da Tiantian saw "You Exist in My Song," she immediately grabbed Zhou Mo's arm.

"Zhou Mo, this is your work! Take a look!"

Zhou Mo smiled and nodded. Having his work featured in a compilation at this time was undoubtedly a form of recognition.

Looking back at Zhang Yimou, sure enough, he also had a smile on his face.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Mo suddenly remembered something from his past life.

In 2017, also at the Oscars, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

As is customary, the host made some jokes. When it came to Matt Damon, the host said in a very cheerful tone, "He originally accepted 'Manchester by the Sea,' but in the end he chose a Chinese film and lost $80 million."

The Chinese film the host was referring to was Zhang Yimou's earth-shattering and tear-jerking film, "The Great Wall."

Fortunately, under Zhou Mo's influence, "The Great Wall" has completely changed in this life, becoming the key to unlocking the "immortal and immortal" IP.

Zhang Yimou did not suffer the same fate as "The Great Wall," where his "spiritual heart" completely collapsed, and he went entirely down the path of abstraction.

A few moments later, the highlights finished playing.

Finally, it was time to announce the awards.

Without a doubt, the winner is Parasite.

Zhang Yimou turned around and exchanged a glance with Zhou Mo before getting up and walking towards the podium.

At this moment, he was extremely excited.

Over the years, he has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film multiple times, but he has always fallen just short of winning.

Today, my wish has finally come true.

On the podium, Zhang Yimou slowly shared his thoughts.

Listening to Zhang Yimou's somewhat agitated voice from below the stage, Da Tiantian suddenly had a thought and whispered in Zhou Mo's ear, "Do you think that if 'Parasite' really wins an award, Director Zhang won't have high blood pressure when he goes on stage?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Mo silently glanced at Da Tian Tian's hands, which had been trembling slightly since the start of the ceremony.

"Miss Sweetie, I think you need to control your blood pressure first."

Da Tiantian noticed her hands, and instantly stopped giggling, silently nodding twice.

Alexander...

A moment later, Zhang Yimou returned.

After the people in the seats took turns congratulating him, Zhou Mo asked with a smile, "How does it feel to receive this award?"

"I am very satisfied with my visit today."

Zhang Yimou was very happy, and he couldn't stop smiling.

After the Best International Film award, the awards ceremony continued. After quite some time, the awards for cinematography, sound, and other categories were presented, and finally it was time for the character awards. The first character award was for Best Supporting Actress.

Da Tian Tian's emotions had already fallen into extreme tension several minutes earlier.

Her right hand gripped Zhou Mo's wrist tightly, squeezing her hand until it turned snow-white.

Zhou Mo gently patted Da Tian Tian's arm, recalling in his mind all the public relations procedures he had gone through when he last came to America.

The last time he traveled around America, he ended up doing just one thing.

Throwing money.

Spending a full eight figures in US dollars, there has to be some impact.

Although Weinstein himself is now gone for tea, the PR agencies and organizations surrounding the Oscars have not disappeared.

Zhou Mo can still throw money around in the same way as before.

However, without Weinstein, a veteran in public relations, both the success rate and the cost of public relations have changed somewhat.

The success rate has decreased, and the cost has increased.

This is also why Zhou Mo's chances of winning the Oscars were not as certain as in previous years.

At this moment, the moment for the winners to be announced on stage finally arrived.

"The winners..."

……

When her name was announced, Da Tiantian felt her mind go blank for a few seconds.

I can't think of anything.

I felt nothing.

A few seconds later, she came to her senses and subconsciously looked at Zhou Mo, only to be met with his smiling eyes.

"Zhou Mo, was that my name just called out?"

Yes, it's you.

Did I win Best Supporting Actress?

"Yes, you are the Best Supporting Actress this year."

Wow.

Another shock hit, and Da Tiantian felt her head spinning again. But this time, before she could even begin, Zhou Mo interrupted her spellcasting.

"Don't forget you're going to give a speech, Ms. Jing, who won the Best Supporting Actress award."

Zhou Mo squeezed Da Tian Tian's little hand, and the latter finally reacted.

Yes, we even have to go on stage to receive the award.

Perhaps because she had rehearsed beforehand, Da Tiantian quickly regained her composure after she came to her senses. Although there were still some tears in her eyes, at least her breathing had become steady.

"Then I'll go."

"Ah."

Da Tian Tian stood up, left her seat, and slowly walked towards the awards stage.

"grateful……"

Zhou Mo looked at Da Tian Tian on the stage, gleaming under the lights, and a smile involuntarily crept onto his lips.

Not easy.

After all these years, he has finally successfully trained an actress who has achieved both acting skills and academic success, making all his hard work over the years worthwhile. At this moment, Zhang Yimou gently nudged Zhou Mo with his elbow.

"How do you feel now?"

“It’s quite fulfilling,” Zhou Mo said with a smile. “In the past, I didn’t really understand this idea of continuously cultivating actors. To me, actors were more like parts in a movie, the only difference being whether they were useful or not.”

Now, I feel like I'm starting to nurture her. Watching her go on stage to receive the award, the sense of accomplishment I feel is no less than when I received an award myself.

Zhang Yimou nodded emphatically.

"That's exactly right. It's like sculpting a clay figure. As you refine it, the clay figure becomes more and more beautiful, eventually reaching a lifelike level. The sense of accomplishment is unparalleled."

While the two were talking, Da Tian Tian had already finished giving her acceptance speech.

She returned with light steps, but before she could even get to her seat, the trophy was taken away by Zhang Ziyi.

"Sweetie, quick, let me see the trophy."

Zhang Ziyi held the trophy, her eyes filled with such intense emotion that they almost seemed to overflow.

She has worked hard for many years and won many awards, but she has never been able to win an individual award like the Oscar or the European Golden Globe.

To say that I am not envious is a lie.

Fortunately, she also knew that behind this award was the accumulation of Zhou Mo and Tian Tian over the years, so she was just envious and didn't have any negative emotions.

After Zhang Ziyi's comments, Gong Li's reaction was much more relaxed.

Some people are envious.

Fortunately, she had won the Venice Film Festival award many years ago and was absolutely confident in her acting skills, so after looking at the trophy for a while, she handed it to Peng Yu to sing.

Peng Yuchang stared intently at the trophy in his hand, as if it contained some profound truth about the universe.

"What are you looking at?"

"Let's see if this thing is pure gold."

Among the group, Peng Yuchang was probably the most relaxed.

He never thought he would have a chance to win an award.

On the contrary, every day on the set of "Parasite" was full of surprises and anticipation for him.

Who would have thought that he would suddenly be invited to make a movie, suddenly be nominated for the Palme d'Or, and suddenly be nominated for the Oscars?

Peng Yu sometimes thinks about this.

I'm just an ordinary actor.

Do I deserve to attend a film festival of this caliber?

But it has already happened, and it's true no matter how hard you try to believe it.

Therefore, Peng Yu is happy every day.

He was happy even without winning an award, because he was already content.

He was even happier to win the award, because it was a completely unexpected joy.

In contrast, the other two male actors in the crew had much more complicated feelings.

“An Oscar.” Chen Daoming looked at the trophy over and over.

Zhou Mo asked with a smile, "Is Teacher Chen envious?"

"Well, it's impossible not to be tempted by a certificate of acting skills that's recognized worldwide," Chen Daoming said frankly.

Zhou Mo raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised by Chen Daoming's directness.

However, given Chen Daoming's current situation, there's really nothing to hide, so he can say whatever he wants.

"If you really want an award, Professor Chen, there might be a chance to work on it, but you have to wait for the right opportunity. Good films aren't easy to get, and the other people can also do so if they want to."

Chen Daoming wasn't surprised that Zhou Mo had this ability, but he was somewhat surprised by Zhou Mo's initiative.

"Is Director Zhou willing to help actors secure international awards?"

"There's nothing I'm unwilling about. I've actually been sending out signals to the entertainment industry to help me get things done, but it's only directors who have worked with me, and very few actors."

Upon reflection, everyone realized that this was indeed the case.

To date, Zhou Mo has helped several directors, including Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, Wang Jing, Ning Hao, and Han Jianu, to secure international film awards.

Both their reputation and capabilities are quite reliable.

After everyone had processed the news, Zhang Ziyi was the first to speak.

"If Director Zhou helps to make it happen, how much would it cost?"

Zhou Mo did a quick calculation in his mind.

"If it were Sister Ziyi, a small goal might be enough."

When the words "a small goal" were uttered, the enthusiasm in Zhang Ziyi's eyes quickly dissipated.

To be fair, the price Zhou Mo offered was even more favorable than the price Weinstein had given her back then.

However, the price-performance ratio is still too low.

She could scrape together a small amount of money.

But it's pointless.

She has enough money to last her many years, but even if she manages to get an Oscar-winning actress, she'll definitely not break even.

Forget it.

After Zhang Ziyi, no one asked about the operations anymore.

Zhou Mo didn't ask any more questions. Ultimately, the decision of how to manage the awards was up to the individual; he was just there to help.

The reason for doing this is to introduce more award winners and judges to the international film market, so that one day they can give back to the domestic film industry.

By this time, the winners of Best Supporting Actor, Best Actress, and Best Actor had been introduced one after another on stage.

The Best Supporting Actor is Brad Pitt, the Best Actress is Renée Zegway, and the Best Actor is Joaquin Phoenix.

They are all old acquaintances.

It's worth mentioning that Scarlett Johansson was also nominated for Best Actress, but unfortunately she didn't win.

The moment the Best Actor winner finished his acceptance speech, the entire venue seemed to fall into a tense atmosphere.

The acting awards have now been presented.

All that's left is the Director Award and the Best Picture Award.

Zhou Mo and Zhang Yimou exchanged a glance, waiting for the awards to be announced.

Based on the results of their previous discussions, Parasite is likely to win either Best Picture or Best Director at this awards ceremony, and it is almost certain to win one of them.

This is the result of repeated efforts by Zhou Mo and Zhang Yimou, and it is also proof of the quality of "Parasite" itself.

But like in the previous life, the scenario of winning both Best Picture and Best Director in one go is basically impossible this time.

Nationality is ultimately one of the factors that the Oscars will consider.

Zhou Mo guessed that the Best Director award was more likely.

With a solid script, Zhang Yimou's filming skills are entirely trustworthy.

"Best Director, Sam Mendes, 1917".

Ok?
Zhou Mo's eyes widened suddenly, quite surprised by the result.

Looking at the images displayed on the screen, he suddenly understood his choice.

"1917", a war film, shot in one continuous shot, a visual feast.

This is indeed a very powerful movie.

However, since "1917" won Best Director, doesn't that mean...?

Zhou Mo turned around and met Zhang Yimou's slightly trembling face.