The award ceremony for the "100 Years of Filmmakers" officially began at 18:00. Familiar people were whispering in the venue, and the topics they discussed were related to the works that would be shortlisted later.
Countless bets have been made online about who will be the biggest winner of the "Filmmaker of the Century" this year. Jiang Se was standing in the aisle under the stands, and the makeup artist was touching up her makeup. Someone from Hong Kong Jewelry also came over to replace the earrings on her ears with a pair of new models that have not yet been launched on the market this year.
Mo Anqi squatted on the ground and took off the black stiletto heels on her feet, replacing them with a pair of silver-strap high heels that matched her handbag.
For this "Hundred Years of Filmmakers" event, Jiang Se wore a dress designed by Melovin because she was very likely to cooperate with the brand. With Xia Chaoqun's help, a stylist invited by Melovin also joined Jiang Se's personal stylist for the "Hundred Years of Filmmakers" trip.
She had worn this cheongsam on the red carpet before, causing a sensation.
Before "God's Redemption" was selected as an outstanding work of "Filmmakers of the Century" and became the lucky one with an extremely low probability of winning one of the awards of "Filmmakers of the Century", the team had already discussed whether Jiang Se should change into a new dress after the red carpet show to cope with the situation of going on stage to receive the award. Even if the chance of that is very small, he should be prepared for everything.
But in the end, due to time planning issues with the "Century of Filmmakers" event, the team gave up the idea.
The closing ceremony of "A Century of Filmmakers" was very tight, with the time difference between the red carpet walk and the awards ceremony being only half an hour at most.
As the female lead of "God's Redemption", Jiang Se had the advantage of playing opposite Donald. She walked the red carpet in the second half. After entering the venue, she needed to touch up her makeup, change shoes, etc. Changing into a dress was a very time-consuming act.
Finally, Melovin's designer suggested that they work on the dress she was originally going to wear and make some subtle changes, so that this dress, which had already been seen once, could become a brand new surprise for the audience.
This modified cheongsam dress took a lot of time from determining the original style to drawing and making the pattern. It took nearly three hundred days from determining the details to the final dress becoming the finished product and appearing in front of Jiang Se.
It is a big project to modify it in a short period of time.
After repeated discussions, the team came up with a plan to create a bold idea of wearing one piece of clothing in two ways.
After Jiang Se put on earrings and high heels, Melovin's designer came forward and carefully untied the collar of her cheongsam which was decorated with rhinestones, and took off the shining decorations. The collar of the cheongsam, which was originally inlaid with gorgeous jewels, immediately became plain and lower than before. The dangling earrings were dazzling, and they set off the white skin of her slender neck.
Instead, a black tulle hand-embroidered shawl was brought out by Melovin's people and carefully sewed by the designer to the back of her neck. The tulle just covered her snow-white shoulders, and silver diamonds were sewn into the hem. The sewing started below the calves, until more and more were sewn, forming a starry sky pattern with a gradient black turning into silver.
It was already 18:06, and there were still four minutes before the award ceremony officially began. Mo Anqi kept looking at her watch, as Melovin's designer still had the last few stitches to sew.
The lights around dimmed, and a three-minute scene from a classic film selected in previous years began to play on the big screen in the center of the venue. With the surround sound, Jiang Se's palms were already sweating. Xia Chaoqun did not show it on the surface, but he had already controlled himself and took several silent deep breaths.
This kind of work cannot be rushed at all. Jiang Se was wearing a skirt and the light around her was dim. Even if someone next to her turned on the light of their mobile phone, if she was in a hurry or the designer's hand shook a little, the needle would most likely prick her neck.
But the ceremony was about to begin, and the guests who had come in earlier sat back in their original seats on the chairs in the distance. The remaining few actresses who stayed in the aisle to touch up their makeup looked a little anxious, silently urging the makeup artist to hurry up.
Even Cesare, who was sitting on the chair, seemed to turn his head and take a look, which made Mo Anqi even more anxious.
But Melovin's designers are still taking their time. This "Centennial Filmmakers" awards ceremony, in addition to determining whether "God's Redemption" starring Jiang Se can win the grand prize, is also a test for Jiang Se by the Melovin brand to see if she can support an absolute topic.
Jiang Se's stunning appearance on the red carpet tonight has attracted a certain amount of attention, but for Melovin, it is far from enough for the Melovin brand to easily make Jiang Se the image spokesperson for its custom-made clothing. Jiang Se can turn Melovin's dress into an instant classic, which is enough to become a case that can be remembered in the history of Melovin in the future. Her cooperation with Melovin will gain more enthusiasm from Melovin.
Xia Chaoqun was obviously aware of this situation, so even though she knew that time was passing and the stars who were putting on makeup were leaving one after another, she still didn't urge them.
Jiang Se also understood, so while Melovin's designer was sewing the shawl for her, she was still reciting her speech to divert her attention.
The host on the central stage was already in place. It was already 18:09. Melovin's designer finally sewed the last stitch and carefully hid the thread. He then made a simple finishing move and tidied Jiang Se's shawl. He couldn't help but sigh:
“It’s perfect.”
It was too late. Cesare's assistant had been coming over to give silent reminders. When the live broadcast officially began, the live camera in the Sacred Auditorium would quickly scan the entire venue, allowing the audience around the world who were watching in front of their TVs at this moment to get a glimpse of the scene at this "Centennial Filmmakers" venue.
The sight of her walking down the aisle at that time might make her the center of everyone's attention, and would be used as an attack point by many viewers who were originally dissatisfied with the replacement of Laura in "God's Redemption" because of the use of Chinese actresses.
Mo Anqi held her skirt and strode to her seat.
Powerful music was playing in the venue. Xia Chaoqun pursed his lips and looked down at the time. It was 18:09:06, but Jiang Se's steps were still steady in the dark.
She did not panic because of the rush of time. She knew that the more confused she was, the more mistakes she would make. So even though she knew that time was not abundant, she took big steps with her back straight and her expression calm. Mo Anqi held her cloak and ran behind her in small steps.
She walked over quickly to the nearly twenty-meter distance and sat naturally in the seat reserved for her at the conference. She even turned around and smiled at Cesare. She was extremely calm. No one could have guessed that at this moment, Jiang Se's heart was beating like a drum and her palms were soaked with sweat.
When Mo Anqi was halfway back, she suddenly saw a countdown appear on the huge screen in the center of the venue, and the panoramic sound of the countdown sounded:
"Three, two..."
The sound surrounded the venue, instantly igniting the excitement of the guests, and people couldn't help but shout along:
"one!"
Tao Tao was also among those who followed the countdown. Before coming to the United States, she had already made many preparations overnight and read many guides written by industry insiders about the "Centennial Filmmakers" awards ceremony in the sacred auditorium. Naturally, she did not miss this special countdown.
This has become a special tradition of the "century-old filmmakers". Audiences who were fortunate enough to be there in person have excitedly described this scene in gorgeous words. Tao Tao has also imagined the scene through written records, but her imagination is far less than one ten-thousandth of what she saw with her own eyes.
At that moment, when the whole audience shouted and counted, Tao Tao felt that she had become one with the "century-old filmmakers".
Even though she had arrived in the United States two days ago and came to the sacred auditorium early in the morning to shoot, it was only at this moment that she truly felt that she was witnessing a "miracle" in person and participating in this solemn and dignified closing ceremony of the movie.
Mo Anqi returned to Xia Chaoqun's side. As soon as the shouting stopped, the lights in the venue lit up. Catherine on the stage had walked to the center of the stage with a smile on her face. Three bright and somewhat dazzling spotlights on the stage shone on her, allowing the audience to see this beautiful woman under the spotlight clearly.
Thunderous applause broke out in the venue, and then the camera turned, illuminating every corner of the venue clearly.
The camera even made a brief close-up of several popular directors who were most likely to win the "Filmmaker of the Century" award. Cesare's direction was also one of the lucky stops.
Tao Tao had been looking for Jiang Se's figure since she entered the venue, but because the venue was so large, she could see it was crowded with guests and dotted with lights all around, so she could hardly see Jiang Se's figure when she first came in.
Later, when the lights went out, she still couldn't find Jiang Se until the camera in the venue started turning. She stared at the big screen and saw Jiang Se's reflection on the screen.
Even if it was just a fleeting glimpse, it was enough to make her utterly stunned.
The online ratings of the "A Century of Filmmakers" program broadcast live by China Television in China have reached an extremely exaggerated number. According to the figures sent to China Television by the Radio and Television Audience Research Institute, the ratings on both networks exceeded 7.
As mobile phones, computers and the Internet have distracted people from watching TV series, viewership rates reaching this level have become a very rare occurrence in recent years.
Although the "Centennial Filmmakers" in previous years also caused a sensation and attracted attention, the situation this year is different. In the past, the Chinese people have been more indifferent to the development of the "Centennial Filmmakers".
But this year, Jiang Se's participation and red carpet appearance ignited the enthusiasm of the domestic people, and the ratings shot up immediately.
On the official website of Huaxia Television, the moment Jiang Se appeared, a quick-handed netizen took a screenshot and saved her image.
She seemed unaware that she had been photographed, and like thousands of other guests and audience members, she was clapping her hands to welcome the arrival of the "Filmmaker of the Century".
Even though it was a casual screenshot, her beauty was not diminished at all, and her eyes seemed to be filled with stars when she smiled.
Long memories: My goddess changed into a dress!
You are cuter today than yesterday: Jiang Se is so beautiful!
Inflated: The first Chinese actress to step onto the 'Century Filmmaker' list with her works, Jiang Se blows a kiss!
Chinese Young Man: Jiang Se appeared, Jiang Se just appeared!
…
Messages were left one after another, and netizens who were following the live broadcast could hardly contain their excitement.
On the stage of "A Century of Filmmakers", the camera panned from top to bottom, taking in the entire venue. Catherine Akerman had already walked to the front of the stage and greeted the audience, and the cheers from the audience became even louder.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you all for coming to our awards ceremony for the 100-year history of world cinema."
This English rose had a cool and charming demeanor on the stage, her voice was a little hoarse, but as soon as she opened her mouth, she was greeted with thunderous applause from the audience.
She smiled and paused for about three seconds before speaking again:
“Three years after the last 100-year film history celebration, art and outstanding directors have brought us together again.”
Since the first "Century of Filmmakers" was established, different topics have been combined with the birth of movies, such as charity, environmental protection, human rights, etc. Each time, the host's preliminary speech will be combined with the theme of the movie.
"Ninety-six years ago, when Mr. Locke proposed the idea of '100-year filmmaker', he probably could not have imagined that his idea would leave us with something so precious." Catherine paused, smiled and looked up at the distance of the venue: "On this stage of ours, countless directors and the best works from different countries around the world have appeared. We treat them all equally..."
When Cesare heard this, he clapped along with the audience and turned his head to look at Jiang Se:
"It seems the theme tonight is equality."
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Se was stunned.
Cesare's words were full of meaning, but he was obviously not the only one who understood the hidden meaning of this English Rose.
In the venue, Shu Payen, as a very famous film critic in the circle, was also among the invited guests for tonight's "A Century of Filmmakers" closing ceremony. His seat was a little far from the stage, but thanks to the panoramic sound, every word Catherine said was transmitted to his ears clearly.
"Is the theme of tonight equality?"
He and Cesare were separated by nearly half the distance of the venue, but at the same time, they said the same words.
Everyone knows that there is an unwritten rule in the "Centennial Filmmakers" that the closer the ideas of a film are to the theme of the conference, the more beneficial it will be to the films participating in the election.
In "God's Redemption", Jiang Se is from China. Some viewers thought that Jiang Se would lower the overall quality of the film. (To be continued)