American fame and fortune

 Chapter 881: How Oscar escapes from decline

 By the time Martin returned from a promotional tour overseas, the 87th Oscar Nomination Luncheon was over.

The list is a bit unexpected, Christopher Nolan was not nominated for the best director!

  In contrast, although Martin did not exert much effort, but was closer to the academy, he easily received a Best Actor nomination.

In addition, "Interstellar" did not receive a best picture nomination.

The polarized reputation, coupled with Nolan’s successful resume as a director of superhero movies, have seriously affected the awards competition of “Interstellar”.

 Nolan was ambitious and wanted to challenge for the Oscar for Best Director, but he was poured a bucket of ice water on him by the Academy.

In addition to Martin's nomination for Best Actor, "Interstellar" also received nominations for a bunch of technical awards such as Best Art Direction, Best Score, and Best Visual Effects.

 “I didn’t expect such a result.”

In the office of Davis Studio, Nolan picked up the tea cup, took a sip of black tea, and said to Martin: "I thought I would at least get nominated for best director and best picture."

 Martin told the truth: "I thought that was the case. I haven't paid much attention to Oscar public relations recently."

According to Martin's understanding, Nolan's chances of winning will be greatly increased only if he makes a movie that is not so Nolan-style.

Martin said: "My personal suggestion, Chris, is not to care about which class you are competing for. It's best to formulate a long-term plan and let the film take into account the situation at the time before deciding whether to really make an effort. Those at the core of the academy do not like people. Ignoring the Oscars and not happy to see people focusing on winning awards is a very sensitive group.”

 …

Tom Hanks, vice chairman of the executive committee of the college, called and visited.

 Martin was ready to receive them in his studio.

 The North American awards season is gradually coming to an end. Martin has been nominated for Best Actor in various awards, but has won very few awards.

Martin did not answer immediately. Instead, he thought carefully for a while and said: "First of all, don't be anxious. There are indeed some lucky people who won the Oscar very quickly, but it is best to ignore such a small probability event."

　　With him was Hamilton, the producer and director of the 87th Academy Awards ceremony.

As we all know, there is a chain of discrimination at the Oscars, and Nolan’s level of discrimination is one level worse than Leonardo.

  Martin said seriously: “This attitude is very important.”

The car in which Tom Hanks and Hamilton were riding left South Boway Street, and Tom Hanks hung up the phone with Martin.

Martin is also thinking about Oscars. He won the previous Best Actor statuette for "The Martian". It is impossible for him to win another one this time with the same type of "Interstellar".

 Martin also doesn’t know whether the fact that “Interstellar” did not receive nominations for best director and best picture has anything to do with this.

Nolan knows that this situation is no longer suitable for him: "Hollywood business director is my biggest brand."

He said: "We must pay attention to the Oscars, and we should not compete for awards just for the sake of winning."

Especially the first benchmark Screen Actors Guild Award, the Best Actor was won by the British actor Eddie Redmayne who played Hawking.

He needed someone to accompany him and someone to follow and take photos. Martin immediately found a suitable candidate, called Nicholson and Lorraine respectively, and asked Leonardo again.

Martin said: "Chris, you'd better come up with a ten-year plan."

 Martin thought of "The Dark Knight" back then. Many of the operations he and Nolan had at that time can still be used.

 This is an attitude.

As for this film, some special preparations are needed, and preparations must be made to the attention of the whole society, especially the academy.

“Competitors.” Nolan repeated. As a director who is good at marketing, he quickly understood the essence: “I know what to do.”

Martin thought for a while. After all, he had collaborated with Nolan many times and the relationship between the two parties was very harmonious. He simply said: "Whether you win the award depends not only on yourself, but also on the competitors of the current session."

 The character with a mental illness like "Split" is very much in line with the academy's appetite.

　　Three people said that there is no problem, and they can take action after this Oscar ceremony is over.

"But this kind of sign can easily lead to Oscar prejudice." Before the Oscar nominations were announced, Martin would not have said these words even if he had a good relationship with Nolan. Now the situation is different: "For example, Spielberg used ten Needless to say, George Lucas, who won his first Best Director award just a few years ago, has quit the Directors Guild and will never win another Oscar.”

There is another point that Martin did not tell Nolan, but the two of them knew very well that Nolan did not have a good relationship with the Jewish forces in Hollywood.

 Nolan thought of Leonardo and Martin Scorsese a few years ago. The "Aviator" produced by these two people was criticized by countless people.

Tom Hanks feels very clearly: "Times have changed, there are more and more entertainment methods, and the platforms for stars to use for self-promotion are also increasing, and the appeal of the Oscars has been declining."

On the contrary, "Joker" will be a bit troublesome. After all, it is a superhero movie, and he also won the Best Supporting Actor for this role.

He didn’t have much experience in Oscars, so he humbly asked Martin for advice: “Are there anything special that we should pay attention to when competing for the Olympics?”

Although it is certain that he will not gain anything at the awards ceremony, Martin still actively participates in various Oscar activities to express his yearning and recognition for the Oscar.

 In this way, the outcome of this year’s best actor is basically certain.

 The two chatted for nearly three hours before Nolan said goodbye and left.

 While filming "Inception", a kidnapping case that occurred among the crew in Morocco caused tension between the two parties. Nolan once had a very strong opinion against Jews and even switched jobs from CAA to WMA.

There are many such examples without Martin having to mention them all, but Nolan can think of a lot of them.

Nolan asked again: "Is there anything special about competing in the Olympics?"

After he finished playing, Hamilton said: "Think about it, more than ten years ago, when I served as the director of the Oscars for the first time. How could I take the initiative to invite people like I do now? At that time, all the big names in Hollywood were going to the Oscars. Proud of it.”

Nolan responded: "I will."

Nolan put down the tea cup and said: "I didn't care much about Oscar before, but when I did, I found that Oscar didn't care about me either."

  Martin has said everything he can. How to do it depends on Nolan himself.

 Hamilton said: "Martin Davis is the first to present the Best Picture award, so I hope it will have some eye-catching effects."

“Yeah, I hope his appeal can continue to the Oscars.” There are some things that Tom Hanks would not say to the director Hamilton.

For example, in the past two years, Martin has not really put much effort into public relations during the awards season. As a result, the competition during the award season promotion period is not fierce enough, and thus there is a lack of highlights. Even though the Academy hinted last year that the bottom line of the rules will be relaxed, the crews who have invested heavily are still relatively few.

Tom Hanks understands what the problem is. After the collapse of Harvey Weinstein, the finances of Weinstein Pictures were exposed. In the past, everyone inside and outside the industry thought that he had won so many Oscars and had many films that shrouded the Oscars. The company It's definitely profitable. Data released on the results show that except for a few Oscar-winning films, the profits of other Oscar-winning films are not high. Due to various reasons, including high investment in winning awards, Weinstein Pictures has an alarmingly high debt.

Even if Harvey Weinstein is not finished, the debt crisis of Weinstein Films will break out in a few years.

Film companies compete for the Olympics for commercial gains. The Oscar revenue is lower than expected, and the investment of the crew for the Olympics will naturally be reduced.

 With low investment, there will naturally be less movement.

"I miss Harvey Weinstein a little bit." Hamilton suddenly said: "Although Harvey is a complete bastard, when he is here, the awards season will become lively from November, and every Oscar will be full of controversy. , attracting national attention.”

Tom Hanks said: "There will be another Harvey."

 The academy also misses people like Harvey very much.

 But in the final analysis, it is still a matter of funds.

At this time, the car stopped at the door of Davis's studio. The two entered the studio. Martin was waiting in the front hall and led the two of them directly to the VIP reception room.

After the two parties shook hands and exchanged some pleasantries, Tom Hanks said directly: "Martin, the main reason why I came to see you this time is about the Oscars ceremony."

  Martin said with a smile: "Kathleen Kennedy said hello to me yesterday."

 Compared to Hanks, he has collaborated with Kathleen Kennedy several times, and the relationship between the two parties is also good.

 Hamilton took over and said: "We plan to invite you to be the guest of honor for the best picture."

Martin thought carefully about the list of nominees for this year's Oscars, and confirmed that there was no such thing as "Moonlight", and responded: "It's my honor."

Tom Hanks said: "The Academy has always paid attention to your support for the Oscars. Among young actors born in the 1980s in Hollywood, no one is more suitable to present this award than you."

Since Martin agreed, he simply said: "Send me a schedule when you come back. When the rehearsal time is confirmed, let me know so I can adjust the schedule."

Hamilton stood up and said: "Our plan is finalized and we will send you an email immediately."

 Martin shook hands with him: "Okay."

Hamilton said goodbye and left the reception room first, but Tom Hanks did not leave.

Martin is a little curious. He has an average friendship with Hanks and doesn’t have much contact with him.

Tom Hanks showed his iconic honest smile: "On behalf of Tom and Catherine, I invite you and your female companion to attend an informal banquet at the college tomorrow night."

 Martin accepted the invitation.

Tom Hanks left the reception room and left with Hamilton.

  The next afternoon, Martin got off work early, went home and changed his clothes first, and then took Elizabeth Olson to a business club near the college to attend the college's informal dinner.

The academy has invited many people, including top directors such as Spielberg and James Cameron, and superstars such as Leonardo and Tom Cruise.

If you are not a big shot in a certain industry association in Hollywood, you are not qualified to appear here at all.

Elizabeth stayed with Martin, assisted him in socializing gracefully, and handled various relationships in an orderly manner.

Elizabeth can always remind him of people or things that Martin can't remember clearly.

 In the middle of the dinner, Kathleen Kennedy suddenly came to Martin and said that she and Tom Sherak wanted to chat with him.

 Martin took Elizabeth into the lounge at the side of the banquet hall.

Tom Sherak and Hanks came up to shake hands with the two men.

 Martin said a few polite words, sat on the sofa chair, and looked at the three people in the lounge curiously.

Tom Sherak is the chairman of the Academy’s executive committee, and Kathleen Kennedy and Tom Hanks are vice-chairmen.

The three of them came to talk to him together, and Martin was also very curious.

Tom Sherak smiled and said: "That's right, the Oscars have been reforming in recent years. There have been achievements but also difficulties. The executive committee has been soliciting the opinions of members."

He knew that Martin was aware of the current situation at the Oscars, and he spoke very directly: "Martin, what is the specific situation? I believe you also know that you have always been good at publicity and marketing. What do you think about the current situation at the Oscars?"

Martin fell into a brief silence and glanced at the faces of the three college presidents.

Since they took office, they have taken various measures to arrest the decline in Oscar influence. The results are indeed effective, but it is too difficult to reverse it.

 Martin has no solution, this is a problem of the times.

To put it bluntly, there are so many entertainment options for people to choose from, so why choose an Oscar that is not to your liking?

After a while, Martin said: "The early publicity and impact of this Oscar are not as good as last year."

Tom Hanks added: "There are fewer film crews willing to invest heavily during the promotion period. In the past two years, various Hollywood companies have been cutting their budgets for the Olympics."

 Kathleen Kennedy, who is most familiar with Martin, said: "The current business environment in the film industry, without enough investment, there will not be enough influence."

 Martin nodded: “If you think about it this way, it’s still a matter of funding.”

Tom Sherak acknowledged this: “Funding cannot solve all of Oscar’s problems, but it can solve some of the difficulties.”

 The main income of the Academy comes from Oscars and membership dues. The latter is actually not much, because many members are eligible for lifetime membership exemption.

 Oscar income is closely related to influence.

Martin thought for a moment and said: "Tommy just mentioned that the lack of influence of the Oscars is related to the lack of investment by the crew during the promotion period. The three of you know the overall situation of the industry better than I do. In today's economic environment, if you want Hollywood companies to increase this The investment is unrealistic.”

“Disney has been cutting back on its awards budget.” Kathleen Kennedy has been the CEO of Lucasfilm since Walt Disney acquired the company.

 Tom Hanks said: "Hollywood has been greatly affected by the economic downturn."

Hearing these words, Martin's thoughts became clearer: "We have been attracting international capital in the production and budget of film projects. Overseas funds are already a very important source of investment for Hollywood. Can we also go in this direction when it comes to competing for the Olympics? effort?"

  Martin remembers very clearly that in order to win an Oscar, a certain Korean film set an unprecedented expense for a single film during the North American awards season—more than 30 million US dollars!

 (End of this chapter)