China Entertainment King of Science Fiction

Chapter 434 The Political Correctness Buff of "District 9"

Cannes occupies a large space every year in the country.

This is a film event that is no less famous than the Oscars, and with the advent of the Internet age, its reputation is growing.

However, the Chinese people's impression of Cannes is generally about the red carpet competition. It is a fashion party where celebrities have their own unique tricks to take photos, red carpet photos, and various high-end dresses to compete for beauty.

In this sense, Cannes is more popular and commercial than Oscars.

This is exactly where in Chen Jingxing’s mind Cannes is inferior to Oscars.

Because the Oscars rely on the Hollywood film industry, they tend to be more commercial in their awards—at least compared to the three major European companies. This actually makes the Oscars relatively purer.

It may sound contradictory, but it's true.

Precisely because Cannes' award criteria are more "artistic", Cannes' shortlisted films are even more unfamiliar to the public. Not many viewers will pay attention to Cannes' shortlisted films, and they may not even look for them in their lifetime.

Therefore, if Cannes wants to expand its popularity, the final result will be to hype the red carpet, hype fashion, be extremely commercialized in every aspect, and rely on the fame and fortune fair to establish its image.

Even invitations to the Cannes red carpet have already been "clearly priced" in the intermediary market and have become a good and profitable business. Many businesses also provide celebrity photo services. In addition to the Cannes red carpet, you can also pay to enter peripheral dinners and cocktail parties.

Therefore, the news that "District 9" was shortlisted for the Cannes main competition and the rumor that Chen Jingxing was invited to serve as the chairman of this year's Cannes main competition jury have become hot topics among netizens.

In fact, Lao Mouzi did not go too far. The nationality advantage brought by the chairman of the jury is a commonplace issue at the three major European film festivals, and it is not only the Chinese who do this.

Therefore, the news that the film "District 9" jointly produced by DreamWorks and Universal Pictures was shortlisted for the main competition unit of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival has attracted the attention of the media and netizens.

Moreover, two domestic films have entered the main competition section of Cannes this time, which is a rare highlight moment in recent years.

Since Chen Jingxing has decided to register "District 9" for Cannes, he naturally cannot be the chairman.

Being the chairman of the film festival jury does not mean that you cannot "play favoritism". In fact, the chairman of the Cannes jury often uses his personal likes and dislikes to influence the results of the awards, creating "legends" or "unjust cases."

It's just that Chen Jingxing's age is too young, which is why this incident is surprising.

They are not award-winners, artists or film masters, especially actors.

"District 9" is not without its advantages. It is a movie called about aliens in the ghetto, but it is actually about racial conflicts and segregation.

But in the end, he chose South Africa, the setting of the original movie on the past life plane.

Because apart from these for people around the world to discuss, what else is there to discuss?

When he was the chairman of the three major European juries, he showed unabashed favoritism towards Chinese-language films. He even dared to treat the top prize as a double-yolked egg and award it to two Chinese-language films in the same year. Ang Lee's Golden Bear and Golden Lion were also in

The National Preceptor got it when he was the chairman, and he overcame all opinions.

Especially movie fans.

The movie shouldn't disappoint, and Chief Jia's quality control is still trustworthy, but Chief Jia has no sense of mystery in the hearts of movie fans. They all know that this is what it tastes like, so they don't have much expectations.

However, that would obviously be too much for the same company, and the Cannes Organizing Committee would not let this happen.

"Old Friend in Mountains and Rivers", as you can tell from the name, it should follow this routine, and most likely it is "A Tale of 24 Cities", which selects a certain character or a few characters to show the characters from the 1960s, 1980s to 1990s.

changes and development in the times.

But no matter how high the threshold is, Chen Jingxing is definitely qualified.

In addition to the main competition unit, there are also various units such as Kind of Attention, Short Film Competition, Film Cornerstone, Directors' Fortnight, etc.

Moreover, the classification of commercial director and artistic director is meaningless at Chen Jingxing's current level, not to mention that he also holds the Oscar for Best Director, which is more than enough to serve as the chairman of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival.

Especially the filming location and the background of the movie are all in South Africa.

In fact, many Chinese filmmakers and works enter Cannes every year, but many of them are just a matter of attention. Units such as the short film competition do not attract much attention. Not many people care. It is only conducive to copyright transactions. After all, Cannes is still

Europe's largest film trading market.

Note that they are well-known people.

But since it is a high honor recognized by the public, it is meaningful.

Although Chief Gia won the Golden Lion Award in Venice, he began to focus on Cannes 10 years later, and can even be said to be the darling of Cannes.

Therefore, for most people, Cannes is more like a symbol, a symbolic mark of honor that is separated from the popular film itself. The higher its status in a niche group, the farther away it is from the public.

Although they signed up for "District 9", Chen Jingxing and Tian Xinye were still quite happy when the shortlist was released.

For ordinary viewers who are not movie fans, it is even less interesting. Not many people watch Chief Jia’s movies.

It’s just that he knows that this is probably DreamWorks’ best opportunity.

Chen Jingxing is not sure how the film selection committee of the Cannes Organizing Committee views a science fiction movie like "District 9".

Although Oscar-winning movies are far away from the mainstream, and getting farther and farther away, overall they are closer to ordinary audiences and more commercial.

Counting that this is the fifth time this year it has been shortlisted for the Cannes main competition, it is not big news at all.

In addition, support and favoritism from fellow countrymen, same race, and fellow countrymen are also normal.

That's Cannes.

Discussing the movie itself?

Let’s talk about something else then.

Chen Jingxing himself didn't care much, but he knew someone did.

When establishing the project, Chen Jingxing also hesitated to choose Southeast Asia, Tianzhu, or South Africa in the original version.

It’s not like the Cannes Film Festival has never invited commercial directors to serve as jury presidents.

And South Africa also has the famous white slums.

Only works that can be shortlisted for the main competition unit are recognized as entries, and their weight is heavier.

Because the last Chinese-American co-production blockbuster was Guoshi's "The Great Wall," movie fans' impression of "District 9" is almost like a science fiction movie about fighting aliens. Even if DreamWorks is involved in the production, there will be no "The Great Wall."

"It's so bad, but it should be similar to "Edge of Tomorrow".

There are many slums in the world, but there are still very few slums created purely because of apartheid, mainly in South Africa.

It feels like these two are completely incompatible with each other.

In fact, the standards of Cannes judges are not as high as people usually imagine.

Therefore, the professional standards of the judges and their appreciation of movies are not as high as ordinary viewers imagine.

What stands out about Cannes is that it is international, so every year it invites celebrities from the film and cultural circles from various countries to serve as judges.

Moreover, movie fans basically know about Chief Jia’s movie style. It has been basically the same style since "The Good Man from Three Gorges". The poetic quality that movie fans talk about is still there, but there is no breakthrough, and it has begun to become documentary.

In terms of contemporary nature, I am addicted to collage, and I always end up with several paintings from different eras.

As one of the largest film carnivals in the world, the Cannes Film Festival is large in scale, has fancy awards, and has more units than any other film festival.

Therefore, even if some actors have not actually won any major awards, as long as you are a well-known actor, preferably internationally famous, you may be invited to serve as a judge.

Even if a domestic film is shortlisted for the main competition in Cannes, most viewers are too lazy to watch it. Of course, if you win an award, netizens will definitely cheer you, but most people still won't watch it.

Because this can bring some kind of buff to "District 9" beyond the movie.

This may be the reason why he always accompanied him every time he competed in Cannes.

As a result, he actually signed up for Cannes and was selected into the main competition section. How could this not make netizens curious?

Shortlisted for the main competition along with "District 9" is "Old Friends in Mountains and Rivers" by sixth-generation director Jia Kechang.

However, Chen Jingxing refused very simply. It does not mean that he has no ambition for fame and fortune, and he does not care at all about the title of Chairman of the Cannes Jury. In fact, it was mainly because of "District 9".

As for the Cannes competition works, even the feature films in the main competition section are too lazy for many movie fans to watch, let alone ordinary audiences.

On the contrary, "District 9" caused a greater response and made people more curious.

Can you not be curious?

According to the information revealed so far, "District 9" is not only a Chinese-American co-production, but also a science fiction movie and a movie about aliens.

Because the works participating in the film festival are usually films that have not been released to the public, let alone a film festival of the level of Cannes, so unlike Chen Jingxing's "Gravity" and "The Matrix" competing for the Golden Globe or Oscar, the audience is watching

Those who have watched movies will not be curious about the plot of the movie itself, only the suspense of the awards.

At least the shortlisted films every year make many ordinary audiences interested in watching them. Domestic film producers often purchase Oscar-nominated films after the Oscars are awarded as batch films for domestic release, and many of them have a box office of over 100 million.

It's just that the threshold for the chairman of the jury is slightly higher. They are usually filmmakers with great honors, and most of them are directors. The chairman also has a great say, especially in awards such as the Palme d'Or, Best Director, and Jury Prize.

The jury almost has the final say, so it is a guarantee of the professionalism of the jury.

But "District 9" is a work that no one has seen, and they don't even know what it is about, so they are even more curious about the movie.

South Africa's history will bring extra-filmic benefits to "District 9."

China or Asia may not be sensitive to this, but Europe and the United States are definitely sensitive.

The fact that "District 9" from the previous life was not registered for the European Film Festival was not because he was not qualified, but because he did not have the time.

Venice is too avant-garde to be suitable. In fact, "District 9" is very suitable for Berlin and Cannes. In terms of timing and reputation, Cannes is the most suitable choice at this time.

(End of chapter)