Chapter 26: The Award Ceremony Continues

As Su Chang won the award, Jiao Enjun also allowed a slight smile to appear on his face. Upon learning that Su Chang was going to Venice, he had made a special effort to maintain a good rapport with her.

Now that Su Chang had won an award, it was actually beneficial to him as well. With the goodwill established previously, she might be able to help him in the future.

"Cousin won an award!" Song Zu'er, who played the young Nezha, shouted while clapping her hands.

"Director Cheng Sheng is truly amazing; his very first film has produced a Venice Best Newcomer," Liu Xiaoqing, who played the Queen Mother, said admiringly.

Lin Xiangping and the other actors also wore expressions of envy.

This was a Venice International Award.

Although it wasn't a Best Actress award or anything of that sort, winning this meant being recognized; upon returning to China, she would undoubtedly be praised to the heavens by the media.

Furthermore, Su Chang had also been shortlisted for Best Actress. If she were to win that, she would undoubtedly leap into the ranks of A-list superstars.

"To celebrate Changchang's award, the crew is treating everyone to dinner tonight!"

Producer Li Gongda was also extremely excited. With the addition of Venice Best Newcomer Su Chang, *Lotus Lantern* was bound to be a massive hit.

"Great!"

At the mention of a feast, everyone in the crew became joyful.

...

After her speech, Su Chang returned to her seat, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly as her small hand instinctively touched the award she had received.

"Changchang, congratulations," Zeng Li said to Su Chang with envy.

Unfortunately, she was only the third female lead, and the Venice Film Festival does not have a Best Supporting Actress award. Seeing Su Chang win, it would be a lie to say she wasn't envious.

"Sister Li, with Director Cheng's help, we will all have chances to win awards in the future," Su Chang said with a smile.

From across the aisle, Zeng Li glanced at Cheng Sheng, her eyes filled with endless longing.

No matter what kind of actor one is, everyone hopes to win an international award. It is not just a symbol of status; it can rapidly elevate one's standing domestically, increase one's salary, and attract endorsements from major brands.

The Best Newcomer award was over; next was the Best Debut award, but Cheng Sheng's films were not in the running for that. The jury had awarded that prize to Ismaïl Fehér's *The Long Journey*.

Immediately following was the Best Technical Contribution award, which went to Japan's Hayao Miyazaki.

The first three awards were not particularly significant.

The most important grand prizes were yet to come.

The first to be presented was the Best Actress award, also known as the Venice Volpi Cup for Best Actress.

The host and the presenter engaged in some humor on stage, but unfortunately, Cheng Sheng did not understand English well, and more importantly, he didn't quite grasp what Westerners considered funny.

Listening to the laughter from the surroundings, whether it was genuine or not, Cheng Sheng followed suit by pulling his lips into a grin.

After the presenter finished his jokes, perhaps feeling awkward from standing on stage for so long and fearing the audience might throw things at him, he formally announced the upcoming Best Actress award.

Cheng Sheng felt his large hand being gripped tightly by a pair of small hands. Those small hands were covered in sweat. He glanced at the owner of the hands, Su Chang, and saw that she was incredibly nervous, muttering to herself while staring intently at the presenter's large mouth.

He carefully patted the back of Su Chang's hand and comforted her, "Don't be nervous. If it's yours, it won't run away; if it's not yours, being nervous won't help."

"What?" Su Chang seemed to have focused all her attention on the stage and hadn't heard a word Cheng Sheng said.

Cheng Sheng smiled and said, "You're still young. Even if you don't get it this time, there's always next time!"

Having already seen the Newcomer award, Cheng Sheng didn't think Su Chang would win Best Actress.

Hearing this, the incredibly nervous Su Chang finally turned her head slightly and said aggrievedly, "Director Cheng, the award hasn't even been announced yet! Can't you say something positive?"

"I just saw how nervous you were and wanted to comfort you," Cheng Sheng replied.

Su Chang's expression froze. She thought to herself: *Is it my fault for being nervous? This isn't even my first time!*

...

Back at the *Lotus Lantern* set.

Director Chang was even more nervous than Su Chang was at the venue.

This was the Venice Best Actress award!

If Su Chang could be crowned the Queen of Venice, the boost to *Lotus Lantern* would be even greater.

Producer Li Gongda was also extremely tense. If this production featured a Venice Best Actress, selling the series to television stations for several times its current price would be no problem at all.

While the Venice Newcomer award was excellent, the gap between it and a Venice Best Actress was massive.

"Go for it, Cousin!" Song Zu'er shouted in a milky voice, clenching her tiny fists.

Beside her, Jiao Enjun rubbed her small head and asked, "If your cousin wins the Venice Best Actress, what gift do you want her to give you?"

"I want a trophy," Song Zu'er blurted out.

"Haha... little one, what's so good about someone else's trophy? Wouldn't it be better to go and win one yourself when you grow up?" Lin Xiangping said with a laugh.

The others joined in the laughter. Of course, it wasn't mockery, but a smile filled with goodwill.

"Hmph! When I grow up, I'm going to win the Venice Best Actress too," Song Zu'er said proudly, tilting her chin up in a miniature pose.

"Good, such ambition! Truly worthy of the young hero, Nezha," Director Chang said, clapping his hands.

At this moment, it wasn't just the *Lotus Lantern* crew watching the Venice Film Festival awards ceremony.

The major entertainment websites in China were also closely following the festival.

No one was saying they doubted the historical epic *The Great Tang Dynasty: Origins* anymore; instead, they were constantly singing praises for Cheng Sheng's films online.

Before yesterday, the major entertainment websites were still predicting failure for Cheng Sheng's films.

The very next day, they were singing hymns of praise. The shift in attitude among these entertainment media outlets was incredibly rapid.

To put it bluntly, they were utterly shameless.

The reason for such a massive shift in the entertainment media was thanks to the festival's official publication scores and Su Chang's recent win of the Best Newcomer award.

Although this award was somewhat of a consolation prize, it was still an award from one of the "Big Three" European festivals, and it was no less prestigious than any domestic award.

Moreover, this film was the sole representative of Chinese cinema at Venice, carrying the hopes of the Chinese people.

Thus, after Su Chang took the Best Newcomer award, everyone began to look forward to the subsequent awards with great anticipation.

In fact, the three major domestic web portals had already broken the news: *Twenty-three-year-old Central Academy of Drama student captures the Lion in Venice.*

Tencent Entertainment followed closely, joining the ranks of those praising Cheng Sheng, Su Chang, and the others. Regardless of whether they had won the next awards or not, they would praise them first to grab the initial wave of traffic.

NetEase followed suit, not wanting to be outdone, publishing reports such as

[Su Chang, an actress who wasn't even third-tier, wins Best Newcomer in Venice.]

[*The Great Tang Dynasty: Origins*, a Chinese historical film, captivates filmmakers worldwide.]

[Central Academy of Drama student Cheng Sheng strikes Venice; a future great director of the film industry.]

[Su Chang becomes the Newcomer Queen, a future top domestic superstar.]

[Fu Dalong and Zheng Guolin may win Best Actor in Venice.]

At this moment, the various media outlets were showering Cheng Sheng and his team with praise.

In their words, it was as if Cheng Sheng and the others had already won everything.

Their level of confidence was so high that even Cheng Sheng, upon hearing it, felt he had to concede; after all, he didn't have that much skin in the game yet.

(End of Chapter)