"The land opposite is a natural pond, and our garden is facing it. Although the land does not belong to you, Director Luo, it does not prevent us from directly seeing the scenery of the pond from the garden. The essence of Jiangnan gardens is
The design is based on the natural scenery.”
"First have the natural scenery, and then design the building?" Ronald and Mr. Wang, a garden designer from China, stood on a hill behind the house where they bought the land where "The Godfather" was filmed, looking at the garden.
design diagram.
"Yes, this is a tradition of Chinese culture. For example, our Temple of Heaven, look at this photo..." Mr. Wang handed Ronald a photo of the Temple of Heaven from National Geographic magazine, "This Temple of Heaven follows the Western
The architectural aesthetics are not profound enough. But the photographer of the photo understands Chinese culture very well and took the blue sky above the Temple of Heaven into the photo. This makes the whole building appear very harmonious and integrated with nature. This is the unity of nature and man.
Thought……"
"So, what you mean is that we don't need to buy the land. As long as we build a garden here, the scenery over there will naturally become part of the garden, right?" Ronald listened for a while and understood the garden design.
concept.
After the sales revenue from the "Dirty Dancing" soundtrack and video tapes entered Ronald's bank account, Ronald's long-decided garden project also began to speed up progress.
It turned out that Ronald had a very simple idea. He wanted to buy a piece of land to build a garden for his own entertainment and to entertain his friends. However, as the process progressed, he discovered that although America is a country that claims to be free, land sales may be everything.
Of the commodities that can be traded, they are the least free and the most regulated by states and towns.
First of all, except for Douglas Hansen Jr., a local tycoon who has been entrenched in the local area for more than a hundred years, new land sales rarely adopt the "Free Simple Absolute" method used during Lincoln's reign.
This kind of land contract, which was only possible before the Civil War when the land was vast and sparsely populated, is the most liberal type for landlords. The owner can permanently own the property rights of the land. If he does not build a house, he does not need to pay property taxes. Moreover, the use of the land is completely free.
, you can dig it however you want, use it for farming, or build houses and factories.
However, after the economy developed, land was divided more carefully by local governments. In addition to the expiration date of land property rights, there are also use restrictions. Different fees and taxes are imposed on land for different uses.
In addition, there are some provisions for compulsory expropriation and special protection. If the people on the land vote to absolutely expropriate the land for public development, or to create a park, the government can set a price for compulsory expropriation.
If there are wild animals on the land, or any protective relics with historical commemorative significance, it can be designated as a protected area by legislation, and no reconstruction is allowed.
The large piece of wasteland that Ronald is interested in has a pond, and many migratory birds will stay here for a few weeks every year when they migrate. Therefore, the owner of the land is willing to sell it, and Ronald is willing to buy it, but the municipal government
The ministry informed that this deal needs to be approved after an environmental protection assessment.
As a veteran landowner, Douglas Jr. told Ronald's Creek that the assessment might take more than a year. Ronald, who couldn't wait any longer, asked the Chinese design team to come over and build a small garden first.
"Then we dig a creek from here and bring in living water..." Mr. Wang, the garden designer, continued to introduce.
"You should contact my lawyer, Miss Lindsay Dole. I have a new movie to shoot, so I'll leave it to you."
"Ronald, there's your phone number. It's from Richard." Little Bud, who was in the car under the mountain, shouted to Ronald on the mountain. His car phone received a call from his agent.
"Richard, it's me, what's the result?" Ronald knew that Richard was so anxious to find him. He must have been nominated for the Directors Guild's Best Director Award. This most influential director award before the Oscars has always been
The overlap rate with Oscar nominations is very high.
"Sorry, Ronald. Directors Guild, we don't have much influence...Although this is the precursor to the Oscar nomination for Best Director, it does not coincide 100% every year. We can still look forward to the Oscars, there is still one day tomorrow.
Voting time, the nomination list will be announced the day after tomorrow.
Mr. Ovitz has issued an order requiring all CAA agents and clients with voting rights to do public relations for you."
"It's okay, that's it." Ronald hung up the phone. The Directors Guild Award and the Oscar nomination are just around the corner. Many directors who have the right to vote probably fill out the voting form for both awards together. I'm afraid there won't be too many.
The difference... ugh...
Ronald felt a little depressed. He had made a lot of psychological preparations for the Oscars. They all said that the Oscars focus on qualifications, and young directors who perform well often only get nominations, but because of their young age, they don't win the award.
If you really want to win the award, you may have to nominate for a second or third time and be punished.
But now it would be embarrassing if there was no nomination.
By the end of the night, Ronald received the list of films nominated by the Directors Guild.
The Directors Guild's five nominees for Best Director this time include Bertolucci, the much-anticipated director of "The Last Emperor," and James L. Brooks, Adrian Lyne, and Si
Pierberg.
Taking up Ronald's nominations is a big dark horse. Lasse Hallström from Sweden. This director's semi-autobiographical film "The Dogface Years" was released in America in the middle of last year.
.
It tells the story of a child in Sweden in 1958 who was sent to live in the countryside because his mother was seriously ill. There, he met a quirky town and learned about love, sexual desire - and himself.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! It should be said that it is not surprising that Ronald was squeezed out by this Swedish director. Because this Swedish movie is a very weird movie. Not only because
The plot of the movie is relatively undramatic. The movie was released in America with the original Swedish sound and English subtitles.
Just such a movie, relying purely on word-of-mouth, has grossed more than 8 million in box office in North America, and has been well received by film critics. The main audiences for this movie are in big cities, mainly college students and young people.
This plot of self-discovery can easily resonate with young people. Even the director himself did not expect the film's success. He soon gained the favor of Hollywood producers and prepared to come to Hollywood for development.
Ronald had someone find a copy of the movie and watched it himself. Although "The Dog-Faced Years" was shot with full emotion and skillful technique, he still felt dissatisfied that a Swedish-language film had robbed him of the nomination.
Comfortable.
Is it true that, as is said in the industry, young directors must be ranked based on their seniority in order to be nominated? The Oscars are not all judged based on the strength of the film of the year. Sometimes there is also the factor of repaying a debt of gratitude, such as the director who was a few years ago.
There should have been a nomination this year, but I didn't get it because the competition was too strong.
Or like Lasse Hallström, who made this medium-production movie with a small budget and a very literary theme. Hollywood has always been open to European talents.
Another possible reason is that Ronald's previous films were all commercial films, and there was not much innovation in directorial techniques or the ability to inspire actors to perform breakthroughs. Many directors with voting rights may not have seen "Moonlight".
person" and simply voted based on their impression of Ronald's past.
"Ronald, Ronald, are you going to Manhattan?" my aunt called from downstairs.
"I'm not going." Early the next morning, Ronald was still lying in bed unwilling to get up.
"Then you come and have breakfast first. I made a sandwich that you like."
"I'm a little tired, let's talk later."
Ronald rarely stayed in bed. He couldn't bring himself to cheer up the next day. He called the crew from bed and decided not to go to the scene or watch the actors prepare today.
"Ronnie, you go for a walk, the sun is so nice. An award is nothing special, the audience likes to see it." Aunt Karen brought breakfast into the room.
"Hey..." Ronald had no choice but to get up, finish breakfast, put on his coat and take the boat to Manhattan.
Wandering aimlessly, Ronald came to the entrance of the New York Art High School, the prototype of the school that was "famous all over the world". After the place was re-planned and renovated, it was renamed LaGuardia Art High School.
The stone building at the entrance has not changed, except that a bronze plaque is inlaid on the stone wall of the new school entrance. Below the school name, a row of small characters "Famous throughout the world was filmed here" was engraved in small letters.
Today happens to be a holiday, and many students who are interested in applying for art colleges come to visit the school. They will finally take a group photo under the bronze medal.
"Did you know? This was a famous filming location back then, and many of the actors were art students." A girl said to her friends. She had an outstanding voice, and she might be taking the singing exam.
"I didn't watch movies at that time, I only watched the TV series adapted from the movies..." Her companion was a little taller than her and looked more like a dancer. Maybe he was applying for the dance department.
"Actually, this is not a filming location, but it is true that the actors are students." Ronald couldn't help but interrupt and corrected them.
"Huh, what do you know? When Gene Anthony Ray was interviewed, he said this was his alma mater. He is the only movie protagonist who continues to act in TV series."
"Haha, is that so?" Ronald heard this name that he hadn't heard for a long time. His black younger brother continued to play the same role in the TV series adapted from the same name. America Today reported that he was drinking and abusing drugs.
, but it was denied by him and the crew.
The TV series ended last year, and several of their characters finally graduated from the high school in the show. Gene was later selected to perform in the musical "Carrie" adapted from Stephen King's novel. It was forced to close on Broadway after only 21 days.
However, in the minds of these little girls who grew up watching his TV series, they still have that handsome black dancer.
Ronald turned the corner and walked toward uptown Manhattan. The area around Central Park was very quiet. In the upper-class neighborhoods, only boutiques and some yoga places were open.
Ronald saw one of the karate halls, where there were some children wearing gi and black belts, imitating Daniel LaRusso's Crane Kick on the tatami.
"Sir, do you also want to come to our gym? We have training for adults and children." A staff member saw Ronald standing outside the transparent glass floor-to-ceiling window and came out to greet him.
"Nothing, I just took a look..." Ronald nodded and left.
"You are welcome to come here often. We also have peripheral products authorized by 'Longwei Boy', including the kind of headscarf made by Master Miyagi. Children like it very much."
Ronald then moved downtown, gradually approaching Chinatown. The street shops here were much busier than uptown, and many of the customers were whites, blacks, and Latinos who came to buy food and cheap goods.
On the second floor of a narrow porch, the sound of dancing instructions came.
Ronald looked up and saw a small dance studio teaching mamba. Outside the stairs leading up to the first floor, there was a Latina-looking woman handing out promotional materials.
"Have you ever seen Dirty Dancing? We teach this kind of dance here. It's easy to learn. Do you want to try it?"
"I don't have a dance partner..." Ronald declined, but his mood gradually improved. Although the Directors Guild award failed, the films he shot did indeed change America a little bit.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Keep going down, and you will find the area where public security is not very good. Chinatown, Little Italy, and the Latino area.
A group of Latino guys used paint cans to spray incomprehensible graffiti on the wall. There was a dual-card loudspeaker recorder in the corner. Along with the rap music, several young people in sweaters were imitating Michael Jackson's moonwalk.
, contact Breakdance.
"Boom...boom..." There was a sound of motor, and I remembered that on the other side of the road, there was a woman wearing a leather jacket and leather trousers, sitting on a motorcycle, she looked like the heroine in "Night of the Comet".
"Boom..." The female Ah Fei started her motorcycle and rushed towards Ronald.
"Shxt..." Ronald saw that he was coming to rob something, so he quickly turned around and ran across the street, leaving a few Latinos who were ready to cooperate with the sneak attack to curse behind him.
After running four or five blocks, Ronald stopped. He felt very good. The effects of his daily exercise were still there, and he would not be out of breath after running for a short time.
The smooth blood circulation brought by running brought Ronald's fighting spirit back. He put his fingers into his mouth, blew a loud whistle, stopped the taxi, and said, "Go to Fifth Avenue."
"Mr. Li, I have a message from you."
In the lobby, Ronald was stopped by the butler, who took out a note from behind the counter and handed it to Ronald.
"It's a call from a gentleman from Niceta. He has called you several times and you are not here. Please call him back as soon as possible."
"Oh..." Ronald touched his body. He was in a bad mood, and he didn't bring out his bag or pager.
"Hello, this is Ronald." When they arrived in the room, Ronald called Niceta.
"Oh God, where have you been? We have to hire an assistant for you. I'm so anxious that I can't find you."
"What's so urgent?" Ronald asked.
"You have been nominated for the Oscar for Best Director. It will be announced tomorrow. We have arranged for several important media to interview you. I can confirm the time when you show up. Richard, Richard, Kuai and The Hollywood Reporter
, call the reporter from the variety show..."
"Oh yeah? Hahaha..." Ronald laughed out loud. CAA's agent is still very powerful. He actually made the Directors Guild's nomination go wrong. With the votes of the Film Critics Association, he made a comeback and won the Oscar for Best.
Director's nomination.
After so many years of debut, I finally got nominated for an Academy Award again. Unlike the last time for Best Original Song, this time it was for Best Director, one of the five major awards.
"You are also nominated for the best picture. (Because Ronald is the producer)" Niceta also laughed there.
"In total, Your Moonlight is nominated for Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Original Screenplay, for a total of six nominations."
"Hahaha..." Ronald smiled very happily. Being able to get six nominations is a treatment only available for blockbusters. In the future, will any star in the industry dare to underestimate him?
"It's not over yet, your 'Dirty Dancing' was also nominated for Best Original Song."
Niceta talked about the situation of being nominated. The other films that received multiple nominations are all old acquaintances along the way.
Bertolucci's "The Last Emperor" has nine nominations, "Broadcast News" has seven, Spielberg's "Empire of the Sun," Adrian Lyne's "Fatal Attraction," and "Moonlight"
"It's the same six items.
"So the director of that Swedish film didn't get a nomination? Did they book him for Best Foreign Language Film?"
Ronald felt a lot more angry. Originally, the Academy Awards were Hollywood awards. Why not give Hollywood insiders their own nominations to support a foreign language film? Since it is a foreign language film, then the Best Foreign Language Film Award is
Where he deserves to be.
"Are you confused? Ronald, foreign language films released in mainstream theaters in America are competing for normal awards. Lasse Hallström won the best director and the best director for "The Dog-Faced Years"
Nominated for Adapted Screenplay.”
"Ah? He's still there? Then who was squeezed out?" Ronald heard that this Swedish director was still on the list of nominees for Best Director. Who was the unlucky guy who was nominated for the Directors Guild Award but didn't get an Oscar nomination?
?”
"It's Steven..." Niceta's tone also changed, "He was squeezed out by John Boorman, the director of the British film 'Hope and Glory'."
"Spielberg didn't get the best director nomination?" Ronald didn't know what to say when he heard the news.
"Yes, there was no nomination for Best Film. It only won minor awards such as Best Art Direction, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Costumes, Best Score, and Best Sound Effects."
"This..." Ronald thought to himself, is this the first time Spielberg has been tricked by Oscar?