Who are you calling "little fresh meat"? I'm the king.

Chapter 938 Tearing Up the Award (33)

Many people rave about how amazing the original novel of "Lone on the Moon" is...

The original work contains a lot of the author's personal quirks and dark humor, and much of it requires specialized knowledge to understand.

In addition, the narrative subject changes—sometimes it's Dugu Yue, sometimes it's people from Earth—and some side stories are inserted, resulting in a slower overall pace and a somewhat loose plot progression.

Okay, the most important thing is still the plot development...

In the original story, the asteroid "π" that was attacking Earth strikes again. Scientists on Earth have to adjust their plans temporarily. Dugu Yue, who has learned all the knowledge of space mechanics, cannot leave the moon. He sends Kangaroo to the escape pod to return to Earth, while he stays on the moon to manually launch the remaining dozens of rockets with nuclear warheads at "π", which has split in two.

The asteroid "π" struck the Earth, but debris struck the Moon, preventing a second destruction of Earth, though the lunar base was almost completely destroyed.

Having overcome two crises, Earth quickly recovered to its former state.

Dugu Yue's live streaming channel hasn't reappeared for 17 years...

If we do it this way, Dugu Yue won't have to return to Earth!
Shen Yan thought for a moment and offered a suggestion: "Why don't you just handle it nonsensically, absurdly and childishly..."

"The astronaut, such a serious and respectable profession, was inexplicably left on the moon for the absurd reason of having such a low profile. And the other remaining species on the moon was a kangaroo, an uncommon animal that cannot be kept as a pet by humans because kangaroos are not easy to tame. So, the man and the kangaroo engaged in various tactical tug-of-wars on the moon, while the protagonist, Dugu Yue, was also determined to die..."

This nonsensical style is great!

"Lone on the Moon"...rebellious and immature, it's really rare to find in Chinese films.

An astronaut is stranded alone on the moon and, in his desperation to die, spends his days fighting with a grumpy kangaroo. How cool is that!

We're tired of the same old urban men and women, youth campus life, and petty crime scenes in domestic films!
Isn't the plot of an astronaut on the moon fighting with kangaroos every day a hundred times more entertaining than those clichéd movies?
It's like you've had a full day of classes, and suddenly one of your classes involves going outside the school to dig for wild vegetables. Regardless of whether the vegetables are good or not, as long as you can get out of the school, you've made a profit!
Zhang Chiyu nodded: "Okay, I'll talk to them about it."

"Looking at 'Mars Attacks!'... what we're missing is this kind of pure absurd comedy!"

"OK!"

"Mars Attacks!" - An old song kills aliens!

—An alien invasion of Earth threatening its destruction. No one could have imagined that these incredibly cunning monsters, armed with weapons so advanced they could incinerate entire populations with a single shot, and so formidable even to the military, would be afraid of a certain kind of music! When that haunting music was broadcast everywhere, the seemingly invincible Martians clutched their heads in agony, their brains splattering as they died…

……

Zhang's problem about eating fish has been solved...

Shen Yan turned to look at Lu Yang and Guo Fan: "What's up with you two?"

"We're both fine..."

"Is 'Space Elevator' confirmed for release during next year's Spring Festival?"

Guo Fan nodded: "It should be possible!"

Lu Yang interjected, "How about we release 'Earth Fire' during next year's Spring Festival?"

Shen Yan shook his head: "No, the themes are too similar..."

"That's right, there's also a Liu Cixin film called 'The Rural Teacher' coming out for next year's Spring Festival!"

“That’s true…” Lu Yang nodded, “Then let’s celebrate National Day!”

When will filming begin for "Lone in the Moon"?

"November, I guess..."

Shen Yan was surprised: "The preliminary preparations took so long?"

"Mainly because Brother Teng is too busy..."

"...Make him lose some weight, he can't be too fat!"

"Yes, I know..."

Guo Fan interjected: "Is Parasite confirmed to be in the main competition at Cannes?"

"Yes, they should release an announcement in a while..."

"The jury chair is Cate Blanchett?" "Yes!"

"Is the Palme d'Or secured?"

Shen Yan shook his head: "Hard to say...it depends on Kate's ability to win the award!"

Are there any Chinese filmmakers on the judging panel this year?

Lu Yang checked the information and then raised his hand: "Zhang Zhen is in it!"

Shen Yan waved his hand: "It's okay, there's Léa Seydoux... she's acted in a movie I produced!"

"...Zhang Zhen isn't speaking up for you?"

Shen Yan shook his head: "How would I know? I don't even know him!"

"Holy crap!" Guo Fan suddenly blurted out a curse: "Twilight Girl is a judge too!"

Who is Twilight Girl?

"Christine Stewart!"

“…Heh…” Shen Yan sneered: “Maybe in a few years, he’ll be the chairman of the judging panel!”

This is no joke; she actually became the president of the jury at the Berlin Film Festival, and when a reporter asked her, "Do you have any favorite foreign films?", she replied, "I don't watch foreign language films!"—her exact words were, "I'm a failure, I don't even have a list of foreign language films..."

Then a bunch of people praised her for being 'genuine'!

Isn't this just desperate illiteracy?
Why is it that when foreigners are seen as having a "true personality"?
"how is this possible?"

"Well... she's just a celebrity... she doesn't have much acting talent or any notable works..."

"If you ask me, you'd be a better fit than her to be the chair of the judging panel!"

Shen Yan glanced at the three of them, then whispered, "...I will be the president of next year's Venice Film Festival...Make whatever good films you have...As long as they are nominated, I guarantee I'll get you an award!"

"Really?"

"We need to be as avant-garde as possible... If all else fails, I'll come up with a theme for you!"

"What subject matter?"

“Either expose the gap between the rich and the poor, or…” Shen Yan thought for a moment, then said, “The three of you make a film about Nanjing, and I guarantee it will win an award!”

"Nanjing? The Nanjing Massacre?"

"Correct!"

……

The three major European film festivals all use a jury system; whether you win an award depends entirely on the debate...

The so-called "tearing up the award" is actually mainly about helping people explain their local culture and using their influence and explanations to help garner votes.

Back then, Wang Xiaoshuai's "Shanghai Dreams" won the Special Jury Prize, thanks to John Woo's efforts. He publicly told a group of judges: "If 'Shanghai Dreams' returns empty-handed from the Cannes Film Festival, my fate as a filmmaker will be sealed, because my next film needs the support of all the Chinese people."

Even the Golden Lion win for "Lust, Caution" was largely due to Zhang Yimou's efforts—he spent seven hours explaining to the other judges the symbolism of mahjong and cheongsam in China, how they advance the plot, and the historical context of the story. This was to help others understand why the film was presented in this way.

Old Zhang's achievements also include helping Ang Lee's *The Wedding Banquet* and Xie Fei's *Woman Sesame Oil Maker* share the Golden Bear Award at the 1993 Berlin Film Festival—the place where the Berlin Wall fell, where people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family. It would be very meaningful for Chinese people from both sides of the Strait to stand on the stage together to receive awards as the Berlin Wall is about to be dismantled!

Among Chinese filmmakers, Zhang Manyu is arguably the most formidable award contender: she won twice – the Special Jury Prize at the 97 Berlin Film Festival for Tsai Ming-liang's *The River*, and the Golden Lion and Best Director award at the 99 Venice Film Festival for Zhang Yimou's *Not One Less*, and also helped Jeon Du-yeon win the Best Actress award at Cannes…

Fan Bingbing is also good; at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival, "The Land of Life" won the Best Director award...

Zhao Tao is also very impressive—not only did she help Xin Zhilei win the Best Actress award at Venice, but she also performed well in the main competition section of the Tokyo International Film Festival, with three films winning two major awards: Pema Tseden's *Snow Leopard* won the Golden Kirin Award for Best Film; and Gao Peng also won the Best Artistic Contribution Award for *The Old Gun*…

In comparison, Zhang Ziyi is really quite useless. She served as a judge three times, in Tokyo, Cannes, and Venice, and didn't win a single award!

Of course, unless your movie is so amazing that everyone has to admit it—like "Red Sorghum"!

(End of this chapter)