Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 746 Begins with Unification, Ends in Ignorance and Pity

Li Qiutang finally found the seats for the documentary crew. He glared at the female director who had been crying like an idiot on stage.

Before giving his formal speech, he glanced at Chairman Li An, who was sitting in the first row.

Just then, Li Qiutang met Li An's gaze. From Li An's eyes, Li Qiutang saw helpless embarrassment, while Li An could also tell from the look in Li Qiutang's eyes that the other party was up to no good.

Li Qiutang adjusted the microphone and said:

"This is my first time attending the China Taiwan Golden Horse Film Festival, and I am very happy to be here in China Taiwan."

As soon as these words were spoken, the first applause came from Sister Tao of the "Ash Is Purest White" crew. Led by Sister Tao, various crews from mainland China joined in the applause, with Duan Yihong from the "The Looming Storm" crew even letting out a long, high-pitched whistle.

But compared to the cheers from the local Taiwanese filmmakers after that idiotic woman finished speaking, the applause from the mainland crew seemed sparse and lukewarm.

Li Qiutang continued, “Of course we’re nervous standing on this stage, but my upbringing tells me that even if we’re nervous, we should maintain our composure, politeness, and basic respect for the guests, because this is a grand gathering for all Chinese filmmakers, a hall of fame for Chinese cinema.”

Applause erupted again. The live broadcast then focused on Liu Yifei in the audience, who was seen cupping her hands around her mouth, cheering for her husband.

What followed was a typical acceptance speech: "Thank you to the conference and the jury for giving me this award. Thank you to my screenwriter, Li Qiang, and my cinematographer, Wang Boxue, who was also the cinematographer for 'Dying to Survive'. Thank you to my colleagues on the 'Marriage Story' crew; without their support, I wouldn't have been able to complete 'Marriage Story'. Of course, I also want to thank my actors, Qin Hao, Yi Fei, Xi Meijuan, Wan Qian, and Xiaodong. There are just too many people to thank; I'll treat everyone to drinks when I get back."

The applause rose again.

But before Li Qiutang could finish speaking, he glanced around the room again and said:

"Finally, I want to say that the reason we chose art, and film, is because I believe that film can transcend the barriers of language, politics, history, and culture. I've attended many international film festivals, and many foreigners don't understand what our Chinese films are about, yet they are still moved by them. This is because film can bring the audience's emotions onto the same wavelength, it can achieve—"

Li Qiutang's expression was extremely provocative. He paused for a few seconds, his eyes sweeping across the entire room, before slowly uttering the last two words:

"unified."

"thank you all."

The applause was thunderous. The crews of "Shadow" and "Dying to Survive" had the most people, and their cheers were the loudest. Guo Tao and Deng Chao's hands were almost numb from clapping.

Li Qiutang and award presenter Andy Lau left the stage together. Andy Lau said to him, "You're still the best."

"They brought it on themselves; one bad apple spoils the whole bunch."

Liu Dehua had nothing to say, only shook his head.

After Li Qiutang accepted his award, the event entered a break. Li Qiutang sat back down and walked up the steps, passing Deng Chao and Sun Li, Zhou Xun, Hu Ge, Zhao Tao, and the cast and crew of "Dying to Survive".

Everyone greeted him, saying, "You're amazing!"

"well said."

"Well done."

Sitting back down next to Liu Yifei, Liu Yifei praised Li Qiutang for his quick thinking: "You came up with so many lines on the spot, and you delivered them so well." Then she snatched the Best Director trophy from Li Qiutang and kept stroking it.

Shortly after, the awards ceremony continued, with Mo Wenwei taking the stage to sing, and the host again asked Deng Chao to interact with the Best Actress nominees.

Next, the two award presenters, Tu Men and Hui Yinghong, went on stage to announce the Best Actress award.

Tu Men's first words were: "Good evening, everyone. It is a great honor to be here again as an award presenter at the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan."

Regardless of what Taiwanese filmmakers are like, mainland film crews will definitely support the old gentleman, with applause and cheers ringing out continuously.

Tu Men continued, "I saw many familiar faces and made many new friends this time. I feel that we are one family across the Taiwan Strait."

The mainland crew applauded even more enthusiastically.

I'm going to say it! I'm going to say it repeatedly! Even if you don't like it, you're still going to listen! If you're so capable, then leave!

The two guests didn't talk for long before preparing to announce the winners.

Of the five actresses nominated for Best Actress this year, four are from mainland China.

Kara Hui announced the winner: "The winner of the Best Actress award at the 55th Golden Horse Awards is Liu Yifei, for 'Marriage Story'." Liu Yifei's expression initially seemed blank, but upon hearing that she had won, she smiled, one hand on her forehead and the other covering her chest.

She could feel her heart pounding.

She stood up, hugged her husband, and even boldly kissed him on the cheek, eliciting screams from the audience.

Liu Yifei lifted her skirt and slowly walked down the aisle, shaking hands with her competitors. Zhou Xun, Zhao Tao, and Sun Li all congratulated her.

Meanwhile, the on-site commentary broadcast the judges' evaluations for her:
"Marriage Story is Liu Yifei's first attempt at a realistic subject. She perfectly portrays Zhu Xiaoyan's heartbreaking process of gradually losing hope in her husband and family life, creating a sympathetic image of a woman trapped in the quagmire of an ambiguous life. Her performance is sincere, creative, and moving."

It was quite obvious that Liu Yifei's hand was trembling as she held the trophy.

Winning an international award at Cannes is different from winning a domestic award. She originally thought that since she had already won the Best Actress award at Cannes, the Golden Horse Award should be a piece of cake, but she didn't expect that she would be more nervous now than she was in Cannes.

She said, "Thank you Golden Horse Awards, thank you to the jury, thank you Ms. Gong Li, you are my idol. Um..."

She was speechless, and the crew of "Marriage Story" led the applause to cheer her on.

Amid applause, Liu Yifei continued her acceptance speech: "Thank you to all my colleagues at 'Marriage Story,' Hao Ge, Xiao Dong Ge, Wan Qian, and Xi Meijuan, and screenwriter Li Qiang. Of course, I want to thank my husband, Li Qiutang, the most. I don't think that as your wife, I can take it for granted that I can play all the roles you play on screen, but at least with 'Marriage Story,' I can proudly say that I did not disappoint you. I lived up to your efforts and trust, and I also lived up to myself."

The saying goes, "You learn what you learn from the people you learn," and after thanking everyone, Liu Yifei is about to launch her own attack:

"I debuted when I was 14 or 15, and I'm 31 now. I've been acting for 15 or 16 years." Liu Yifei smiled shyly, which drew applause from the audience.

"This year has truly been my lucky year. I acted in some great films and won the acting award I've always dreamed of. I've filmed all over the world—the United States, Canada, France—and I've traveled to many countries. But no matter where I am in the world, my black hair and yellow skin always make me look Chinese. I'm always very enthusiastic about introducing my country and my work as an actress to people. When I'm filming in Hollywood, I represent Chinese actors. When I'm at Cannes, I also represent Chinese actors. Today, standing on the Golden Horse Awards stage, receiving this Best Actress award, I represent all the Chinese actresses, both nominated and not nominated."

I'm going to say it!
"Thank you."

Since you started it, don't blame the mainland production team for bringing it up repeatedly.

Thunderous applause erupted! Li Qiutang regretted not bringing plastic clappers; her hands were sore from clapping.

Next, Liu Jialing and Zhang Zhen presented the Best Actor award.

It was once again won over by the mainland Chinese film crew for "Dying to Survive".

Standing on the stage to accept the award, the male lead, Guo Tao, said, "Good evening, everyone. This is my first time in Taiwan, and also my first time attending the Golden Horse Awards. I am very honored."

At this moment, the mainland production team seemed to have an unspoken understanding: after thanking the production team, their families, and the company as usual, each award recipient would say something else.

After thanking the film crew, Guo Tao continued, "I think one of the most important reasons why the Golden Horse Awards have come this far and are so popular among all Chinese-language filmmakers is that they uphold the purest original intention of film art. This is a grand event for Chinese cinema, a party for filmmakers from both sides of the Taiwan Strait and Hong Kong, where everyone gathers together to enjoy the annual joy. Chinese cinema will definitely get better and better, thank you."

Applause again! A round of enthusiastic applause!
Seeing the blank expressions on the faces of many Taiwanese filmmakers, Li Qiutang found it amusing and even hoped that the Best Film award would be given even more weight.

The Best Film award should have been presented by Executive Committee Chairperson Li An and Jury Chairperson Gong Li, but the announcement at the event was: "Welcome presenter, Li An."

Gong Li sat firmly in the jury's formation.

She refused to go on stage.

On stage, Li An thanked Gong Li and the jury she led for their hard work over the past two weeks.

After the nominated films were introduced, Li An was still trying to persuade Gong Li: "Gong Li, won't you come up and present the award with me? I think you'd rather sit with your comrades, wouldn't you?"

Gong Li just smiled and still didn't intend to go on stage.

Li An also gave up, opened the envelope, and read aloud:
"The winner of the Best Feature Film award at the 55th Golden Horse Awards is 'An Elephant Sitting Still'!"

The entire stadium erupted in the loudest applause and cheers of the night!
Director Hu Bo has passed away. His mother came to the scene to accept the award on behalf of her son. She only said one sentence: "I am very excited. I would like to thank the judges and the audience again." Then she waved her hand and stepped back.

Next, Professor Wang Hongwei, director Hu Bo's teacher, spoke. After him, Gao Yitian, the curator of FIRST, spoke, but he was not as polite as Professor Wang.

After thanking a string of staff members both on and off screen, he added:
"I often say that movies are beautiful, and filmmakers are naive. We think we know everything, but in reality, we know very little about the world. I often say that directors shouldn't express any opinions about the outside world except for movies, because doing so only exposes your ignorance and patheticness. Thank you."

This year's Golden Horse Awards concluded with what Kao Yi-tien described as "ignorance and patheticness."

(End of this chapter)