Chapter 345: The Third Time

The host of the Oscars changes almost every year, but no matter how they change or who they change to, the hosting style must be "Oscar-ized."

Even for someone known for a "serious" style, hosting the Oscars requires them to be relaxed, entertaining, and humorous for me.

What if they truly lack talent in this area?

Then they go down the path of low-brow humor...

The host for this year's Oscars, Ellen DeGeneres, comes from a comedy background, and her show, "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," is extremely popular in North America, so the Oscars invited her to host, and she can still handle it with ease.

However, using "she" is actually not quite accurate; Ellen DeGeneres came out as a lesbian in 1997, and she has a girlfriend.

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

Nicole Kidman was wearing a long, bright red dress; she is tall, has a great figure, and her skin is exceptionally fair, making her very pleasant to look at.

This point distinguishes her from traditional Westerners.

You wouldn't be able to tell at all that Nicole Kidman is already at the "advanced age" of 40 this year.

The previous few awards had nothing to do with "Inception," nor did they have anything to do with Cao Yang's other two hyped-up rivals, Martin Scorsese and Director Dong Mu.

Therefore, the cameras did not sweep over here for the time being.

"Can we really not win a major award?"

Fatty Bing sat on Cao Yang's right side, her eyes fixed on the stage with a smile on her face, looking very focused; without even moving her lips, the words reached Cao Yang's ears.

Perhaps this is also one of the special skills of an actress.

"Didn't you ask that last night?"

Cao Yang couldn't achieve the effortless grace that Fatty Bing had; he still had to turn his head slightly when speaking.

"But you said if I did as you asked and gave you some special rewards, maybe 'Inception' would be able to win an award."

Fatty Bing continued to look at the stage, still smiling, but the words she spoke sounded a bit aggrieved.

"I sacrificed a lot so that 'Inception' could win an award."

Cao Yang thought about what happened yesterday; this kind of thing isn't necessarily a "sacrifice," right? Weren't you playing quite excitedly? Your mezzo-soprano even turned into a soprano.

"Then it depends on whether you are sincere; sincerity brings success. The first nominated award is coming up; this counts as a test of your piety."

Cao Yang said this and immediately sat up straight and serious. It wasn't that he valued the Best Sound Editing award about to be presented—to be honest, this award is a bit of a chicken rib.

However, because Clint Eastwood's directed "Letters from Iwo Jima" was also nominated for this award, as "old rivals," the Oscar broadcast cameras would definitely pay special attention here.

The corners of Fatty Bing's mouth curled up; she didn't need to deliberately sit up straight. Even when she was chatting with Cao Yang earlier, she looked very serious.

The presenters were comedians Steve Carell and Greg Kinnear.

Some people might not know who these two are by name, but Steve Carell is still very popular in later generations.

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

It’s the one where he is wearing a blue-black suit and a white shirt, nodding with an expression that isn't exactly ferocious, saying: "No, God please no!"

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

This meme is used by a great many people.

Sure enough, as Steve Carell was delivering the presentation speech, the cameras were mostly focused on the "Inception" and "Letters from Iwo Jima" crews, switching back and forth.

As for the other nominated films, it's not that they didn't have camera time, but at least the camera cut to them once before switching back between "Inception" and "Letters from Iwo Jima."

"The winner is..." said Greg Kinnear.

Steve Carell opened the envelope, let out a "wow," and said into the microphone: "Congratulations to 'Letters from Iwo Jima'."

Clint Eastwood smiled and stood up immediately, clenching his hands into fists and shaking them in front of his chest, looking as excited as a football coach seeing his team, which had been trailing, suddenly score a world-class goal.

Surrounded by the "Letters from Iwo Jima" crew, they all stood up in a rush, looking very excited and applauding Director Dong Mu incessantly.

Cao Yang applauded with a smile, unable to help but complain inwardly: looking at this grand display, someone 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 likely Clint Eastwood deliberately cooperating with the Oscars to create a show effect.

Old Dong Mu wouldn't be excited to this extent over a chicken-rib minor award like the Oscar for Best Sound Editing.

As one of the most famous directors in Hollywood, especially in the field of art films, what kind of scenes hasn't Old Dong Mu seen?

Back at the 65th Oscars in '93, he had already won Best Director and Best Picture for "Unforgiven."

At the 77th Oscars the year before last, Cao Yang won Best Director, and Clint Eastwood won Best Picture once again.

Cao Yang suddenly had a realization.

The Oscars hyping up the so-called "grudge" between him and Clint Eastwood and Martin Scorsese is likely, first, to increase the topic value for the Oscars, and second, to "build momentum" for Martin Scorsese.

Martin Scorsese is one of the four major directors from the earlier period of Hollywood.

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

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

Although George Lucas hasn't won an Oscar for Best Director, he works in a different field; since "Star Wars" in '77, he has almost never dabbled in art films.

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

So in the US, no matter how you rank the great directors, George Lucas is someone you cannot bypass.

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

Among the traditional four major directors of Hollywood, only Martin Scorsese is the one who most needs the Oscar for Best Director.

There have always been rumors outside that the Oscars owe Martin Scorsese a golden statuette.

Martin Scorsese has already been nominated for Best Director five times; counting this one, it is the sixth.

Cao Yang looked at Martin Scorsese on the left side of the aisle; at this moment, Old Ma was smiling and applauding, looking like he didn't have much emotional fluctuation.

The Oscars are likely planning to return the golden statuette they "owe" Martin Scorsese to him.

The sound editors for "Letters from Iwo Jima" were two old white men; they shouldn't be very famous, and Cao Yang didn't know them.

These two were clearly very excited, only thanking people on stage: thanking the Academy, thanking the director Clint Eastwood, thanking the producer Steven Spielberg, thanking Warner Bros. and DreamWorks...

Gu Changwei sat in the seat behind Cao Yang; he saw the performance of Clint Eastwood's crew and felt angry in his heart.

It's just winning a chicken-rib award, what's so great about it? What the hell are you excited about!

Cao Yang's "Inception" has nine Oscar nominations; how many do you have, damn it? Only a pathetic four, like you've never seen the world before.

As Cao Yang's designated cinematographer, Gu Changwei is currently the undisputed number one in the cinematography industry, including in the country, Xiangjiang, and Wanwan.

Even looking globally, he is one of the few people who can be called a "master."

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

What's more, he now has a teaching position at the Beijing Film Academy; he is a professor in the cinematography department and also the deputy director of the cinematography department.

Therefore, he naturally has to defend everything about Cao Yang; he and Cao Yang are bound together for better or worse.

"A bullshit chicken-rib technical award, acting like they won Best Director, a bunch of bumpkins."

Old Gu whispered to his wife, Jiang Wenli.

"Mm-hmm."

Jiang Wenli nodded desperately; she also felt those people were a bit too much. A technical award, and the whole crew of a dozen people stood up in a rush; even that old man, the director, was waving his fists excitedly. What is this trying to do?

Look at how well-mannered Cao Yang is; even with you guys acting like that, Cao Yang is still very politely applauding you.

Subsequently, Jiang Wenli asked Old Gu in a worried whisper, "Old Gu, I see many people saying that the box office for 'Inception' is too high and it's hard to win major awards; is that true?"

Old Gu hesitated for a moment, then nodded reluctantly and muttered, "Bullshit Oscars, the judging doesn't look at the artistry of the film; if the box office is high, you can't win a major award. How is this any different from the Golden Rooster?"

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

Jiang Wenli whispered in agreement.

Fatty Bing reached out and grabbed Cao Yang's hand, whispering comfortingly, "It's just a small award; if it's lost, it's lost."

After a pause, Fatty Bing said again, "Why are they so excited? Someone who didn't know would think they won the Oscar for Best Picture and Best Director."

Although Fatty Bing didn't say anything explicitly, the sarcasm in her tone was quite obvious.

Cao Yang patted Fatty 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 a major award tonight, and this technical award is the one they are most likely to win, so they were that excited after getting it."

"Is that so?"

Fatty Bing was a bit skeptical.

Cao Yang smiled, looked at the two people going down from the stage, and said, "The next one is Best Sound Mixing; do you believe me that there aren't many who can compete with us for this award?"

Fatty Bing smiled, scratched Cao Yang's palm with her finger, and then said, "If it's really like you said and we can win this award, I'll listen to you one more time tonight."

The presenter for the Best Sound Mixing award was James McAvoy; before he starred in the youth version of "Professor X," he was just a small fry at the moment.

I really don't know who this guy's backing is, but his resources are quite good anyway.

Perhaps knowing that his "status" wasn't high enough to joke with the guests present, James McAvoy got straight to the point without too much nonsense.

"The nominees for the 79th Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing are..."

Following the introduction, "Apocalypto," "Blood Diamond," "Dreamgirls," "Flags of Our Fathers," and "Inception" appeared on the big screen behind him.

"The winner is..."

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

Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng are the sound designers for "Inception"; Huang Haipeng is a sound designer from the Qingying Studio, whom Cao Yang had "planted" into the "Inception" crew.

Before Cao Yang could say anything, Gu Changwei was the first to stand up with an "ow," and someone who didn't know better would think he was the one who won the award.

The "Inception" crew definitely all knew Old Gu; seeing Old Gu stand up, Depp followed suit, applauding vigorously as he stood up.

Subsequently, Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng also stood up; the two of them were the proper winners, so it wouldn't be right not to stand up and show it.

Fatty Bing, Wu Qihua, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hardy, Claire Danes, and other main actors of the crew all stood up as well.

Even Leonardo, sitting on the "Blood Diamond" crew's side, stood up and looked at Cao Yang, applauding.

I have to say, Leonardo had a "bumper harvest" at this year's Oscars.

The "Blood Diamond" he starred in got him a nomination for Best Actor.

"The Departed," which he starred in, received four major award nominations: Oscar for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Editing.

"Inception," in which I had a cameo but was actually one of the main actors, received nine Oscar nominations.

If he could win Best Actor at this year's Oscars, he would truly be unrivaled in the spotlight.

The entire crew stood up, and Cao Yang could not remain seated either; he had no choice but to stand up with them.

He couldn't help but smile bitterly to himself: What are you all trying to do? Anyone who didn't know would think we had won Best Picture and Best Director.

Or are you saying that you feel "Inception" can only win this consolation prize of Best Sound Editing tonight?

Pfft, pfft!

Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng both appeared extremely excited.

For Cao Yang and Gu Changwei, this was a somewhat mediocre "minor award," but for Oliver Brown and Huang Haipeng, it was the most "sacred" award in their minds.

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

Huang Haipeng was over forty; at the Qingying Studio, he was just a diligent and somewhat veteran sound engineer. He never dared to dream in his life that he would have the chance to win an Oscar for Best Sound Editing.

Cao Yang looked at Huang Haipeng, whose eyes were slightly red, patted him on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Don't be nervous. Did you memorize your speech? If you forgot it, just thank everyone."

Old Gu also patted Huang Haipeng on the shoulder afterward and sighed, "You kid, you've really made something of yourself..."

Well, after going on stage, not only did Huang Haipeng forget his lines, but even the old white guy Oliver Brown forgot his.

The only thing they could do without making a mistake was to give thanks: thanks to the crew, thanks to producer Cao Yang, thanks to director Cao Yang, thanks to screenwriter Cao Yang, thanks to Columbia...

Huang Haipeng also specifically thanked the Qingying Studio and the Beijing Film Academy, and finally thanked Cao Yang once more.

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

Cao Yang whispered to Fatty Bing.

"What?"

Fatty Bing played dumb, "I don't understand what you mean."

Heh, you don't understand what I mean?

You were singing like a soprano last night, like a flood bursting a dam; how could you not understand what I mean?

After a few more awards were presented, the big screen began playing clips of screenwriting from classic films, including Ben Affleck and others talking about the importance of film screenwriting.

Cao Yang perked up; the Best Adapted Screenplay award was coming up.

Because the global box office for "Inception" was too high, but not high enough to make the Oscars compromise, there was no point in thinking about the top two awards, Best Picture and Best Director.

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

Furthermore, this award held some special significance for Cao Yang.

He had already won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay; Cao Yang didn't know who had won this award the most times, but he was certain he had the chance to set a record.

The presenters taking the stage were Helen Mirren and Tom Hanks.

These were two heavyweight presenters.

Tom Hanks goes without saying; like Depp, he is one of the few actors to win back-to-back Oscars.

Helen Mirren, aside from not having an Oscar for Best Actress, is a powerhouse actress who has won countless other awards.

The two reiterated the importance of screenwriters before officially beginning the presentation.

"The nominees for the 79th Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay are: 'Borat,' 'The Departed,' 'Children of Men,' 'Little Children,' and 'Inception.'"

This time it had turned into a showdown between Cao Yang and Martin Scorsese.

The camera specifically kept cutting between Cao Yang and Martin Scorsese.

As for the other three films, it wasn't that they didn't have screen time; less just didn't mean none.

"The winner is..."

Helen Mirren opened the envelope, took a look, and then smiled as she handed it to Tom Hanks, "You read it; everyone knows you really like his movies."

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

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

Gu Changwei let out another "Aww" and stood up; this time he was truly excited. He pumped his fist hard and said to his wife, Jiang Wenli:

"I knew it, I knew it! This is what Cao Yang deserves. Such a good movie shouldn't be denied just because the box office is too high. It can't be, it can't be... This is great!"

Fatty Bing hugged Cao Yang directly, appearing very excited as well.

"Congratulations, congratulations to you. This is a truly remarkable achievement. You've become an Oscar-winning screenwriter for the third time; I knew you could do it."

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

Hm?

Cao Yang was stunned. She just agreed to it like that?

Well, it was time to celebrate properly.

Third time as an Oscar-winning screenwriter? Feels alright.

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

Wu Qihua followed up by hugging Cao Yang and said with a smile.

With the global success of "Inception," his current status was no longer lower than Chow Yun-fat's, and his fame in Hollywood was no less than Chow Yun-fat's either; he could be considered one of the biggest beneficiaries.

(End of chapter)