Chapter 560

"What a touching speech, my dear." After Gwyneth returned to her seat, Adriaan held her hand and said softly, "Your father will be proud of you in heaven."

"Thank you, Eide, I love you." The girl, who had calmed down but still had tears in her eyes, looked at him gratefully.

"Yes, I love you too." Adriaan smiled and kissed her on the cheek.

Gwyneth's eyes widened in disbelief. This was a public place, and it was the venue of the Oscars! On the other side, Blanchett pursed his lips with a tinge of jealousy. He stretched out his leg and kicked him on the calf. Adriaan didn't care. This was just a reward for Gwyneth. Her speech just now sounded like she was commemorating her father in other people's ears, but to Adriaan, it was really her saying goodbye to her father.

Besides, he was the boss of ABC, and the camera would not turn to him at this time. Besides, the Best Actor Award was being presented, and this kind of kiss was within the normal range.

"Well, the most important moment is coming. Let's focus on the stage," Adriaan said, and patted Gwyneth's and Blanchett's thighs.

Next was the Best Director Award, which was the last award along with the Best Movie Award. Just like the Best Actor and Best Actress Award, it would make many people sad and happy every year. However, Adriaan was very concerned not because he was nominated. Although he got the nomination, he didn't work hard on public relations, and he was sure that he wouldn't get it. Film school's conservatism couldn't be too high or too low, and winning the Best Director Award now was neither in line with his plan nor in line with his interests.

However, if he didn't get it, someone else could, and he spent all his public relations resources on it. Not only that, but he also used a lot of connections and relationships. Even so, it was still unknown whether he could get it or not. This was also the most uncertain gamble that Adriaan had made at the Oscars. After all, it was like creating history.

"My God, I didn't expect history to be born from my hands!" Robert Zemigis, the guest presenter, opened his mouth and exclaimed. He was stunned for a few seconds before he announced loudly, "This is an unprecedented moment in history. 'Lost in Tokyo', Sofia Coppola!"

Contrary to expectations, the audience was silent. Everyone, including Sofia, stared at the stage, as if they didn't know who Sofia Coppola was. But the next second, all kinds of exclamations broke out. The audience was like a pot of boiling oil dripping into water drops. This was the first Best Female Director Award in the history of the Oscars! And she was so young!

Sophia widened her eyes and covered her mouth in disbelief. She then looked around in a daze, as if she was looking for someone to tell her that she was dreaming. The other candidates, except for Adriaan, were all shocked and disappointed. The Film school would rather give the Best Director Award to a woman than to them. This was too much.

Martin Scorsese was the most shocked. He sat there stiffly, and his smile froze on his face. Just as Zemigis said, "I didn't expect history to be born from my hands," he was ready to get up, but he didn't expect this result. After all, before this, he was full of confidence. There had never been a Oscars that gave him so many advantages like this.

Sofia was a woman, and she was young, so she could be ruled out first. Then there was Adriaan. No one had ever won the Best Director Award from a non-realistic film. Although miracle directors were good at creating miracles, "Lord of the Rings" would be released next year. As for Rob Marshall and Stephen Daldry, they were too inexperienced. Their works could be counted on one hand, and "Chicago" and "The Hours" had not reached the level of "American Beauty." It wouldn't be easy to recreate the miracle of Sam Mendes.

On the other hand, Scorsese, Francis Coppola, George Lucas, and Steven Spielberg were the top four directors in Hollywood in the 1980s. He had countless outstanding works, and he should have won an Academy Award long ago. Faced with this situation, he was naturally full of confidence. He just didn't expect that the most unlikely person would become a possibility, and it was the daughter of the director who was as famous as himself. How could he accept this!

Sitting in his seat, Adriaan let out a sigh of relief. It actually worked. It seemed that Old Coppola had spent more time on his daughter than he had expected. Adriaan alone couldn't push Sofia to the throne of Best Director. After all, she was a woman. It wouldn't be easy for her to break through the shackles of a relatively conservative Film School. So, from the beginning, Adriaan had his eyes on Old Coppola.

Of course, he didn't show up directly. Instead, he asked his subordinates to persuade Old Coppola. However, the old man had started making movies in the 1960s, so he couldn't tell who was behind it. Even though he didn't have a good impression of Adriaan — it was probably the older generation of Hollywood. Actors and directors who had daughters in the entertainment industry didn't have a good impression of Adriaan.

But if she could get the support of AC Media, Sofia would have a fighting chance. Before this, Old Coppola was very hesitant about his daughter's request. It wasn't easy for a female director to stand out, and it was even more difficult to win the Best Director award. Jane Campion, who directed "The Piano Class" in 1993, was currently recognized as the female director closest to this honor. Unfortunately, she met Spielberg, who came with "Schindler's List."

But if he had the support of a powerful figure, coupled with his accumulated connections, it wasn't impossible to create a miracle. He didn't like Adriaan, who had seduced his daughter, but he had to admit that Adriaan played a big role in Sofia's achievements today, being able to stand up from the shadow of failure, and appearing dazzlingly in front of people in another way. So, when there were more people lobbying, he finally made up his mind.

"… I really didn't expect to be able to come here again tonight, and it's a historic moment. Oh, God, I've already finished my speech." The excited Sofia spoke incoherently, and there were several times when she almost cried. The surprise was too big, so big that she almost couldn't bear it.

"I … I … I …" She said "I" several times, but she couldn't complete a complete sentence. Fortunately, the audience was very considerate and applauded her to show their support.

"… I think I … won't thank you one by one." Sofia finally adjusted herself. "In addition to presenting this award to my school, in addition to the people who cooperated with me, there are two people I want to thank the most. My father, without him, I wouldn't be here today … and Adriaan, thank you for your guidance and advice … This is my happiest night, I will always remember it."

Fortunately, she didn't say things like "I want to thank the two most important men in my life" or "I will always remember everything you have done for me". This made Adriaan more or less relieved. Although it still caused a burst of discussion, at least he didn't have to worry so much.

If anything, he was worthy of Sofia's gratitude. There were many factors that contributed to her winning the Best Director Award. For example, Adriaan and Coppola teamed up to use all kinds of resources and connections to help her get the Best Director Award. Although AC Media's Best Director Award was mainly focused on Gwyneth, compared to the previous Nicole or Monica, it was much easier, so it wasn't a problem to give her some.

And then there was a little bit of luck — Adriaan once learned from his own channels that there was a lot of debate about the Best Director Award within the school. The school was also working hard to make the students younger, so that they could keep up with the trend. So, with their consistent style, he believed that the final votes would be very close.

But most importantly, Adrian had already broken the record for being the youngest person to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Director, as well as the youngest person to win the Best Director award! If not for Adriaan, then John Singleton, who was nominated for Best Director at the age of 24, would have been the youngest nominee, and Norman Taurog, who was nominated for Best Director at the age of 32, would have been the youngest winner.

Now, Sofia was the same age as Norman Taurog at the time. In fact, she was even a few days younger. If not for Adriaan, no matter how much the Film School changed, they wouldn't have let a woman break this record. That's right, this was discrimination. It was invisible, but it was real. Even if they wanted to complain, they couldn't do anything.

So, if Adriaan hadn't raised the record for Best Director Award to a level that was basically impossible for anyone to surpass, and at the same time, he was also the record holder for Best Director Award. No matter how much effort was put into PR for Sofia, it would have been impossible.

This year's Oscars came to an end. Just the first Best Female Director Award was enough to surprise people, not to mention that there were still many topics to talk about. Compared to that, the Best Movie Award for "Chicago" was far behind.

However, although the award ceremony had ended, the party had just begun. Adriaan had basically never missed an award ceremony, so naturally, he would not miss Vanity Fair's party. Moreover, the party was not an award ceremony. Those who did not attend the award ceremony could also attend. Of course, those who had attended the award ceremony might not attend the party. For example, Scorsese did not attend the party. This night was too sad for him.

Old Strategist did not attend either. Although Adriaan had invited him, he was full of hope, but he did not win a single award. In addition, he was not used to the American party culture, so he declined politely.

"I'm a little tired, I want to go back and rest," said Adriaan, who had invited him after the award ceremony.

However, this did not mean that he had admitted defeat. Very quickly, he pulled himself together and said, "Recently, I have been thinking about a new Wuxia production. The first draft has been completed, and some of the ideas have been concretized. If Mr. Kewell is interested, why not come to China to take a look? We are all very welcome to have a look."

A new Wuxia production? Adriaan raised his eyebrows slightly. If there were no surprises, it should be that "Little Sister Who Can Never Die." However, he vaguely remembered that even though the movie received more negative reviews than positive reviews in China, it still did not perform as well as The Hero in North America. After all, Old Strategist's rendering of the scenes, color, and use of the camera were quite outstanding.

"Alright, it just so happens that I also have plans to go to East Asia …" Adriaan nodded. He indeed had plans to go there. Currently, Facebook was operating well, and it was about to break through 100 million users.

Although similar websites were appearing soon, and it was not difficult to create a website like Facebook, Adriaan did not take it to heart. He had gone to take a look, and it was doing fine. However, it was similar to MySpace in his previous life. People could freely apply for as many accounts as they wanted.

This was not a threat at all. After all, the biggest feature of Facebook was that it could guarantee that the person on the other side of the network was a real person, and not someone's … sockpuppet.

In short, that kind of situation would not occur. "OP, you are too naive. Do you really think that many people replied to your post on this forum? Actually, I was the only one who replied. Otherwise, I would have changed my ID and posted the same thing for you to see. " But to compete with Facebook in terms of real users? He had the upper hand, cultivated loyal users, and had the support of a large media group. It was not an easy task.

Therefore, Adriaan thought that he could also start promoting in China using a sockpuppet. Of course, he would still cooperate with Huayi if they were willing. He could also call it Renren. Other than that, he also had other things to do. For example, Scorsese was too pitiful tonight. He wanted to give him some compensation. At the same time, he wanted to control the tempo and not let it affect his grand plan.

But he suddenly thought of something. "Oh, I heard that China is not very safe these days."

Old Strategist was stunned for a moment. He took a few minutes to react and rejected the idea. "There are some special cases, but they are all very normal."

Adriaan wanted to say something based on his friend's information. But after thinking about it, he decided not to. Even if he said it, others might not appreciate it. So, he decided to forget about it. However, he was afraid that his schedule would have to be delayed until the second half of the year.

The party was as lively as ever. Celebrities, big and small, would decorate the party to make it exceptionally dazzling. Of course, the one who received the most attention was the new Best Director. She was the first female director to win an Oscar, and she was so young. Everyone who witnessed this moment would feel honored in the future.

"I really don't know what to say to you, Eide. You are really …" After dealing with many people, Sofia sighed when she faced Adriaan alone.

"What am I?" Adriaan raised his eyebrows.

"You know what I'm going to say. Bastard, genius, playboy …" Sofia gestured with her hands, and a complicated look flashed in her eyes. Then, she shook her head. "I really want to punch Nicolas. Thinking about his eyes and that cheeky smile, I swear, if he didn't run away quickly, I would definitely give him a good beating."

"Alright, Sophie, that's enough." Adriaan grabbed her hand and patted the back of her hand. "I know what you're thinking. Don't worry, do what you want to do."

Sofia stopped. She deliberately kept her hair long and soft. She was wearing a slim shoulder dark green dress with wavy patterns. It gave her a different kind of tough style. It was very stylish.

"I'm scared," she whispered.

"Why?" Adriaan smiled. "Do I look like a man-eating monster?"

"It would be great if that were the case." Sofia sighed. "I'm scared of you, Eide. If you don't plan on letting someone go, that person won't be able to struggle out. You always have a way to deal with women. Make them … willingly …"

She smiled bitterly and looked at him calmly.

"If I told you to stay with me." Adriaan reached out and stroked her face. "What would your answer be?"

"I don't know, Eide. I think many women don't know either," she replied honestly.

"So you see …" Adriaan smiled. "Do whatever you want."

Sofia looked at him for a long time, then suddenly smiled. She stood up, sat on his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed his mouth. The kiss wasn't passionate, but it lasted for a long time. They lingered in the warmth for a long time before they finally separated from each other.

"I know I'm not your type, and I also know what you like about me. But, I'm still very happy to meet you." Sophia ran her finger across his lips. "Thank you for your gift, Ed. I will never forget you for the rest of my life. Goodbye."

She then got up to leave, but she turned back after taking two steps. She flicked her hair and said, "By the way, don't reject me if I need you to solve my physiological problems in the future."

"Mm … I'd be happy to be of service to you." Adriaan smiled and raised his hands. Alright, that's not bad either.

Although they were in a corner, people saw the intimacy between Adriaan and Sofia, but no one cared. It was just like how he kept flirting with the Miracle Girls, which was normal in people's eyes. Perhaps they were very envious, but basically, they didn't feel jealous anymore. No matter who it was, anyone who could win the Best Actress Oscar for five years in a row was completely qualified to get their attention.

However, although Adriaan was proud of himself, he was also troubled. After all, it wasn't just the Miracle Girls here. Si Jiali, Annie, Kirsten, and the others took turns to chat with him. Although Kate and Sarah didn't take the initiative, he had to go and find them to be fair. Before this, he had always avoided all the women appearing in the same public place, but now it seemed that he should make some adjustments.

For example, tonight, because of the unspoken rules, the passion at every award ceremony was different women who had never tried it before. Plus, the combination was different, so it was a pity that Zeta Jones, who won the Best Supporting Actress, and Gwyneth, who won the Best Actress, couldn't moan under him together.

Not only that, when he flirted with Gwyneth about what would happen after the party, Nicole's voice interrupted, "Your partner tonight should be me, right?"