Huayu: Start by asking ex-girlfriends for alms

Chapter 225: Good: Director, help me set up a play. I want to act today.
"Unparalleled, sinking for Jay!"

"A masterpiece of music, a spiritual support."

"Ellen couldn't stop searching for Jay."

Even in a foreign country, there were still fans gathering and creating waves of sound near the red carpet.

Hearing this, Jie Lun became more confident.

He holds his head high and his squinty eyes give him a natural "contempt" effect, making him look so cool.

He turned sideways and gestured to recommend Yang Mi to his fans.

"Yang Mi!"

"Guo Xiang!"

"I won't play dumb, Daiyu Qingwen!"

The fans were very considerate and cheered continuously.

In response, Yang Mi first gave Jie Lun a grateful look, and then waved gracefully in response.

And Jie Lun seems to be addicted to hanging.

2234 happened again, and Yang Mi was replaced by Li Pingbin.

Suddenly, the fans were stunned.

Who is this?
I do not know!

The Jay fans who came to the scene were mainly Italian students studying abroad, and a small number were tourists.

If it was the assistant director Zhen Jiecheng, he would definitely know him, but if it was the photographer, the situation would instantly become awkward!

Seeing this, Ji Jianming hurriedly quickened his pace.

Damn it, it’s fine if Lao Li is the one being blamed, but please don’t let this embarrass me as well!
As the instigator, Jie Lun touched his nose in dissatisfaction.

Facing the "damn it" look from Li Pingbin, he lowered his eyebrows and eyes, unable to hold himself up anymore.

Posing and accepting interviews.

Jielun is already familiar with this process.

As soon as they stepped into the award ceremony venue of the Lido Island Cinema Palace, they were overwhelmed by the awe-inspiring "artistic" atmosphere, which made the two rookies, Jie Lun and Yang Mi, subconsciously look serious.

It seems that any casualness in movements and expressions would be a great disrespect to this palace of art.

In response, Ji Jianming and Li Pingbin looked at each other, and the two old hands smiled, appearing particularly relaxed.

Things are different now. As the world's first international film festival, Venice has long lost its honor as the "Father of International Film Festivals."

Due to the decline in the influence of Italian films and the derby competition formed after the establishment of the Rome Film Festival, the water city is now in an awkward situation.

Compared with the colorful Cannes and the steady and cautious Berlin International Expo, the reforms in Venice seem quite radical.

This is not the first time that the Italian film industry has flirted with Hollywood. Last year, Ben Affleck's Best Actor trophy was booed, and this year, many Hollywood films entered the competition unit, triggering criticism from the Italian media.

During his tenure as host, Marco Mueller not only added Hollywood star glamour to the red carpet of the film festival, but also worked hard to facilitate the entry of many Chinese-language films into the competition.

There was even a special unit called “Secrets of Chinese Films”.

This Italian old man is known as "the first person to promote Chinese films to the world". For his outstanding contribution to Chinese films, he was also awarded the China-Italy Friendship Contribution Award by the Chinese Council of Elders.

"Jie Lun, Mi Mi, relax!"

"The chairman and the judges are all related to Jie Cheng, so coming here is like coming home."

Ji Jianming looked at the two people's serious expressions and couldn't help but said,

"Do you two behave like this in your own home?"

Hearing this, the two were stunned.

"Teacher Ji, Director Yi is your senior's senior and also your teacher's classmate. I know this." Yang Mi asked in confusion, "What is the relationship between the film festival host and you?"

"You don't know this, do you? Mr. Ma Ke studied in China in his early years. When he first visited Beijing Film Academy in 1980, he was attracted by a groundbreaking short film."

"This short film, called Our Corner, was directed by Tian Zhuangzhuang, written by Chen Kaige, and photographed by Zhang Yimou."

Ji Jianming's narration was like a storytelling, which made Yang Mi intoxicated and opened her eyes wide in surprise.

“There is this origin?”

“Hahaha, that’s not all!” Ji Jianming laughed, “I’ll tell you a secret, Mr. Ma Ke has a very close relationship with our “Fifth Generation Directors”, and the one he admires the most is Lao Tian!”

"After Yimou took over the position of chairman of the jury of the 64th Venice Film Festival, Mr. Marco not only called Yimou, but also called Lao Tian to ask if Jiecheng had any plans for new works."

"Commercial films can be screened in Venice. Art films must be screened in Venice first!"

"It's just that 'Taken' was released early, otherwise I would definitely come and take a look."

"Hiss, is Jie Cheng so awesome?" Jie Lun took a breath, "So he can do whatever he wants no matter what kind of movie it is?"

"What else?" Li Pingbin raised his eyebrows. "The three basic principles of Europa: 'booking famous directors' comes before 'giving priority to direct descendants'."

“So it’s not just Venice, it’s Berlin as well.”

While everyone was chatting quietly, the award ceremony had already officially begun.

When it came to the "Horizon Unit", with "Useless" winning the Best Documentary Film, Jia Zhangke, who won the Golden Lion just last year, became the first director to win the highest awards in the two major units for two consecutive years, creating a new monument for the Venice Film Festival.

Seeing this, Li Pingbin applauded and said,
"More than a 'famous director'!"

"Since directors from Beijing Film Academy such as Jia Zhangke have made a great name for themselves in the Europa League, Jie Cheng, who was born in Beijing Film Academy, is naturally a 'direct descendant' of the Europa League!"

"And now, Jie Cheng is just like his senior brothers, making great achievements while paving the way for the younger generations."

Speaking of this, Li Pingbin couldn't help but sigh:
“Beijing Film Academy is home to many talented people.”

"One day, it will definitely become... No! It is already a world-class school in the field of film and television arts!"

A surge of pride instantly flooded into Yang Mi's heart.

So he held his head high and chest out, and looked around with a spirited look.

So I didn’t go down!

The sitting figure of Tang Wei came into view, and the morning bell from the Central Academy of Drama instantly broke my sweet dream.

It’s no doubt that the honor belongs to Beijing Film Academy.

But, alas! It has nothing to do with the acting department.

"The winner of the Special Golden Lion is 12 Angry Men! Congratulations to director Nikita Mikhalkov!"

When the "Honorary Golden Lion" went to someone else, the applause from several crews who had ambitions to compete for the Golden Lion Award for Best Film was undoubtedly the warmest in the audience.

“The title is the same as the American version of 12 Angry Men, but it’s not a remake, it just borrowed the framework.”

Ji Jianming applauded and praised,
"Director Mikhalkov's film is great! When it comes to art, the Russians' aesthetics are truly beyond reproach!"

"The vast land, the sad wind, the endless snow, all became the fuel for the old Russians to ignite the torch of art."

Ji Jianming smacked his lips, as if he was recalling the scenes from "12 Angry Men".

Then he looked at Li Pingbin,
"Lao Li! The Best Technical Contribution Award will be presented soon. How are you? Are you nervous?"

"Nervous as hell!" Li Pingbin curled his lips, "I won the Technical Award at Cannes in 00, why would I need that?"

The tone and expression were full of disdain.

But the slightly straightened waist, the slightly forward tilted head, and the subconscious rubbing of the index finger and thumb, many small movements caught Ji Jianming's eyes. When he was about to open his mouth to tease, the award presenter had already walked onto the stage.

Although 61-year-old Stefania Sandrelli is getting older, she still looks charming.

As one of the most popular actresses in Italy, she was also the goddess of "old guys" such as Li Pingbin and Ji Jianming when they were young.

"When I was talking to Jie Cheng on the phone a few days ago, we talked about Stefania," Ji Jianming said.

"What?" Li Pingbin's eyes widened. "Stefania is already 61 years old, how can Jiecheng..."

"Ahem, what nonsense are you talking about?" Ji Jianming quickly explained, "Jiecheng was talking about art, serious art!"

"What art?"

"Emmm, the art of Tinto Brass."

"Wings of Desire?" Li Pingbin twitched his lips. "Fuck, are you sure you two are talking about serious art?"

"What is Wings of Desire?" Jie Lun poked Yang Mi curiously, "Mi Mi, do you know it? Tell me about it?"

"No, no, no, I don't know!" Yang Mi quickly shook her head.

How can this be known?
Do I have to tell you that this is a story about an old man and a young wife?
The old man was no longer strong and felt deeply frustrated. He accidentally saw his wife and son-in-law dancing. After a series of psychological fluctuations, he began to imagine the relationship between the two and recorded it in his diary. He then locked the diary in a drawer, but deliberately left the key on the ground. As expected, his wife found out and peeked into the diary as he had planned.

The wife was angry at first, but after a series of accidents, she changed her mind and decided to take practical action to retaliate against her husband's stupidity. She also recorded it in her diary, stored it in a place that was easy to find, and deliberately let her husband find it.

So both sides began to secretly read each other's diaries, but pretended not to know.

A wonderful relationship was born!

The more Yang Mi tried not to think about it, the clearer the picture in her mind became.

Her cheeks quickly turned red and her temperature began to heat up.

I couldn't help but curse the author of the original novel of the film, Little Ghost.

Damn it, you dare to write anything!

Just when I was worried that Jie Lun would notice something was wrong, two familiar words suddenly rang in my ears:
SECRET.

Mark Lee Ping-Bin.

Stunned!
My brain freezes briefly.

Until Li Pingbin stood up and the audience burst into warm applause.

Only then did Yang Mi come back to her senses.

"Did you win a prize?"

"Yes! 'Secret' won an award!" Jie Lun's voice trembled with excitement, "Teacher Li won an award!"

"Best Technical Contribution Award! Photography Award!"

The honor of Beijing Film Academy has nothing to do with the Department of Performance.

But Li Pingbin’s honor is related to "Secret" and Yang Mi.

Yang Mi is proud of it!

The same goes for Jielun!
The two rookies first applauded Li Pingbin as he came on stage, then looked at each other and laughed, not stopping even when their palms turned red from clapping.

"Consummated!"

"This trip to Venice was completely successful!"

When Li Pingbin returned with the award, Jie Lun quickly took the certificate and medal. His small eyes had completely narrowed into slits due to smiling, without a single ray of light.

"Honestly, it was like a dream."

"Originally, I just wanted to use my experience in shooting music videos and what I saw and heard on the sets of Initial D and Curse of the Golden Flower with the help of Teacher Li to record my thoughts in an image as a souvenir."

"Oh? Isn't it just to show off?" Yang Mi teased.

"I admit it, there is!" Jie Lun scratched his head embarrassedly.

"But after Teacher Li's reminder and bringing Jie Cheng here, everything is different!"

Looking at Li Pingbin seriously,
"Thank you, Teacher Li!"

Turning to Ji Jianming,
"Thank you, Teacher Ji!"

Then to Yang Mi,

"Teacher Yang, thank you for teaching me how to act on the set!"

"Tsk, you're just thanking me with your mouth!" Yang Mi rolled her eyes playfully, "You're not sincere at all."

"Well, I'll write a song for you later. I'm good at this!" Jie Lun said, frowning, "By the way, Mimi, can you sing?"

"Why can't I sing?" Yang Mi was extremely confident, "My high notes are amazing!"

Jie Lun and Yang Mi were completely relaxed. They listened to the analysis of the "inside story" by two old hands, Li Pingbin and Ji Jianming, while watching the excitement with interest.

The Best Actress award was given to the heroine of the Hollywood film "I'm Not There", but Cate Blanchett was absent.

When the Venice Film Festival Best Actor winner was announced, the applause was sparse and boos were everywhere.

Interestingly, Brad Pitt was also not in attendance.

But even so, Venice continues to look toward Hollywood.

“The Assassination of the Gunslinger, I’m Not There, and Revised Excerpts.” Ji Jianming counted on his fingers, “Oh, and there’s also Director Li An’s No Sex.”

"There are nine films in the main competition that are linked to Hollywood, and with Horizon and other categories, there are even more. It's no wonder that the locals are cursing."

"What's the point of cursing? It's their own fault." Li Pingbin said with a smile, "But there are indeed too many Hollywood movies."

"An international film festival is almost becoming a weathervane for the Oscars. It all depends on whether the Oscars are willing to appreciate it and give it face."

"Who cares? With Mr. Marco here, we Chinese filmmakers won't be treated unfairly!" Ji Jianming grinned. "I heard from someone that Mr. Marco will be re-elected for another four years."

"I'm thinking about talking to Jiecheng about preparing a work for the competition in these four years."

"As long as the quality of our film is solid enough, there's nothing to feel guilty about even if we win an award because of this relationship."

"Well, what you said makes sense!" Li Pingbin nodded, "Aren't most awards based on the quality of the film, with a little luck and 'unspoken rules' involved? If others can win, then Jiecheng can win too!"

Listening to the two teachers' casual chat, Jie Lun and Yang Mi were very focused.

Especially when it comes to the topic of Zhen Jiecheng's participation in the Venice competition, he became even more focused.

"Wait! Isn't Jiecheng already linked up with Hollywood now?" Li Pingbin's eyes suddenly widened. "Taken is selling so well, Hollywood is just about to knock on our door and seek cooperation!"

"Lao Li, what do you mean?"

"You said, if Jiecheng cooperates with Hollywood to make a movie." Li Pingbin swallowed his saliva, "then come to participate in the Venice Film Festival"

"Hiss!" Ji Jianming sucked in a breath of cold air.

"Wow!" Jie Lun was stunned.

"Shit!" Yang Mi waved her fist and blurted out the terminology she learned while playing games in the Internet cafe, "The buffs are fully stacked!"

"The winner of the Special Jury Prize is: Millet and Mullet! Congratulations to director Abdel Fattah Kechiche."

Yang Mi clapped mechanically and continued to engage in the topic discussion initiated by Ji Jianming and extended by Li Pingbin.

Jielun also clapped and participated.
"No, I'll have to ask Jie Cheng to save a spot for me when the time comes so I can help with the soundtrack."

"Hehehe, just help out. It's a good opportunity to exchange musical ideas with Mr. Jiushi."

"'I'm Not There'! Congratulations to director Todd Haynes!" the presenter continued reading on the stage.

"Wow, this is a double yolk egg?" Yang Mi was stunned and continued to applaud.

"Normal!" Ji Jianming explained, "The value of the Jury Special Award has long since fallen. Now it is mostly a consolation, or icing on the cake."

"I won the Marcello Mastroianni Best Newcomer Award for Millet and Mullet, and the Best Actress Award for I'm Not There."

"It's obvious that these two have withdrawn from the competition for the Golden Lion!"

"So, Director Li An has a greater chance of winning the Golden Lion Award!" Jie Lun interrupted, "If he wins, that would be two Golden Lion Awards."

"The third person in history! Following a certain director and"

"SECRET, congratulations to director Jay Chou!"

Stunned and dumbfounded.

The conversation stopped and the clapping stopped.

Jielun stiffened his body, and with trembling lips, he spoke again.
"Mi Mi, did you hear that clearly?"

"What did the award presenter just say?"

"F*ck! What the hell is this old man trying to do?"

Qingdao, Zhen Jiecheng, who was watching the live broadcast, was shocked.

"Fuck, the Special Jury Award doesn't have much value, but you can't just throw it away like cabbage!"

"You're so shocked, is it that serious?" Cheng Hao rolled his eyes. "Isn't it better to give out an award? And it's for Jie Lun, the baby's godfather."

"You know nothing! This old man has bad intentions!" Zhen Jiecheng gritted his teeth, "Jie Lun got the award, but I have to bear the blame."

"I know with my own imagination that Lao Mouzi will definitely call me later: Jiecheng, come to the meeting! Time is running out, Beiyuan Building No. 3 needs you!"

"I don't care what your ass thinks, I just know one thing." Cheng Hao rode up, "Director, my ass is thinking!"

"Can you help me with a scene? I want to hone my acting skills."

"Today I want to perform Wings of Desire!"

(End of this chapter)