Grand gathering

"Interesting."

"It's really bustling."

Thomas and René sat crouched in their seats, like playful children, looking out through the car window at the scenery outside. "This isn't our first time at the Kodak Theatre, but today, it unexpectedly feels so novel."

"Yeah," Thomas agreed. "It's the grandest gathering I've ever seen."

Their Lincoln car was parked a little more than half a block away from Hollywood Boulevard, waiting for the organizers to arrange their entrance.

Although they were a bit far away, they could already see the overflowing crowd of onlookers spilling from the Kodak Theatre's front area all the way to the streets outside due to the massive number of people. The surging crowd was indeed impressive.

Hundreds of spectators waved their hands wildly, hoping to catch the attention of the celebrities slowly entering the venue in their cars.

This was just the peripheral area; the grandeur of the Oscars could only be imagined.

"You two look so silly," Lyman couldn't bear watching any longer and patted their shoulders. "Guys, what's there to see when there are so many people? If you want excitement, go watch the World Cup live; the atmosphere would be even more intense."

René grumbled, "It's not like I've never been to a World Cup match live. The experiences are different, you know? Here, I am a participant."

Unlike the Golden Globes, Saturn Awards, and other awards, the Oscars do not sell tickets to the public. All tickets are only provided to nominees and their close friends.

Lyman didn't have many close friends in the United States, Heath Ledger had returned to Australia for the time being, and Nicolas Cage, although invited, didn't need the ticket. As for Eva Green, she showed some interest and even hinted that she could be his red carpet companion, but Lyman refused once again. As he put it, he didn't want to live under the spotlight, being watched and gossiped about because of some incident.

So, their group only had four members, which was quite pitiful compared to the entourages brought by other nominees. After all, if they could enter the venue, the greatest benefit, besides witnessing the award ceremony up close, would be attending the Oscars Night hosted by the name and fame field, which is a great opportunity for mingling and taking photos with major stars. Many entourages came for this purpose.

Unfortunately, Lyman's group didn't need that, which seemed wasteful.

The car started to move slowly; it seemed that the driver had received instructions through the earpiece and they were about to enter.

Sitting in his seat, Thomas took a deep breath.

Seeing this, René chuckled, "Buddy, don't tell me you're a little nervous."

"N-no." Thomas tried to refute with all his might. But in reality, his palms were slightly sweaty. He had never walked a red carpet where so many people were watching, and he didn't know if his outfit or appearance was appropriate. He didn't want to make a fool of himself in front of a crowd of reporters.

René smiled and didn't tease him further with words.

Thomas continued to take deep breaths; now, it was his only way to relieve nervousness.

The car continued to move forward, its speed remaining slow.

"Ah, ah..." The high-pitched screams were like waves, breaking through the barriers of the car window, and resonated one after another, reaching everyone's ears.

The car gradually reached the entrance of the red carpet and stopped smoothly.

"Who's going with me?"

Lyman adjusted his tie and cuffs, placing his hand on the car door, ready to step out.

"I will," René responded, following closely behind Lyman.

Opening the car door, Lyman was the first to step firmly on the ground, surveying his surroundings. The Kodak Theatre, covered in the glow of the setting sun, was brilliantly illuminated. A vivid red carpet cascaded down like a waterfall, capturing the attention of thousands of onlookers.

The sides of the red carpet were packed with crowds, and among them were journalists carrying cameras and interview microphones.

Various shouts and screams reached their ears, making one wonder if those vigorously cheering spectators would damage their vocal cords.

"It's our turn, René." Seeing the group of people ahead entering the interview area, Lyman reminded him.

"Alright."

One in front and one behind, they briskly walked onto the red carpet.

Facing the dazzling flashes of the cameras and answering the standard questions from the hosts, Lyman responded as expected.

Then, they entered the interview area.

"Lyman, René." After finishing the interviews, their agent, Johnson, and other CAA team members like Kevin Howe waved at them from the entrance to the Kodak Theatre's auditorium.

Walking over and waiting for George and Thomas to join them, they moved forward together.

Following Kevin Huvane, they mingled and chatted with various people in the different circles: it was another display of goodwill from CAA. After all, the cooperation between the two parties had been pleasant, and Lyman didn't mind it. Every year, CAA had clients vying for awards, but it was rare to be personally introduced to various circles by a partner like Kevin.

"Hey, Lyman." The distribution director from New Line Cinema they met the other day greeted him warmly. "How's it going? Has "Fury"' finished its run? Any new plans?"

"Lyman, it's nice to meet you." Nicole Kidman, a top contender for Best Actress, also greeted him. She was also a CAA client and had a good relationship with Bryan Lourd.

"Lyman." Nicolas Cage, who was walking towards them, smiled warmly.

"How have you been lately?" Lyman asked cordially.

"Not bad."

"Fury" had basically finished its run in all markets, and now the global box office had reached $532M. Nicolas Cage was in a great mood because of this. His role as "Wardaddy" in the film received not only unanimous praise from critics but also won over the hearts of fans and audiences. With such a successful movie, his acting career, which was affected by "Windtalkers", was once again on the rise.

The two had a good relationship and got along well. They liked each other and were quite comfortable chatting, but at this moment, in such an occasion, it wasn't a time for in-depth conversations. They exchanged a few words and then went their separate ways.

Having been in the industry for two years, Lyman was no longer the same. During this Oscars ceremony, accompanied by Kevin from CAA, he felt exceptionally busy.

It seemed like everyone who knew him or wanted to know him had gathered here to greet him. His face felt stiff from smiling, and his legs were a bit tired, but finally, it was almost time to enter.

Sitting comfortably on the large red sofa, Lyman finally felt a little better.

The award ceremony seats were arranged by departments, with actor nominees seated together and director nominees seated together, and so on.

Naturally, Lyman was seated in the front row of the director's section. To be more specific, he was seated with several nominated directors for Best Foreign Language Film, all of whom were competitors.

Among these nominated directors, Lyman might not rank highly in terms of industry experience, but when it came to fame, he undoubtedly outshone them all.

After all, his fame had skyrocketed following the release of "Fury".

Comparing the popularity of commercial directors to artistic directors was a joke.

Soon, with a burst of music, the large screen on the stage went dark, and the award ceremony was about to begin.

The Oscars were nothing like the Golden Globes; the process was relatively short, but they loved to create suspense and atmosphere, resulting in a slow-paced ceremony.

Lyman, who was sitting upright at the beginning, gradually became more relaxed in his posture.

To be honest, he was feeling a bit hungry now.

After waiting for several hours, not to mention the time for the award presentations and acceptance speeches, it was already 9 PM. A total of eight hours had passed since he had lunch, and his stomach was empty. He finally realized that the Oscars ceremony might be a celebration for the media and fans, but for the attendees, it was undoubtedly torture.

And in this regard, female stars suffered even more than these big men. After all, no matter how beautiful their dresses were, putting them on and taking them off was extremely troublesome. Going to the restroom in the middle of the ceremony was probably not an option, so they had to rely on their bodies to endure.

Creak... At this rate, it was estimated that they would have to hold it for a long time. Poor them.

Lyman, who had just been to the restroom, sat bored in his seat, his eyes lifeless, but his gaze still fixed on the stage.

The host was occasionally making jokes with the stars present, skillfully maintaining the atmosphere of the award ceremony.

Technical awards, lifetime achievement awards, performances, speeches, introductions to the best films...

Lyman turned around to look at René and found that he had already closed his eyes to rest. Thomas also seemed quite lethargic, but George was still respectful of the Oscars and remained focused.

Looking at the producer area, each producer had brought their families, making it quite lively.

Unfortunately, the live cameras rarely focused on the seats in the last few rows, and as long as they were being watched, Lyman didn't dare to be too disrespectful. Basic respect was still necessary.

The following awards were still uneventful, with no surprises and within the expectations of those in the know.

Nicole Kidman successfully won the Best Actress title of this session with her outstanding performance in "The Hours". The Best Picture went to "Chicago" by Miramax. "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" won several technical awards but failed to win any major awards. The Best Actor was awarded to Adrian Brody for "The Pianist". Well, he was Jewish too. Chris Cooper won the Best Supporting Actor, and Catherine Zeta-Jones won the Best Supporting Actress. The Best Adapted Screenplay went to "The Pianist", and the Best Animated Feature Film was "Spirited Away". The Best Documentary Feature was "Columbine High School massacre"…