Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 705 Wants to win an award, but too embarrassed to say so
The film festival officially kicked off at 5:30 p.m. local time.

The lively and bustling opening ceremony red carpet was laid out in front of the Lumière Palace right on time.

It's 11:30 pm in China right now, and anyone watching the opening ceremony red carpet live online at this time is a true fan.

Official journalists clearly preferred to focus their cameras on international superstars and French celebrities.

Domestic viewers even noticed that during the official live broadcast of the film festival, the crew of Jia Zhangke's "Ash Is Purest White" didn't appear on screen at all, nor did they utter a single line of narration.

There's no need to jump to conclusions; the crews of Lee Chang-dong's "Burning" and Hirokazu Kore-eda's "Shoplifters" received the same treatment.

This is not about discriminating against Asian films; the same applies to the production teams of Spike Lee's "BlacKkKlansman" and Ceylan's "The Wild Pear Tree."

The crew of "Marriage Story" didn't receive any special treatment, but they weren't as badly treated as some other crews either. They did get a few shots and some official introductions.

Many viewers who stayed up late to watch the live stream only discovered today that Wan Qian and Guo Xiaodong also starred in "Marriage Story".

It's normal that they've been discovered now. The two played supporting roles in the drama, so the show "Marriage Story" didn't get much attention. Who would bother to pay attention to two supporting actors?

The car of the "Marriage Story" crew slowly stopped at the entrance to the red carpet, where many ordinary viewers and media who could not enter the red carpet area gathered.

Not many foreign media outlets know Li Qiutang, but Li Qiutang has a very keen ear; she sensitively picked up Mandarin in the noisy crowd:

"Director Li! Director Li!"

Li Qiutang rushed forward, grabbed the pen handed to him by a fan, and began signing autographs.

Photos of Liu Yifei.

I don't care, I'll sign it anyway!
"Director, why isn't Yifei here?"

"She's still filming and won't be here for a few days." The photo of Little Dragon Girl was signed by Li Qiutang!

The red carpet entrance wasn't a place for detailed conversations. Li Qiutang quickly took a photo with a fan using her phone, waved, and went onto the red carpet.

The official Cannes livestream described "Marriage Story" as follows:

"Lee is a very talented young director who shocked the film industry in 2011 with In Time. Now he comes to Cannes with his new film Marriage Story, which is his first time being nominated for the main competition."

They gave the crew two shots, and then cut away.

Of course, this is what the audience in front of the screen sees; the crew members walking on the red carpet didn't feel this way about being ignored.

Although there aren't many foreign media outlets that recognize us, there are still some, and we can still take a few photos.

If it weren't for accommodating Wan Qian—actresses always seem to linger on the red carpet, and Wan Qian finally getting a proper chance to walk the Cannes red carpet—Li Qiutang would have already finished and entered the Palais des Festivals.

What a coincidence! Fan Bingbing was the one who was on the red carpet before "Marriage Story," posing for photos.

To be honest, her bright green cake dress wasn't particularly attractive.

Upon seeing the "Marriage Story" crew arrive, Fan Bingbing joined them and affectionately took a few photos with Li Qiutang.

Li Qiutang, with Fan Bingbing holding her arm, whispered to her, "It's only because Yifei didn't come. If Yifei had come, our crew's exposure might have been higher."

The entire cast and crew of "Marriage Story" combined don't have as much international fame as Liu Yifei alone.

As the group walked up the steps, festival president Pierre Lescuer greeted Li Qiutang warmly: "I told Jon that I must invite you to Cannes." Does he say this to every guest?

Li Qiutang thanked him, and Leschel invited the crew to stand in front of the cinema for a group photo. Fan Bingbing was clever; she joined the "Marriage Story" crew at the right time, and sure enough, she also got a photo with Leschel.

Li Qiutang didn't say anything; there was no need to argue about such things.

The group entered the cinema palace. As for the opening ceremony, there's no need to elaborate. The opening film was Asghar Farhadi's "Everybody Knows." As for its reception, we'll have to wait for tomorrow's program.

The opening ceremony was naturally a topic of discussion in China early the next morning.

"On May 8th, local time, the 71st Cannes International Film Festival opened in Cannes, France. Fan Bingbing, Li Yuchun, Ma Su, and others appeared on the red carpet. This year, two Chinese-language films are nominated for the main competition, 'Ash Is Purest White' and 'Marriage Story,' which will be presented later."

"At the opening of the 71st Cannes International Film Festival, Li Qiutang's 'Marriage Story' was selected for the main competition for the first time and was personally welcomed by the festival's president, Pierre Lescuhl."

Liu Yifei was looking at yesterday's red carpet photos with her colleagues on set, saying, "Looking at them like this, my husband is quite handsome, huh?"

Li Qiutang had a cameo role as the male lead in the idol romance drama "The Beauty Inside," so his looks are naturally quite good.

Liu Yifei continued, "If not handsome and dashing, he's at least presentable."

How can you talk about your husband like that!
However, today's Cannes coverage is not focused on the two films in competition, but rather on the other stars.

Ma Su lingered on the red carpet for six minutes, openly displaying her cleavage, and the staff couldn't get her to leave.

An Asian actress faked a fall while going up stairs to grab attention.

Fan Bingbing was mistaken for Li Bingbing at the airport, and even commented on her younger brother who had just debuted, saying that she "didn't feel anything" about it.

People are talking about how this is the section chief's fifth time being shortlisted for Cannes, and they wonder if he can make Tao Jie's dream come true this year.

It seems like not many people are paying attention to "Marriage Story".

But it's alright, Liu Yifei said generously, "This is our first time being shortlisted, it's already great that we can go."

As for the "Mulan" crew not letting her leave, she felt it was alright. After all, filming here was very intense, and whether she walked the red carpet or not didn't matter, as long as Guo Fan let her attend the premiere.

The next morning, after breakfast, Li Qiutang began accepting all sorts of interviews.

"Yifei is still filming in China and can't come for the time being, but she'll be there for the premiere," he said in an interview with the movie channel.

A trailer for "Marriage Story" was released before the Cannes Film Festival, letting audiences know that it is a film about mutual suspicion between husband and wife.

When asked why he would focus his camera on such a story, a reporter asked him, "In our eyes, you and Yifei are a model couple, so why would you film such a story?"

Li Qiutang explained, "My filming of this kind of story does not mean that my life is like this. The film is my idea, one perspective on things, and does not represent my real situation."

The question was raised: "The premiere of 'Marriage Story' is on the 17th, which is quite late. The media and judges might be tired by the time they see the premiere on the 17th. Do you think this will affect their evaluation of 'Marriage Story'?"

"If it's a good movie, then no." The answer was straightforward.

"So, do you have any expectations for the award?"

"I have expectations, but if I say it out loud, people will think I'm just daydreaming," Li Qiutang said playfully. "Enjoying the film festival is more important."

Then, the movie channel wrote: "Cannes story: Li Qiutang said he wanted to win an award, but was too embarrassed to say so."

There's no need to write this out.

(End of this chapter)