Chapter 120
In the entertainment industry, in addition to popularity and the ability to make money, winning awards, especially prestigious awards, is obviously the most important evaluation criterion, no doubt about it.
In this circle, being able to show off one's reputation and fame is something that cannot be bought with any amount of money.
The Thorn Award obviously has the highest evaluation authority in this circle, so this news stayed on the hot search for three days in a row. The public is enthusiastic, and anything that has something to do with "The Book of Mountains and Wilderness" will get attention.
The status of the Thorn Award is so special that after the news of the nomination came out, Su Ning and Shen Mingzheng also learned about this award in depth at this time.
The current Thorn Awards are clearly in their heyday.
On the surface, this award is not controlled by a certain family or company. The judges come from various countries and are changed from time to time. They are all well-known people in the circle. This award has always been famous for representing art and fairness.
It once sheltered many poor and displaced artists during the war. Over the past century, it has also used its influence to call for equality, anti-war and other advocacy, discovered many world-famous artists, and focused on charity with fruitful results. It can be said to be the highest and purest pearl in the entertainment industry.
It is undeniable that the recognition it has received from the world is not in vain, but is the result of its achievements year after year.
But as to the question of "whether there is something fishy behind the current Thorn Award", the two of them cannot come to a definite conclusion.
——Where there are people, there will naturally be places where filth and dirt can be hidden, but they really didn’t do anything to be shortlisted this time.
Even though Su Ning and Shen Mingzheng were the investors of the film, they did not take any shortcuts in this regard. Although CEO Gao of Gaoshan Pictures was powerful, she obviously did not have the ability in this area. When she first received the news, she was even more surprised than Su Ning.
From this perspective, the Thorn Award is now very fair. And Hong Kong City also gave its own opinion on this matter.
There are also domestic actors who have served as judges for the Thorn Awards, such as Hong Kong's Fu Jing. Her work was shortlisted for the Thorn Awards when she first debuted, and she had been a judge for several years before that, so her position in the country is unshakable.
So if you have to say it, the Shen family in Hongcheng is closer to Shen Antang than to Shen Antang, and with Fu Jing's experience, they can still have a say.
Perhaps, the relationship with the "Thorn Award" was also one of the important reasons why Shen Antang showed goodwill to Hong Kong Island at that time.
Shen Antang once failed the Thorn Award.
Shen Mingzheng had only seen clues before, and didn't know how the old man had fallen out with the Thorn Prize. Although Shen Zhaolan was a little younger, he had a lot of information, and since he asked, he didn't hide anything on this matter.
"I heard that when Shen Antang first came to power, he tried to influence the Thorn Award through bribery, but was discovered by the then chairman, Matthew Morgan. He was on guard against him and couldn't get involved, and he lost a lot," said Shen Zhaolan, who knew something about it. "Old Matthew is a very strict person, and President Su should have heard of him. Of course, it is impossible for those in the entertainment industry not to have heard of him. He will not allow anyone to tarnish this award."
This is one of the few Waterloos for Mr. Shen.
Moreover, during the years when he was able to call the shots, he never realized this long-cherished wish.
It was not until he retired and Shen Mingzheng took over, and he really had some excellent works, that the Thorn Award once again extended an olive branch to him.
What confirmed Shen Zhaolan's statement was that after the news of the nomination came, Shen Antang immediately called him overseas and asked him and Su Ning to go to the Thorn Award. His words were all about asking them to seize this opportunity and get in touch with them.
"Old Matthew is a stubborn guy who won't change his ways," he snorted, "but after all these years, he's not in good health anymore and can't care less."
"Mingzheng, the future of the Shen family is in your hands. There is a chance."
Shen Mingzheng agreed on the surface, but then he turned around and told Su Ning what he really thought: "Let him die."
Nowadays, Shen Antang has less and less control over him.
Shen Antang has this kind of personality. He wants to hold in his hands what he likes and what he wants to achieve, no matter what means he uses. In the circle of superiors, there are many people like him, not only in China, but also in the entertainment industry.
What is lacking here are people who truly uphold fairness and justice.
Even though Shen Mingzheng had a bad impression of the Thorn Award, the timing was different after all. Now, there seemed to be no problem with this award. It was like a shining pearl.
They both went to see it in person.
Since there are serious works shortlisted, Gaoshan Pictures will naturally bring people to make a grand trip. The Thorn Awards ceremony lasts a long time, about half a month. In addition to the much-anticipated red carpet, there are also various art exhibitions and film screenings. Generally speaking, it is in the form of a film festival, and all kinds of celebrities in the entertainment industry gather together, making it very lively.
For those people behind the scenes, the purpose of coming here is different from that of celebrities. What is important is the various business dinners and networking contacts. Many collaborations are negotiated in such occasions.
Su Ning came here with this goal in mind.
Although art is not divided into good and bad in the strict sense, technology can be high or low. He has spent so much money on special effects, but there is still a gap between him and some foreign companies.
In particular, he watched the films nominated for this year's Thorn Awards for Best Special Effects and Best Animated Feature. The story expressions were excellent, but what attracted Su Ning more attention was their excellent technology.
If there is an opportunity, he would like to cooperate with the other party and learn from their strengths. The Thorn Award is a good platform for this.
Moreover, after Shen Mingzheng inherited the Shen family, he also remembered the benefits he had received in his previous life. He and Su Ning had always wanted to invest in new and emerging directors, and this was no small project.
They don’t just invest in directors by giving them money. The director is the core of a team, but the foundation for “installing” this core lies in a complete team and technical support.
So they start with the configuration of actors, screenwriters, music, and various personnel platforms within the crew, watch these works mature, and then at this point in time, find the right drivers to protect these creators as much as possible.
This is obviously a big plan. Su Ning did find a lot of surprises during his trip there.
For example, some emerging independent film directors and some short films by new directors that have entered the screening, these works are far from winning awards, but to be able to enter this stage, they are of quite high quality.
Su Ning also saw several director teams from China participating in the exhibition. The circle is so big, but Su Ning had never heard of their names before. Some niche film works are difficult to attract attention, and even if they are released, they only make a few million at the box office before being quickly taken off the screen. But it can be seen that there is something good about them.
Among them, there is an animation director who is very impressive. He made an animated short film with a very traditional Chinese ink-and-wash style, but it tells a simple story called "Silver Bracelet", which is about a girl chasing her childhood dream.
It was filmed very well. Although the story expression was still a bit immature, it was obvious that it already had a lot of style.
Unfortunately, this animated short film is too short, only fifteen minutes, and the last eight minutes are a bit rushed and not as impressive as the previous ones, and the overall completion is not high enough.
Although this work was screened, it had very few opportunities to be shown. Su Ning saw it by chance. After returning, he specially asked someone to contact this young director.
When the other party heard that it was from Guangying Entertainment, he sounded very happy and frankly explained the reason for the hasty production. It was very simple: there was no money.
It costs too much to make such a work. The young director almost lost everything he had. He still made it even though he knew that there was no way to commercialize such a short film.
There is only one reason for her persistence - because the Thorn Award has encouraged the shooting of such short films in recent years and provided opportunities for external presentations, which she seized. Because of this small opportunity, several investors have contacted her recently and want to continue to support her creation of her works.
At present, Su Ning also plans to cooperate with her and provide her with new opportunities. At the end of the conversation, she said to Su Ning with a smile: "Even the famous Guangying Entertainment has come. It seems that my dream is really going to come true."
Although some details still need to be discussed in detail, it is obvious that the other party has great faith in Guangying Entertainment. They only mentioned the name and there is no need to say more. They even readily agreed to the next step of contact before discussing the amount of investment.
In her words, she mentioned a very important word, "dream". Everyone who comes here has their own big or small dream, with stars in their eyes, and a yearning for this industry from the bottom of their hearts.
The most important thing about this award has never been the red carpet and award ceremony that night, but these "opportunities", which coincides with what Su Ning has been doing.
If his previous unconventional approach to recruiting talented people had not been recognized, he would not have been able to gain the other party's recognition so quickly.
So after actually coming here, Su Ning really likes this place.
Even though he came here with caution, the situation here was beyond his expectations.
The Thorn Award was great, and he completely understood why countless people and the protagonists in the book regarded it as their ultimate goal.
But because of this, the ending is even more contrasting compared to the original work he knew. The protagonist who once aimed at the Thorn Prize eventually died in depression, proving that after many years, the Thorn Prize no longer seemed so good, as if the ideal had been shattered.
Not to mention the protagonist, Su Ning had only been here for a few days and felt this atmosphere. He felt heartbroken at the thought that it might change, let alone someone who had always regarded it as his biggest dream.
Why has there been such a big change in just a few years?
After arriving here, Shen Mingzheng and Su Ning acted separately for part of the time. The heir of the Shen family could not avoid some business social activities. Besides, the special effects technology that Su Ning wanted to tackle belonged to the works of large companies. Only through such occasions could he get in touch with them. Of course, the two would attend at the same time, but Shen Mingzheng had more contact.
As the wine flowed, he keenly sensed what was happening behind the scenes. After a period of observation, he gave Su Ning an answer.
——Old Matthew, who has served as the chairman of the Thorn Award for more than 30 years and is the great guardian of the Thorn Award, is too old and may not be able to hold on for much longer.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
