Chapter 602: Chapter 602

When He Jinxia boarded the plane back to country M, the news that "Eighteen Years Old Sky" had won the Crystal Bear Award had also spread throughout Huaxia.

Even though it was the middle of the night in Huaxia, netizens did what they had to do: they commented, they shared, and marketing accounts continued to write news articles as usual.

In the middle of the night, Weibo and various major browsing sites had already been overwhelmed by the news that "He Jinxia’s ’Eighteen Years Old Sky’ joyfully wins the Crystal Bear"!

As people gradually woke up, the buzz would spread rapidly and eventually explode.

Compared to He Jinxia winning the Crystal Bear Award, the news that "Sheng Yan’s ’World’ missed the Golden Bear Award at Berlin, merely accompanying the competition throughout" was, to say the least, bad news. The media also competed to report this, with enthusiasm comparable to that for "Eighteen Years Old Sky".

Many fans wailed online, not expecting Sheng Yan’s campaign to end in failure, but the Imperial Army was still very confident in their idol, Emperor Sheng. If not successful in Berlin, there were still Cannes, the Oscars, Venice!

There would definitely be a film festival where "World" would win an award!

They might miss out on the highest accolade of the Movie King trophy, but other awards were definitely attainable. Such was the blind confidence of the Imperial Army in Emperor Sheng!

But it was more accurate to say that the Imperial Army believed in Sheng Yan, confident that their idol would not choose to film a movie that was entirely without merit.

Since Sheng Yan chose to shoot "World", there must be aspects of it that attracted him.

Compared to the discussions online that had yet to erupt, the cast and crew of "Eighteen Years Old Sky" attending a dinner in Berlin were already beginning to enjoy the benefits.

Especially Duan Yu, not only did many directors talk to him, but some investors and producers also came over to chat with him.

The directors discussed the future trends, views, and understandings of films, and when the conversation was engaging, some directors would suggest meeting again for further discussions, or even potential collaboration.

When investors and producers were happy talking with Duan Yu, they were even more generous, decisively deciding on the spot to fund his next project.

Producers repeatedly assured that they would bring in his next project, regardless of whether it performed well or not, saying they simply wanted to make friends with him.

Whether directors, investors, or producers, their interaction with Duan Yu followed a pattern—

They chose topics he was interested in, accommodated him, and subtly praised Duan Yu, all to smoothly pave the way for offering Duan Yu conveniences in the future.

They called this networking for mutual benefit, also known as routine investment.

The Crystal Bear Award specifically targets new directors. Compared to other awards at Berlin that evaluate films, this award may seem less significant, but its purpose is to discover talented newcomers.

Duan Yu’s first directed work winning the Crystal Bear was enough to prove his excellence.

Directors, investors, and producers were interested in Duan Yu’s potential. They were willing to invest in Duan Yu, believing that he would bring them more in return in the future.

Oh, no, it might not be appropriate to use the word "return" just yet. To be precise, they were looking to gain benefits from Duan Yu, earning profits several times their initial investment.

Moreover, for a promising new director, investors and producers were very willing to invest.

Although new directors are more reckless, more impatient, and likely to face all sorts of situations, as if they could involve you in troubles at any moment.

However, compared to seasoned directors, new directors also have incomparable advantages, as the chain of benefits behind them is empty, making them easier to be deceived and to build friendships with.

Duan Yu naively conversed with these people, and in just the duration of one dinner, he had set the release date of "Eighteen Years Old Sky" in Huaxia and the plan to introduce it to other countries. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ NovєlFіre.net

Yet, he was completely unaware that others were deliberately directing him to reveal all this information, still pleased with his own luck, feeling like his fortune had completely changed since winning the Crystal Bear Award!

On the other hand, other members of the crew were also gaining differently, directors seeking out directors and actors searching for fellow actors to converse with.

Xi Jing disliked interacting with strangers, so compared to Xu Xiuzi’s fluent talking, she appeared somewhat silent.

Xu Xiuzi was busy making connections with other second-tier actors and didn’t pay her any heed. At the moment, she was enthusiastically chatting with an actor named "He Minqing."

The two hit it off instantly, and as they talked, they felt an incredible alignment in their worldviews, becoming even more enthusiastic as if they had known each other as close friends for years.

Standing not far away, Xi Jing could faintly hear Xiuxiu’s excited voice and suddenly felt that she seemed very unfamiliar.

"Ha, a bunch of clowns jumping around." Xi Jing heard a voice from beside her and couldn’t help but look up, only to see Xi Yunya, who unknown to her had walked over holding a wine glass, her tone slightly sarcastic.

Xi Jing’s eyes widened slightly, and the next second, a flush of red rose on her face. She’s a fan of Xi Yunya!

Her idol was suddenly standing in front of her. What should a fan do?

Should she start with a greeting, hurry up to ask for an autograph, or take a photo together?

Xi Jing’s mind went blank, and she struggled to find words, not knowing what to say.

Perhaps her expressive face caught Xi Yunya’s attention; she glanced at Xi Jing, her eyes curved slightly in a smile, "Innocent?"

Xi Jing subconsciously nodded, then her heart skipped, realizing, "Goddess, did you also watch my performance?"

Xi Yunya spoke meaningfully, "After all, He Jinxia was involved in this film, and I wanted to see where her abilities lay. After watching it, she indeed lived up to her reputation, deserving her breakthrough into the Berlin nominations just a year after changing her genre."

Xi Jing instinctively said, "I watched Senior Jinxia’s performance too, and it’s really impressive. My acting is too raw, not comparable at all."

Xi Yunya: "Not being comparable is normal. Sometimes even I can’t match her skills. I thought I could still challenge her in modern cinema, but after watching ’Eighteen Years Old Sky,’ I realized how fast she has improved and nearly reached that threshold."

Xi Yunya’s eyes darkened slightly, her tone revealing no clear emotion, "I’m aware of ’Eighteen Years Old Sky.’ Originally, that script even passed through my hands. Duan Yu once approached me with an invitation, but ultimately because of the film’s market being too narrow and the low remuneration, I rejected the script, not expecting—"

She paused her words, no longer speaking of that matter, simply stating flatly, "He Jinxia is really lucky."

Xi Jing frowned, not understanding why; she really disliked the tone Xi Yunya used, as if all of Senior Jinxia’s achievements were merely due to luck.

Even though Xi Yunya had acknowledged He Jinxia’s talent before, she still felt uncomfortable.