Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 345 The Third Time
The Oscar hosts change almost every year, but no matter who it is or who it is, the hosting style has to be "Oscar-like".

Even someone known for their "serious" style must make hosting the Oscars lighthearted, entertaining, and humorous.

What if you really don't have the talent for this?
Then let's head down the three roads...

Ellen DeGeneres, the host of this year's Oscars, is a comedian whose show, "The Ellen Show," is extremely popular in North America. So, she was able to handle the Oscars hosting duties with ease.

However, using "she" is not accurate. Ellen DeGeneres publicly came out as a lesbian in 97 and has a girlfriend.

The first award presented was for Best Art Direction, presented by Daniel Craig, who plays James Bond, and Nicole Kidman.

Nicole Kidman wore a bright red long dress. She is tall, has a great figure, and very fair skin, making her very attractive.

This is different from traditional Europeans and Americans.

You'd never guess that Nicole Kidman is already 40 years old.

The awards mentioned above have nothing to do with Inception, nor with Cao Yang's other two hyped rivals, Martin Scorsese and director Fuyuki.

So the camera hasn't panned to this side yet.

"Are we really not going to win the grand prize?"

Fat Bing sat to Cao Yang's right. She stared at the stage with a smile on her face, looking very focused. She didn't seem to open or close her mouth much, but her words reached Cao Yang's ears.

This is probably one of the special skills of actresses.

Didn't you ask that last night?

Cao Yang couldn't achieve the same effortless ease as Pang Bing; he had to slightly turn his head when speaking.

"But you said if I do what you say, I'll give you some special rewards, maybe Inception will win an award."

Fat Bing was still looking at the stage with a smile on her face, but what she said sounded somewhat aggrieved.

"I sacrificed a lot in order for Inception to win an award."

Cao Yang thought about what happened yesterday. This kind of thing doesn't necessarily have to be a "sacrifice," does it? Weren't you having a lot of fun? Your mezzo-soprano voice even turned into a soprano.

"Then it depends on your sincerity. Sincerity will bring results. Your first award nomination is coming soon, which is a test of your piety."

Cao Yang said something and immediately sat up straight, not because he cared about the Best Sound Editing award that was about to be presented. To be honest, that award was a bit of a gimmick.

However, since Clint Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima" was also nominated for this award, as a "long-time rival," the Oscar broadcast will definitely give it special attention.

Fat Bing's lips curled up, and she didn't need to sit up properly. Even when she was chatting with Cao Yang, she always seemed very serious.

The award presenters were comedians Steve Carell and Greg Kinnear.

Some people may not know who these two are, but Steve Carell is still very famous in later generations.

It's not because he starred in any hit movies, but because he has a very, very classic meme on the internet, which I guess many people know.

He was wearing a blue-black suit and a white shirt, and his expression wasn't particularly fierce as he nodded and said, "NO, GOD PLEASE NO!"

This is a scene from his appearance in the American TV series "The Office".

This emoji is used by a lot of people.

Sure enough, while Steve Carell was giving his acceptance speech, the camera focused mostly on the cast and crew of "Inception" and "Letters from Iwo Jima," switching back and forth between them.

As for the other nominated films, it's not that they weren't shown on screen; at least the camera cut to them briefly, and then switched between "Inception" and "Letters from Iwo Jima."

“The winner is…” Greg Kinnear said.

Steve Carell opened the envelope, exclaimed "Wow!" and said into the microphone, "Congratulations on 'Letters from Iwo Jima'!"

Clint Eastwood stood up with a smile, clenching his fists and shaking them in front of his chest, looking like a football coach who had been trailing but suddenly received a spectacular goal.

He was surrounded by members of the "Letters from Iwo Jima" crew, who all stood up at once, looking excited and applauding Director Fuyuki.

Cao Yang clapped with a smile, but couldn't help but think to himself, "Looking at this grand spectacle, anyone who didn't know better would think Clint Eastwood had won the Oscar for Best Director."

However, Cao Yang could probably guess that this was Clint Eastwood's deliberate attempt to create a dramatic effect for the Oscars.

Old Fuyuki wouldn't get this excited over such a trivial award as the Oscar for Best Sound Editing.

As one of the most famous directors in Hollywood, especially in the field of art films, Old Fuyuki has seen it all.

He won the Academy Award for Best Director and Best Picture at the 65th Academy Awards in 93 for "Unforgiven".

At the 77th Academy Awards two years ago, Cao Yang won Best Director, and Clint Eastwood won Best Picture again.

Cao Yang suddenly had an epiphany.

Oscar's hype surrounding his alleged "feud" with Clint Eastwood and Martin Scorsese is likely aimed at two things: generating buzz for the Oscars and promoting Martin Scorsese.

Martin Scorsese was one of the four great directors of early Hollywood.

The so-called four directors are Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, and George Lucas.

Francis Ford Coppola and Steven Spielberg have both won the Oscar for Best Director.

Although George Lucas didn't win the Oscar for Best Director, he works in a different field. Since Star Wars in 77, he has almost stopped working on art films.

Only Americans can understand the place Star Wars holds in their hearts.

Therefore, in the United States, no matter how you rank great directors, George Lucas is someone you can't ignore.

In other words, George Lucas doesn't need an Oscar for Best Director to prove himself.

Of the four traditional Hollywood directors, only Martin Scorsese truly deserves the Oscar for Best Director.

There have been persistent rumors that the Oscars owe Martin Scorsese an award.

Martin Scorsese has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director five times, and this will be his sixth.

Cao Yang glanced at Martin Scorsese on the left side of the aisle. At that moment, Scorsese was smiling and clapping, seemingly without much emotional fluctuation.

The Oscars will probably return the golden statuette that Martin Scorsese "owed" him.

The sound editors for "Letters from Iwo Jima" were two elderly white men who were probably not very famous; Cao Yang didn't know them.

The two men were visibly excited, and on stage they only expressed their gratitude to the Academy, director Clint Eastwood, producer Steven Spielberg, Warner Bros., and DreamWorks...

Gu Changwei sat behind Cao Yang, watching the Clint Eastwood crew's behavior with anger in his heart.

It's just winning a trivial award, what's so great about it? What's there to get excited about!

Cao Yang's "Inception" has nine Oscar nominations, and you guys only have a pitiful four? You're like you've never seen anything like it.

As Cao Yang's personal photographer, Gu Changwei is currently considered the undisputed number one photographer in China, including Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Even on a global scale, he is one of the very few people who can be called a "master".

Old Gu is living a very comfortable life now, and his status in the industry is much higher than that of most directors.

Moreover, he now holds a teaching position at the Beijing Film Academy, serving as a professor and deputy director in the Department of Cinematography.

Therefore, he naturally wanted to protect everything about Cao Yang, and their fates were intertwined.

"A worthless technical award, and they act like they've won Best Director. A bunch of country bumpkins."

Old Gu muttered a complaint to his wife, Jiang Wenli.

"Uh-huh."

Jiang Wenli nodded vigorously. He also felt that those people had gone too far. For a technical award, the entire crew of more than a dozen people suddenly stood up. Even the old director was excitedly waving his fist. What were they trying to do?
Look how well-mannered Cao Yang is. Even though you guys acted that way, Cao Yang still applauded you very politely.

Then, Jiang Wenli asked Lao Gu in a slightly worried voice, "Lao Gu, I've seen many people say that Inception's box office is too high, making it difficult to win any major awards. Is that true?"

Old Gu hesitated for a moment, then reluctantly nodded, muttering, "What a load of bull! The Oscars don't consider the artistic merit of a film. If the box office is high, it can't win a major award. What's the difference between this and the Golden Rooster Awards?"

"That's right, the Oscars are America's Golden Rooster."

Jiang Wenli echoed softly.

Fat Bing reached out and grabbed Cao Yang's hand, whispering to comfort him, "It's just a small award, you can't lose it." After a pause, Fat Bing added, "Why are they so excited? Anyone who didn't know better would think they won the Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director."

Although Fat Bing didn't say anything explicitly, the sarcastic tone in his words was quite obvious.

Cao Yang patted Pang Bing's hand and said with a smile in a low voice, "Don't worry about it. They probably know it's hard to win the grand prize tonight. This technical award is their best chance of winning, so they were so excited when they got it."

"is it?"

Fat Ice was a little skeptical.

Cao Yang smiled, looked at the two people leaving the stage, and said, "Next is Best Sound Effects. Do you believe we don't have many competitors for this award?"

Fat Bing chuckled, scratched Cao Yang's palm with her finger, and said, "If you really think I can win this award, I'll listen to you again tonight."

The award for Best Sound Mixing was presented by James McAvoy, who was just a young Karami before he played the role of the teen version of "Professor X".

I really don't know who this guy's backer is, but he seems to have pretty good resources.

Perhaps knowing that he wasn't a big shot and couldn't joke with the guests, James McAvoy got straight to the point without much small talk.

"The following were nominated for Best Sound Mixing at the 79th Academy Awards..."

As the introductions progressed, the large screen behind them displayed images of "Apocalypse," "Blood Diamond," "Dreamgirls," "Flags of Our Fathers," and "Inception."

"The winner is..."

James McAvoy opened the envelope and read: "Inception, Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng."

Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng were the sound designers for Inception. Huang Haipeng was a sound designer at Qingying Film Studio, and he was "placed" in the Inception crew by Cao Yang.

Before Cao Yang could say anything, Gu Changwei jumped up with a loud "whoosh," making it seem as if he had won an award.

The Inception crew must all know Lao Gu. When they saw Lao Gu stand up, Depp responded by clapping enthusiastically and standing up as well.

Then Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng also stood up. They were the rightful recipients, and it would have been inappropriate for them not to stand up and acknowledge the award.

Fan Bingbing, Wu Qihua, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hardy, Claire Dennis, and other main actors from the cast all stood up.

Even Leonardo DiCaprio, who was sitting on the set of "Blood Diamond," stood up and applauded Cao Yang.

It has to be said that Leonardo DiCaprio had a "big win" at this year's Oscars.

His starring role in "Blood Diamond" earned him a Best Actor nomination.

The film he starred in, "The Departed," received four Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Editing.

Although it was described as a cameo role, Inception, in which he was actually one of the main actors, received nine Oscar nominations.

If he wins the Best Actor Oscar this year, he will be the talk of the town.

Everyone in the crew stood up, and Cao Yang couldn't stay seated either, so he had to stand up as well.

I couldn't help but smile wryly to myself. What are you guys trying to do? Anyone who didn't know better would think we'd won Best Picture and Best Director.

Or do you think that Inception will only get a consolation prize for Best Sound Mixing tonight?

Pah! Pah!

Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng both appeared very excited.

For Cao Yang and Gu Changwei, this is a somewhat meaningless "small award," but for Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng, it is the most "sacred" award in their hearts.

"Director Cao, thank you, thank you..."

Huang Haipeng is in his forties and is just a diligent and somewhat senior sound effects artist at the Qingdao Film Studio. He never dreamed that he would have the opportunity to win the Oscar for Best Sound Effects in his lifetime.

Cao Yang looked at Huang Haipeng, whose eyes were a little red, patted him on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Don't get excited. Have you memorized your acceptance speech? If you forget, just say thank you directly."

Old Gu then patted Huang Haipeng on the shoulder and exclaimed, "You've really made something of yourself, kid..."

Well, once on stage, not only did Huang Haipeng forget his lines, but even the older white man Oliver Brown forgot his lines.

The only thing they could do without making a mistake was to express their gratitude: gratitude to the production team, to producer Cao Yang, to director Cao Yang, to screenwriter Cao Yang, and to Columbia Pictures…

Huang Haipeng also specifically thanked the Qingdao Film Studio and the Beijing Film Academy, and finally thanked Cao Yang again.

"You have to keep your word; you promised."

Cao Yang said softly to Pang Bing.

"what?"

Fat Bing feigned ignorance, saying, "I don't understand what you mean."

Ha, you don't understand what I mean?
You sang like a soprano last night, like a flood bursting forth. Don't you understand what I mean?
After several more awards were presented, clips of classic films featuring screenwriters were shown on the big screen, including Ben Affleck and others discussing the importance of screenwriting.

Cao Yang was invigorated; the Best Adapted Screenplay award was on its way.

Because Inception's global box office was too high, but not high enough to make the Oscars compromise, it can forget about winning the two top awards: Best Picture and Best Director.

For Cao Yang, the only award with any real weight was the Best Adapted Screenplay.

Furthermore, this award holds special significance for Cao Yang.

He has already won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay. Cao Yang doesn't know who has won this award the most times, but he certainly has a chance to break the record.

Helen Mirren and Tom Hanks presented the award on stage.

These are two heavyweight award presenters.

Tom Hanks goes without saying; like Johnny Depp, he's one of the few actors to win two consecutive Oscars.

Helen Mirren, aside from not having an Oscar for Best Actress, is a highly acclaimed actress who has won numerous awards in other categories.

The two reiterated the importance of screenwriting before officially beginning the awards ceremony.

"The winners of the 79th Academy Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay are Borat, The Departed, Children of Men, Mother, and Inception."

This time it became a showdown between Cao Yang and Martin Scorsese.

The camera deliberately kept switching between Cao Yang and Martin Scorsese.

As for the other three films, they did have some screen time; less screen time doesn't mean no screen time.

"The winner is..."

Helen Mirren opened the envelope, glanced at it, and then smiled as she handed it to Tom Hanks. "You should read it. Everyone knows you really love his movies."

Tom Hanks took the envelope, glanced at it, and then smiled.

He looked down into the microphone and said, "The winner of the 79th Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay is Cao Yang, 'Inception.' Congratulations."

Gu Changwei stood up again with a loud "roar," this time genuinely excited. He pumped his fist and said to his wife, Jiang Wenli:

"I knew it, I knew it! Cao Yang deserves this. Such a good movie shouldn't be dismissed just because it's doing well at the box office. No, no... It's wonderful!"

Fat Bing hugged Cao Yang tightly, appearing quite excited.

"Congratulations, congratulations! This is a remarkable achievement. You've won the Oscar for Best Screenplay for the third time. I knew you could do it."

Then, she whispered in Cao Yang's ear, "I promise you."

Ok?
Cao Yang was stunned. He agreed so easily?
Yes, we should celebrate properly.

My third Oscar for Best Screenplay? It seems alright.

"Congratulations, Director Cao! I knew you would win this award."

Wu Qihua then hugged Cao Yang and said with a smile.

With the global success of "Inception," his current status is no lower than Chow Yun-fat's, and his fame in Hollywood is no less than Chow Yun-fat's, making him one of the biggest beneficiaries.

(End of this chapter)