Huayu: As a child star, I just want to be famous

Chapter 606 Walking Towards the Stage Under the Spotlight
"Starting in the last two days, fans have begun to hold up signs to show their support for the movie 'Joker' to win an award at the Hollywood Walk of Fame. This news is also spreading online, and we expect to see more of it in the future."

"Huh?" Chen Linfeng was shocked. There was such a thing?

"Is this organized by fellow countrymen fans?"

"The composition is very complex, containing all kinds of ingredients, so it shouldn't be it."

Sister Mei answered, and then immediately added, "It wasn't us who did it behind the scenes either."

"They can't possibly be Leo's fans, can they?" Chen Linfeng asked suspiciously.

Leonardo DiCaprio is still amazing; he can still come up with new tricks even at a time like this.

Chen Linfeng rested his chin on his hand and thought about it for a moment. He felt it wasn't a bad thing and didn't pay much attention to it.

------

As the Los Angeles morning light filtered through the curtains, Chen Linfeng woke up early as always.

hiss~
Feeling the soreness and numbness in his right arm, Chen Linfeng raised his hand and patted Xixi's bottom twice.

"Let me... um... sleep a little longer."

Liu Qianqian instinctively snuggled into Chen Linfeng's arms and then stopped moving.

Chen Linfeng sighed helplessly; this girl had become increasingly lazy and sleepy ever since she got pregnant.

"You forgot, we agreed to try on makeup and clothes today."

No response.

Chen Linfeng reached out his hand and began to play tricks.

Soon after, Sisi's face visibly turned red.

Seeing that she couldn't continue sleeping, she had no choice but to get up, not forgetting to slap away the other person's mischievous hand along the way.

Liu Qianqian said resentfully, "I've never seen you like it this much before."

“This is a different version, it’s so exciting for me,” Chen Linfeng said seriously.

Novelty is an understatement; it was simply irresistible.

"Pah, I knew you liked big ones. You even lied to me before, saying that small breasts were a rare resource."

Chen Linfeng didn't refute it, but looking at Qianqian's face, which had become increasingly smooth and lovely since she became pregnant, he couldn't help but lean down and kiss her.

"Go away, I hate you the most right now. Don't touch me before you get up."

Chen Linfeng simply smiled and didn't offer any further rebuttal.

He dressed quickly, then sat down and watched his wife slowly get dressed.

This completely different version of Sissi has a unique charm.

Sisi rolled her eyes at him and turned her back.

The main task today is to decide on the dress for the Oscars ceremony a week later. For ladies like Sissi, it's also important to decide on the makeup, hairstyle, and hair accessories.

Pregnant women, in particular, have safety concerns, so their choices of many items are relatively limited, and they need to prepare in advance.

In terms of the general style, it was planned in advance.

Sisi will still maintain her habit of wearing Hanfu with oriental elements on important occasions.

Since she was showing signs of pregnancy, Sisi disliked those extremely form-fitting Western-style dresses and resolutely resisted them.

Chen Linfeng's approach was simple: a normal casual suit would suffice.

In the past year, he has become increasingly casual in his dressing.

However, because of the professional makeup artists and stylists, their image actually stood out even more.

After all, it's not like the simple suits of the past, with their monotonous designs.

After washing up and having a meal, the entire team drove several cars to their destination.

On the way, Chen Linfeng suddenly had a whimsical idea: he wanted to go see the Avenue of Stars.

Since the Hollywood Walk of Fame wasn't far from Beverly Hills, and it was somewhat on the way, the group changed direction after the boss gave the order.

Sisi asked curiously, "Why do you want to go there now?"

Chen Linfeng talked about the fan support that Sister Mei had mentioned to him three days ago.

He later searched online and found that this was a minor news story.

It's said that it started with fans of "Joker" and fans of "Pretty Woman" arguing online.

One side believes Leonardo DiCaprio is a shoo-in for the Best Actor Oscar, while the other side thinks Batman (Christian Bale, star of "The Deception") delivered a flawless performance.

In addition, supporters of Matthew McConaughey (star of "The Club") said, "Everyone move aside, when it comes to acting skills, it has to be Uncle McConaughey."

You asked about "12 Years a Slave"? Fans of "12 Years a Slave" are now being vilified online and dare not show their faces at all.

This debate was originally just a typical online dispute, but it escalated and people got really angry.

Finally, he started making threats, saying he would gather a team on the Avenue of Stars and wait for the results at the awards ceremony to see who was right.

"Just tell me if you dare to go or not."

"Just go, no one is afraid of whom."

"Exactly, whoever backs down is a coward."

Thus, the war shifted from online to offline.

Initially, there weren't many participants, since most netizens are all talk and no action, content to be mere verbal champions.

Unfortunately, there's a rich woman on the Joker side.

They started using a money-spending strategy, to the point that the support teams transformed from guerrilla forces into a regular army.

As Chen Linfeng and his group were passing by in their car, they happened to see a number of young people holding up signs on the roadside.

The signs included support for Leo to win Best Actor and for Chen Linfeng to win Best Director.

It seems that after a few days of fermentation, his fans have also joined in.

The brands come in all shapes and sizes, with a wide variety of designs.

From a distance, it looked like a large group of people; upon closer inspection, there were at least a hundred.

This is quite a large scale.

Without any behind-the-scenes organization, relying solely on hobby and a little financial support from a wealthy woman, it's quite remarkable that they've managed to achieve this.

Don't be fooled by the news reports of frequent protests and demonstrations in Europe and America; most of the time, there are only a handful of people involved, and a single shot can capture the whole thing.

Large-scale operations are usually organized by professional organizations and cost a fortune.

"Xiao Feng, look."

Sisi pointed out the car window.

Chen Linfeng leaned closer and lowered his head slightly.

"Fuck."

A huge billboard across the street clearly displayed stills from the movie "Joker".

There were also huge English letters written on it.

Wishing "Joker" an Oscar win!

Below are two lines of smaller text:

"The Oscars should give Leonardo DiCaprio the Best Actor award."

And "Chen deserves the Best Director award."

They really treated everyone fairly.

This is also a key focus of the team's publicity efforts for this Oscar bid.

Although Leonardo DiCaprio was focused on winning the Best Actor award, and Chen Linfeng was focused on winning the Best Director award, their resources were spread out.

However, in terms of public statements, they have always been consistent.

Chen Linfeng felt that a lack of unity with external forces would make it easier for opponents to exploit loopholes.

Leonardo was grateful for Chen's kindness, but perhaps also had some self-interest involved.

But he has always presented himself as someone with a great sense of composure.

"Wow, that's quite a big deal," Liu Qianqian exclaimed in amazement. "I wonder how much it cost to put up such a billboard, and how many days it was booked."

Chen Linfeng replied, "In Times Square, long-term advertising rentals cost around $10 to $50 per month. I haven't looked into the prices here, but for a giant screen like this, which isn't going to be just for a day or two, it must cost at least several hundred thousand."

In terms of rental period, ten days or half a month is not much cheaper than renting for a whole month.

Judging by the size of this advertisement, the cost of setting it up and the giant screen itself must be close to $10.

Seeing that Sisi seemed to understand but not quite, he added,

"After all, the Hollywood Walk of Fame is a famous tourist attraction, so it certainly won't be much cheaper."

"Oh, I see." After enjoying the excitement, the vehicle continued its journey towards its destination.

After getting off the bus, Sisi went to get dressed as planned, while Chen Linfeng pulled Mei Jie back.

"We also need to keep an eye on our people over at the Avenue of Stars, so they don't cause any trouble."

“Yes, I know,” Sister Mei nodded. “The team has already started to get involved, and we’ve also been interacting with fan groups on social media in an official capacity.”

"Yeah, well done."

Anita Mui remained as steady as ever.

Chen Linfeng nodded in satisfaction.

He's always been very quick when it comes to choosing clothes.

I don't agonize over which clothes to wear; I just try on a few and I feel like I'm pretty much set.

The designer insisted that he try it a little longer.

"Such a good clothes hanger, we can't let it go to waste."

Unfortunately, it still took about an hour and a half to get it roughly done.

Of course, this amount of time is just a drop in the ocean for Sisi.

Chen Linfeng had long been mentally prepared, watching Qianqian change again and again.

"I don't mind being tired." Chen Linfeng shook his head.

When I'm at home, I'm too lazy to move after just a few steps.

After watching for a while, he got bored and took out his tablet to start a high-level self-search.

With just days to go before the Oscars, the "City of Angels" seems to have completely transformed into the center of a global entertainment storm.

The air was thick with anticipation and excitement.

The media is really ravenous; everyone's full of energy.

The Hollywood Reporter's cover story: "The Final Battle: Joker's Kingly Presence Meets 'Serves the Slave's Moral Torrent! Best Picture and Director Caught in an Epic Battle!"

The inside pages contain a ten-page in-depth analysis, comparing the strengths and weaknesses of the two films, the judges' opinions, and public relations strategies. It also includes interviews with several anonymous Academy members, revealing highly polarized opinions.

The article concludes by predicting: "Chen may become the first Asian (Chinese) director to win Best Director at the same time, thanks to the unparalleled artistic control and global influence of 'Joker'."

Calls for Leonardo DiCaprio to end his "runner-up" status are deafening! However, the "historical responsibility theory" surrounding "12 Years a Slave" is deeply rooted within the Academy, making a comeback not impossible.

This year's Oscars are destined to go down in history!

It seems they haven't quite grasped the current situation, but given that it's a Black version, the final outcome is hard to say.

Therefore, this report still focuses on the competition between the two films, "Joker" and "For the Slave".

Variety's feature was a little different:
"The ultimate analysis of Oscar trends: Under the data model, Joker has a 67% chance of winning, Dallas Buyers Club has a 50% chance, Beautiful Country Hustle has a 38% chance, and For Slaves has a 31% chance."

The article uses a series of complex algorithms to analyze all the data, including sentinel awards, media ratings, box office revenue, and public relations spending.

The conclusion is obvious: the current king of versions is Joker.

"Serving as a Slave"?
Outdated old things.

The detailed analysis praised the film "The Club," believing it to be of excellent quality and, in the current public opinion climate, would be the biggest rival to "Joker."

Chen Linfeng raised an eyebrow after reading it.

It's like trying to hold down one gourd only to have another pop up; the momentum of "The Slave" has died down, and now another one is jumping out.

That makes sense, though. This film, which is quite similar to the previous one, "Dying to Survive," is indeed of good quality.

Moreover, it incorporates elements of Nantong, making it, in a sense, a potential future version.

Strictly speaking, since Brokeback Mountain, this type of subject matter has actually been more likely to win awards.

but--

Chen Linfeng shook his head.

Joker is no pushover either.

As The Hollywood Reporter mentioned earlier, Joker has now become a king, fearless in the face of anyone.

Not only in the United States, but also in media outlets around the world, including Europe and Asia, there are special reports on the Oscars, analyzing who will win the awards.

The focus has been unprecedented on whether Chen Linfeng can make history and whether Leonardo DiCaprio can break the curse.

It has to be said that after more than half a year of hype, Joker has become incredibly well-known worldwide.

Leonardo DiCaprio's fanbase from his time on the big ship was truly astonishing.

It might not be obvious normally, but when it really comes down to it, the popularity skyrockets.

The Oscars organizers didn't waste this wave of popularity, increasing their advertising spending starting this month.

The scale of the event appears to be much larger than in previous years.

NBC News discussed this, suggesting that this year's Oscars ceremony is very likely to break viewership records in recent years.

Actually, there's no need for NBC to predict this. Back in the previous life, the 2014 Oscars had the highest viewership of the last 14 award ceremonies.

With so many topics now and the public debate so heated, viewership ratings are simply out of the question.

If we add broadcasts from Europe and Asia, and count the global viewership, the number could be astronomical.

Few programs can surpass it.

Two more days passed after I got home.

The situation has changed again.

Chen Linfeng's residence in Beverly Hills was also besieged by media and fans.

Even more impressive is the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the only route to the Dolby Theatre.

This place is even more exaggerated than when they passed through a few days ago.

Several days in advance, enthusiastic fans set up tents outside the Dolby Theatre and along both sides of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, just to secure a spot on the day of the ceremony.

Some of these people wore support clothing printed with logos of the films and filmmakers, holding up posters and signs, while others were just dressed in casual clothes, but their expressions were just as enthusiastic.

They were clearly all infected by this atmosphere.

Clearly, the Joker fanbase is the largest.

Chen Linfeng and Leonardo DiCaprio's fans have merged, and based on the previous group of fans, they now occupy the core and largest group, creating a very powerful momentum.

Occasionally, organized groups would lead their fans in chanting slogans that could be heard for miles.

The whole scene looked spectacular.

The giant screen advertisement was still running, and besides that, two huge neon signs were particularly eye-catching:

"Leo, it's time! The Joker shall be crowned king!"

"Chen, you are the best genius!"

Fans also spontaneously created a huge mural of a clown dancing on the steps, which attracted passersby to take photos.

Many people, caught up in the enthusiastic atmosphere, couldn't help but join in, making the event even larger.

The last day until the Oscars ceremony.

The entire city of Los Angeles seemed to be enveloped in the gleaming light of the golden statuette.

In Beverly Hills, Sissi was leaning back on the sofa, gently stroking her lower abdomen, watching a TV program predicting the red carpet outfits of Oscar nominees.

"Everything is arranged?"

Seeing her husband return from outside, Xixi asked, and straightened up with some difficulty.

"Hey, just stop moving."

Chen Linfeng quickly stopped her and took off his coat, hanging it on the hanger.

"Yes, we've done everything we could."

Normally there shouldn't be anything going on during this period, but with so many fans supporting him, he has to put in extra effort.

At the very least, people shouldn't lack water or food.

"The rest is up to fate."

"Yes, it all depends on God."

Chen Linfeng looked out the window at the dazzling lights of Los Angeles, as if he could see the Dolby Theatre about to open.

The bugle call to charge unconsciously echoed in my mind.

Regardless of whether his name is ultimately engraved on the Oscar statuette, he has done everything he could in this battle surrounding the Oscars.

The script reached a climax that was full of variables, yet also within our control.

Let's wait and see.

(End of this chapter)