Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 468 Counterattack
After the Best Foreign Language Film award was presented, there was a segment to commemorate and pay tribute to classic films.

Taking advantage of this time, Zhou Liming looked at the information and said, "I still want to congratulate 'Departures'. This is the first time in 53 years that 'Departures' has won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film."

The last time it won an award was 53 years ago at the 28th Academy Awards, when the film that won Best Foreign Language Film was *Miyamoto Musashi*.

After saying this, he shook his head and said, "Actually, I was very optimistic that 'Waltz with Bashir' would win Best Foreign Language Film, but I didn't expect it to be 'Departures' instead."

"I know the movie 'Waltz with Bashir,' which was directed by an Israeli director, but the content reflects the massacre of Lebanese refugee camps by Israeli soldiers in the mid-80s."

The director's name is Ari Forman. He served in the Israel Defense Forces at the time and had always wanted to make a film about this period of history.

"Is the director Israeli?"

Hong Huang asked, somewhat surprised.

"Ah."

Cheng Long nodded and said, "It is said that he was born in Haifa."

"I saw that the production companies were mainly French and German, so I thought it was made by those two countries to disgust Israel."

Hong Huang said.

She's the only one who dares to speak so recklessly in the live broadcast room.

Zhou Liming smiled and said, "This movie is very interesting. It was filmed with live actors, and then converted into an animated film. Only at the end of the movie are some real footage inserted."

"It is said that the director initially did not want to convert it into an animated film, but... in the end, he had no choice but to convert it into an animated film."

Cheng Long revealed a little bit of inside information.

"It seems like it's been six or seven years since any of our mainland films have received an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, right?"

Hong Huang suddenly asked.

Host Zeng Zixing chimed in: "The last time a film received an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film was Zhang Yimou's 'Hero.' Since then, no film submitted by mainland China has made it into the Oscar nomination list for Best Foreign Language Film."

Cheng Long smiled and said to Hung Wong, "As far as I know, since Director Zhang's 'Hero,' not a single film submitted from Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, or Macau has ever made it into the Oscar nomination list for Best Foreign Language Film."

After thinking for a moment, he added, "I've been thinking back, and it seems that in all these years, at least in the last twenty years, no film submitted by Hong Kong has ever made it into the Oscar nominations for Best Foreign Language Film."

Zhou Liming smiled and corrected him, "Brother, you must be mistaken. There was a film that won an award at Cannes that was submitted by Hong Kong. Although it didn't win the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, it was nominated."

"Films that won awards at Cannes?"

Jackie Chan thought for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Wong Kar-wai's 'In the Mood for Love'? Was that film nominated?"

"No, it's not this one. It's Director Chan's 'Farewell My Concubine,' which was submitted by Hong Kong and submitted to the 66th Academy Awards, where it received a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film."

Zhou Liming stopped being mysterious and explained.

"Farewell My Concubine was submitted by Hong Kong? If you hadn't told me, I would have thought it was submitted by the mainland."

"Farewell My Concubine" was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but ultimately failed to win. If you don't specifically look into it, who would know that this film was submitted under the name of Hong Kong?
When the host Zeng Zixing heard the words "Farewell My Concubine," his heart skipped a beat, and he looked up and glared at Zhou Liming.

That bastard, he really knows how to bring up the most sensitive topics! Didn't he just walk right into Hong and Huang's trap?
He was trying to quickly change the subject when Hong Huang said directly, "The artistic aspects of this film are quite good."

Zeng Zixing's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down. Thank goodness, nothing happened...

Before he could finish his exclamation, Hong Huang continued, "Some people only win one prestigious award in their entire lives, and then they think they're some kind of great director, with their eyes practically glued to the back of their heads, always thinking they're superior to everyone else..."

"cough!"

Zeng Zixing quickly coughed, not daring to let Sister Hong continue, and interrupted:

"I just did a count, and it's a bit of a pity that Director Cao's 'Joker' has only won two out of thirteen nominations, while 'Slumdog Millionaire' has only missed out on two out of seven nominations and has won five awards."

Hong Huang glanced at Zeng Zixing, paused for a moment, and did not continue the previous topic. Instead, he said, "Joker's box office is too high. It's $15 billion. Even if it's only 15 billion RMB, which domestic director can do that right now?"

The Oscars have never been particularly fond of high-grossing films, and this is true worldwide. For Cao Yang to win two awards despite such high box office numbers is already quite an achievement.

Zeng Zixing breathed a sigh of relief. "Sister Hong, you are like my own sister. Thank you for sparing my life. Thank you for your understanding. Thank you, thank you..."

However, before he could finish expressing his gratitude, Hong Huang spoke up again: "I don't know what Cao Yang was thinking. Some directors in China fight tooth and nail every year for a single nomination for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film."

He, on the other hand, voluntarily withdrew from all those Chinese-language films that won the three major European awards, never even once applying for one...

Otherwise, given Cao Yang's reputation in Hollywood, a film submitted by him would at least secure an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, and might even win several.

"That's true."

Cheng Long nodded in agreement and said, "For Director Cao, an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film is nothing special. Director Cao may not even care about it."

Forget about Best Foreign Language Film, even the most difficult Oscar to win, Best Picture, has three winners by Director Cao, right? *The Dirty Milk*, *Juno*, and *The Fault in Our Stars*.

The nomination process for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film largely depends on the director's reputation or the film's fame after winning other awards.

As for the actors, the most famous actors in the world are all in Hollywood. Even if a film nominated for Best Foreign Language Film has the most famous actors in its country, Americans might not necessarily know it.

Brother, sister, please, let's not discuss this topic anymore, okay?

Please, I'm begging you.

The host, Zeng Zixing, almost jumped out of his skin again.

"Reese Witherspoon is on stage; she's going to present the Best Director award."

Zhou Liming glanced at the message and said, "She won an Oscar for Best Actress. If it were before this year's Oscars, she would definitely have presented the Best Actor award. This year, it's completely different."

Zeng Zixing wanted nothing more than to hug Zhou Liming and kiss him. "Brother, you're the real older brother. You've changed the subject so well!"

"Liming, what are your thoughts on Best Director and the remaining awards?"

Zeng Zixing quickly asked, afraid that Hong Huang and Cheng Long would bring up the topic they had just discussed.

Although Zeng Zixing also completely agreed with what Hong Huang and Cheng Long said, some things can be said in private, but this is a live broadcast room, a public platform, so how can these things be said carelessly?
He decided that after the live stream, he would put up a large caption: "The guest's views represent only their personal opinions and do not represent the platform's views..."

Zhou Liming hesitated for a moment before saying, "I really like Director Cao's movie 'Joker,' it really has a prophetic feel to it... However, as I said before, 'Joker' had too high box office numbers, which is something the academy doesn't like."

Judging from previous awards, it's been in the same format, so I predict "Slumdog Millionaire" will sweep the awards tonight.

"You mean Best Director and Best Film?" Zeng Zixing asked.

"Ah."

"What about Best Actor? Of the remaining four nominations, Joker has one Best Actor nomination, while Slumdog Millionaire wasn't nominated for that award," Zeng Zixing asked again.

Zhou Liming glared at Zeng Zixing without leaving a trace. Damn it, I was here to save you the day, and you're asking me this question all by yourself.

You know, because of Jackie Chan, a lot of people are watching online today. So, I'm the one who has to do all the things that offend people?

Of course, Zhou Liming wasn't really blaming Zeng Zixing; he was quite professional when it came to predicting awards.

To prepare for this show, he read through all the authoritative media predictions in Hollywood, and combined them with his own expertise and the Oscar prelude awards. He believed he had grasped the "secret" of the Oscars.

Now that he knows the "secret," he certainly wouldn't mind letting his fans and netizens know about his "superpowers."

As for some of the previous awards, were the predictions inaccurate?
The reason is actually quite simple: those are all "small prizes," which are still subject to chance. The rest are all the most important big prizes, so the possibility of deviation is not so great.

"I think it's most likely Mickey Rourke. His film 'The Wrestler' won a lot of Oscar precursor awards and also won the 62nd British Academy Film Award for Best Actor."

Zhou Liming said with considerable confidence.

"You don't think Jim Carrey has a good future?"

Cheng Long asked with some doubt.

Zhou Liming explained, "Director Cao's ability to train actors is beyond doubt, and Jim Carrey also delivered a phenomenal performance in 'Joker'."

However, Heath Ledger has already won Best Supporting Actor for his role as the Joker, which is extremely disadvantageous for Jim Carrey. He can't possibly win both Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor for the Joker, can he?

Another point is that Jim Carrey is a comedy star and a superstar. For a superstar to win an Oscar, unless the role is a particularly radical departure from their usual image—mostly playing an ugly or silly character—it's very difficult to get an Oscar. Jackie Chan laughed and said, "A radical departure isn't just about being ugly or silly; it's also about being a little abnormal... Jim Carrey's image in 'Joker' was completely radical."

Furthermore, I believe that "Joker" is the strongest contender for both Best Director and Best Picture.

Zhou Liming smiled but didn't say anything. He felt that Cheng Long might be too subjective because he was promoted to the Berlin Film Festival Best Actor award by Director Cao.

The awards ceremony is about to begin, just wait and see.

"nervous?"

As Reese Witherspoon opened the envelope, Fat Ice asked softly.

"What's there to be nervous about? It's not like you've never held one before."

Cao Yang replied.

Even if he were to win another Oscar for Best Director, it wouldn't have much of an impact on him now.

At his current level, perhaps winning two or three more Oscars for Best Director would be necessary to make a difference.

However, will the Academy make him an Oscar legend? It's hard to say.

Perhaps if he changes his nationality, there's still a chance.

As for Best Film, there's a possibility of awarding more than one. This award is different from the three major European awards. Although it looks like the highest award, it doesn't actually have as much influence as Best Director.

The Best Picture award is usually shared by the producers. In Hollywood, although producers wield real power, they are behind-the-scenes figures compared to directors or actors who stand in the spotlight, and thus have more influence within the industry.

Fat Bing reached out and grabbed Cao Yang's hand, smiling as she looked ahead, her voice softly reaching Cao Yang's ears.

"If you win Best Director, I'll reward you handsomely; if you don't, I can only offer you my best consolation."

Cao Yang blinked. Is there a difference?

Reese Witherspoon glanced at the information on the paper and said into the microphone, "Cao Yang, Joker."

The audience erupted in enthusiastic applause. The five nominated directors each occupied a section of the big screen, and then the section featuring Cao Yang gradually enlarged until it completely filled the screen.

"yeah!"

Fat Bing was the first to stand up excitedly, waving her fist as if she had won the award.

Then, everyone in the Joker crew stood up.

"Congratulations, you did it, you are the best director."

Fat Bing hugged Cao Yang and said excitedly.

Cao Yang patted her on the back with a smile, and suddenly a thought popped into his head: should we get a prestigious award for Fat Bing?
Although both Fan Bingbing and Zhang Ziyi are in Hollywood, they can't be like Zhang Ziyi and not even have a recognized and prestigious international award, right?
"Cao, congratulations, esteemed director, you are the greatest director of this era, without exception."

Jim Carrey hugged Cao Yang and said with a smile.

Cao Yang said, "Thank you. You'd better memorize your acceptance speech again, because you only have 45 seconds, and I'm afraid you'll forget it and waste time."

Jim Carrey paused for a moment, then laughed and said, "Thank you for your blessing. I hope so too."

Anne Hathaway also had a role in "Joker," but she was nominated for Best Actress for "My Sister's Wedding," so she sat on the "My Sister's Wedding" set.

At that moment, she crouched down, lifted her skirt, and squeezed through the crowd to give Cao Yang a tight hug, saying, "I knew it, I knew it. Congratulations on becoming the Oscar-winning director once again."

In the live broadcast room of Xinlang Entertainment, netizens were all flooding the comment section with messages like "Congratulations Director Cao" and "Congratulations Cao Yang".

"Congratulations to Director Cao on winning Best Director. This is Director Cao's second Oscar for Best Director. The last time he won it was for District 9."

Jackie Chan was the first to react, clapping and laughing as he spoke.

"Congratulations, Director Cao, that wasn't easy..."

Zeng Zixing realized as soon as he got to this point that he meant it was not easy for others. For Director Cao, this was his second Oscar for Best Director. What was so difficult about it?
Fortunately, as a host, he has a very good ability to adapt.

"The Millionaire from the Slums was a formidable opponent, and it was no easy feat to beat it and win Best Director."

Zhou Liming clapped his hands loudly and said, "Congratulations, Director Cao. The fact that 'Joker' was able to beat 'Slumdog Millionaire' and win over the Academy judges despite the unfavorable situation of high box office numbers further demonstrates the value of this award."

Hong Huang glanced at Zhou Liming with some curiosity. Damn it, none of these film critics and media people who have made it big are thin-skinned. He didn't say that just now.

Hong Huang greatly admired the person who could say these things without blushing or panting.

By the time Cao Yang finished her acceptance speech, walked around backstage, and returned to her seat, the Best Actress award had already been presented.

The lineup for presenting this award was also very impressive, including Halle Berry, Marion Cotillard, Nicole Kidman, Sophia Loren, Shirley MacLaine, and Charlize Theron, all six of whom have won an Oscar for Best Actress.

It's worth mentioning Shirley MacLaine, a Hollywood actress who has won the Berlin Film Festival Best Actress award twice, the Venice Film Festival Best Actress award twice, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress four times, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress five times, ultimately winning the 56th Academy Award for Best Actress.

Harvey Weinstein's efforts have begun to show results, and Kate Winslet has finally achieved her goal of winning the Oscar for Best Actress.

Perhaps thinking about how hard it was to win the Best Actress award, Kate Winslet burst into tears.

Then, another large-scale event took place.

Adrien Brody, Michael Douglas, Robert De Niro, Anthony Hopkins, Ben Kingsley, and Johnny Depp took the stage to present the Best Actor award.

All six of them are Oscar-winning actors.

It's fair to say that this year's Oscars really put a lot of effort into maximizing viewership and impact.

Not only did they start creating hype about award rivalries long before the Oscars even began, but the awards ceremony itself also featured several such grand spectacles.

The six award-winning actors talked nonsense on stage, without any coordination, like they were performing a comedy routine.

Finally, Depp pulled out the envelope.

When Cao Yang saw the envelope in Depp's hand, he immediately knew that Jim Carrey's Oscar win was in the bag.

It's not that Depp was more deserving of the final award than the other five, but rather that the Oscars are also about personal relationships.

Johnny Depp is a two-time Oscar winner, both of whom were promoted by Cao Yang, so having him announce the award is a kind of favor.

Jim Carrey, Joker.

Depp glanced at it, looked up and quickly read it aloud, then laughed and clapped enthusiastically.

When Jim Carrey saw that it was Depp who was drawing the lottery, he already had a premonition.

When Depp called his name, he forcibly suppressed the urge to jump up, clenched his fist tightly, and stood up with a smile.

"Congratulations, don't forget your lines."

Cao Yang patted Jim Carrey on the shoulder and said with a smile.

"thanks, thanks."

Jim Carrey's speech lasted 46 seconds, exceeding the allotted second.

In those 46 seconds, he thanked director Cao Yang three times and producer Cao Yang twice.

Jim Carrey followed six other Best Actor winners off the stage; this time, it's seven.

Steven Spielberg walked up and said, "I'm sure you're all eager to know the results, right? That's right, I'm going to present the grand prize, Best Picture..."

He didn't say much before revealing the winner of the grand prize.

"The winner of Best Picture is..."

Steven Spielberg pulled out an envelope, opened it, and then said with a smile, "Joker, congratulations!"

(End of this chapter)