Chapter 104: Pride and Prejudice

On the afternoon of August 28th, local Italian time, the main cast and logistics team of *Whiplash* arrived in Venice.

The group disembarked from their flight and boarded a speedboat to the Lido, a highly private island that was once a military fortress and is now a resort destination for European old money.

As evening approached, the autumn scenery of the Lido was beautiful; the speedboat darted across the water, and the pointed rooftops and colorful window frames along the shore were unique, while Liu Yifei snapped photos with her camera, "click, click."

"Lu Kuan, Brother Zhou Jielun, look over here!"

"Mr. Feng, smile a little, don't be so serious!"

"Mr. Tian, you look so young after shaving your beard!"

Liu Xiaoli smiled and blocked her lively daughter, but the corners of her mouth could not stop curling upward; she was very much looking forward to tomorrow's red carpet journey.

Boss Lu and the others all smiled and cooperated; looking at the scene where the autumn water and the long sky were the same color, and the falling clouds and seagulls flew together, it was truly refreshing.

Tian Zhuangzhuang touched the cigarettes in his pocket, resisted the urge, and called Lu Kuan to the side to talk.

"Eat something in advance later; come with me to a reception tonight."

Thinking of the jury president for this film festival, Gong Li, Lu Kuan nodded in understanding; everything was understood without words.

Tian Zhuangzhuang did not come this time as the producer of *Whiplash*, but as the director of *Springtime in a Small Town*.

His remake film was also shortlisted for the film festival, though it was a non-competition entry in the "Orizzonti" section, which was newly established this year.

The group checked into the hotel; because the production company for *Whiplash*, Wenjie Culture, was short-staffed, Lu Kuan had asked the *Springtime in a Small Town* crew to help arrange food and lodging, and he had only brought a few staff members along for promotion.

"Lu Kuan, I might not be able to go."

With Da Ni's help, Zhou Jielun sat painfully in the hotel lobby; his ankylosing spondylitis had flared up.

The young superstar had been in Beijing in August promoting his new album *Eight Dimensions*, and then set off with the crew; the 13-hour long flight had destroyed him.

Looking at the bean-sized beads of sweat on his face, Lu Kuan had no choice but to arrange for someone to take good care of him first, and he entrusted hotel staff to help contact a doctor in case of an emergency.

At 7:00 PM, Tian Zhuangzhuang arrived at the island's only five-star hotel, the Hotel Excelsior, with a sharp-suited Lu Kuan and Liu Yifei in an evening gown.

"Little Liu, don't eat too much later, try to restrain yourself."

Seeing the young girl nervously rubbing her hands, Lu Kuan teased her on purpose to lighten the mood.

Liu Yifei was too embarrassed to bicker with him in front of Tian Zhuangzhuang, so she just rolled her eyes for him to interpret himself.

Gong Li was the jury president for this Venice Film Festival, and she and Tian Zhuangzhuang did not have much interaction.

It was just that there were not many directors and actors of that generation, so they were considered familiar with each other.

If one really had to trace it, old Tian still had to take a bit of the blame for the ill-fated connection between Gong Li and Zhang Yimou.

In 1988, 37-year-old Zhang Yimou was going to film *Red Sorghum*, and 36-year-old Tian Zhuangzhuang was going to film *Rock Youth*.

Since it had always been the norm for Beijing Film Academy directors to go to the Central Academy of Drama to pick actors, the two brothers went together.

At the time, Gong Li, Shi Ke, and three other girls from the Central Academy of Drama were known as the "Five Golden Flowers" of the academy; Zhang Yimou had his eye on Shi Ke to play Jiu'er, while Tian Zhuangzhuang had his eye on Gong Li.

Originally, the two of them had just missed each other.

As it turned out, Tian Zhuangzhuang later sought out Shi Ke, and Zhang Yimou felt that Gong Li was also suitable, so after some back and forth, they each took their respective girls to film.

Everyone knows what happened later; call it fate or call it an ill-fated connection, there was that story between the first-generation "Zhang Girl" and the director.

"Old Tian, you look quite young after shaving your beard!"

Gong Li had just finished socializing and came over with a smile to greet them, teasing them with the same words as Liu Yifei.

Tian Zhuangzhuang chuckled: "I haven't been out much in ten years, so I had to spruce myself up a bit."

"Come, let me introduce you."

"The director of *Whiplash*, Lu Kuan, and the lead actress, Liu Yifei."

The group shook hands, and Boss Lu was the first to start buttering her up.

"Sister Gong Li, your aura is so powerful; I saw the reporters interviewing you earlier were in a long line."

"Sigh, this day and a half has cost me half my life."

Gong Li complained lightly, then smiled at Lu Kuan: "Director Lu, your film is very brilliant. At first, Marco Müller said there was a film that would be late in submitting, and the jury didn't really agree."

"It wasn't until they saw the sample you submitted that everyone accepted the proposal!"

Lu Kuan pressed his palms together to show humility: "I have to thank Sister Gong Li and Mr. Tian for their help!"

Gong Li invited them to sit at the dining table to chat, when suddenly a French reporter blocked their path.

"President Gong Li! I am a reporter for *Cahiers du Cinéma* magazine; may I ask you a few questions?"

The female reporter used English, and Gong Li looked up blankly, searching for her translator, but saw no one.

This Venice Film Festival had many points criticized by the European media, and Gong Li serving as jury president was one of them.

She had served as the jury president for the Berlin Film Festival in 2000, and with her brilliant acting resume, she was certainly qualified.

The point the media attacked was that she could not speak English.

Thus, not only the double-standard Western media, but even domestic media and nitpicking film critics and public intellectuals attacked her for being a jury member without being able to speak English, saying she had lost face for the Chinese people.

In this era, Chinese people were generally not that confident, and the most marketable rhetoric was that we needed to reflect, we needed to learn, and we needed to strive to integrate with the international community.

Placed in today's public opinion environment, the fact that Gong Li became the jury president of one of the three major European film festivals without speaking English should be met with far more praise than criticism.

Boss Lu was, of course, quick-witted; he quickly relayed the reporter's questions, acting as a temporary translator, and only then did Gong Li calm down.

Ever since she was announced as president, she had been enduring the verbal attacks of the media.

The French reporter glanced at Lu Kuan with an unkind expression, asked a few simple questions, and then left sullenly; Gong Li's expression was very ugly.

"Sister Gong Li, was that reporter doing that on purpose?"

"Yes, they are all waiting to pick at my mistakes, heh."

Liu Yifei looked confused: "Director Lu, what does that mean?"

"Film festival interviews require appointments. This female reporter was clearly trying to create a topic, taking advantage of the translator's absence to launch a surprise attack on Sister Gong Li."

Gong Li invited them to sit down: "That's right. This group of Westerners is very arrogant; they think it's absurd to let a Chinese woman be the jury president."

"I received a request for help from a *Southern Metropolis Daily* reporter yesterday; his interview appointment was ignored by the staff, who pretended not to understand his English accent, dragging it from morning until night without processing his press credentials."

"Later, I found someone to intervene and get them their credentials. Do you know what that white staff member said?"

"He said, 'You Chinese people understand film too? Giving you a press pass is a waste.'"

Liu Yifei was the first to lose her temper: "These people are too hateful."

Tian Zhuangzhuang and Lu Kuan both shook their heads with helpless smiles.

Pride and prejudice, nothing more than this.

(End of chapter)