Thriving

"The 61st Golden Globe Award for Best Film Score goes to... "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"."

"The winner of the 61st Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay is... "Miscreant"."

"Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy... "Lost in Translation"."

As the presenters announced the winners, Lyman sat below, bored, and feeling like he could doze off at any moment. If it weren't for the cameras broadcasting live all around him, he would have genuinely considered closing his eyes to endure this time.

Honestly, even though the Oscars were heavily criticized, with their convoluted politics and PR rules, the Golden Globe Awards couldn't compare.

Not to mention the somewhat arbitrary division of awards between television and film, and the fact that there were five or six nominations in each category, clearly meant to save face for everyone.

Furthermore, the award ceremony was too lengthy, with the host, Rory, blabbering on, artificially creating suspense that was rather uninteresting.

Who didn't know that "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" would dominate? Yet they insisted on dragging it out.

From the beginning, Lyman found it all rather unexciting.

The awards ceremony continued, and "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" once again took home the awards for Best Sound Editing and Best Original Score.

Up to this point, the film had already won three awards, showing its remarkable momentum.

"...Nominated for Best Cinematography at the 61st Golden Globe Awards are "Miscreant" by Thomas Lhote, "Lost in Translation" by Lance Acord, "Mystic River" by Tom Stern, "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"..."

As the nominations were announced, the entire auditorium exchanged friendly remarks, making it seem like everyone was highly interested and giving face to the organizing committee.

"...Winner of the Best Cinematography in a Drama Film at this year's Golden Globe Awards is Thomas Lhote for "Miscreant"."

Thomas was somewhere mingling with René, and Lyman couldn't be bothered to move. He turned to Eva beside him and said, "Eva, go up and accept the award on behalf of Thomas."

"Me?" Eva was surprised. She had come today purely to gain some exposure, as she hadn't even been nominated for Best Newcomer. She hadn't expected to step onto the award stage.

Lyman smiled and said, "Silly, you're an actress. It's good to be in front of the media, especially since this is a nationwide broadcast. It'll give you good exposure."

Eva nodded and happily made her way to the stage.

She addressed the presenters, "I will accept the award on behalf of Thomas."

It was not uncommon for someone else to accept an award on behalf of the winner if the winner couldn't be present. However, Thomas was a newcomer in the field of cinematography and had just received his first Golden Globe Award nomination. It would have been odd if he didn't come in person.

Normally, industry veterans who had won numerous awards and were practically drowning in them would delegate someone else for such tasks.

By doing this, Eva had ensured that everyone in the auditorium remembered Thomas's name.

Eva accepted the award and bowed to the audience below, politely saying, "Thank you to the judges for their appreciation of "Miscreant". On behalf of Thomas, I would like to express gratitude to the Golden Globe Awards organizing committee and the judges. Thank you."

Applause...

Once again, the auditorium erupted into enthusiastic applause.

After finishing her speech, Eva descended from the stage.

She approached Lyman with a hint of happiness and said, "I hope I didn't say anything wrong just now."

Lyman smiled and reassured her, "Not at all. Didn't you hear the applause from everyone?"

Finally, the Best Film in the drama category and Best Director awards were given to "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King", without any surprises.

Although, compared to the Oscars, the Golden Globe Awards felt more like an industry celebration.

With the atmosphere of everyone having a chance at awards and enjoying themselves, whether they were nominated or received awards, people remained relaxed.

Nevertheless, the results still surprised many.

For instance, during the nomination stage, "Cold Mountain", which had won 8 nominations and garnered much attention, only managed to secure one award for Best Supporting Actress, saving itself from returning empty-handed. On the other hand, "Miscreant" managed to win two awards.

However, compared to the other competitors, most people's attention was focused on the winners. "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy's final chapter received 5 nominations and won 5 awards, boasting a 100% success rate. This remarkable achievement propelled the epic masterpiece to new heights, carrying this massive momentum towards the upcoming Oscars, a sight Harvey wanted to witness, attracting everyone's attention.

At the end of the awards ceremony, when Lyman stood with directors such as Peter Jackson and Clint Eastwood, along with several Golden Globe Award judges, posing for photographs with the press, Lyman felt like a primary school student receiving a certificate from a teacher. It was truly embarrassing.

So much so that after the ceremony, when he considered hosting a private party, Lyman declined the offer and left with Eva.

Johnsson had already parked the car by the exit and was waiting for them.

As they got into the car, Lyman asked with curiosity, "Who directed "Osama", the winner of the Best Foreign Language Film at the Golden Globes? Do you know?"

Johnsson thought for a moment and replied, "You're quite interested in this."

"The film was well-directed, showcasing the director's abilities," Lyman said.

Johnsson shook his head and said, "The director's name is Siddiq Barmak, he's from Afghanistan. Why, are you interested?"

"Never mind then."

Originally, Lyman had thought that winning the Best Foreign Language Film Award at the Golden Globes would indicate significant talent and was considering trying to bring this director to his own company. However, he hadn't realized the director was from Afghanistan.

Just as Lyman finished speaking, Kate caught up with them.

She suggested, "Since we've finally met again, why don't we have dinner together?"

After all the fuss, it was already quite late.

At this hour, everyone was quite hungry. When Kate proposed it, no one refused.

Kate chose the restaurant, and the seating was rather discreet.

With a group like theirs entering, nobody paid them much attention.

Among this group, Kate had lost some attention after her setback in "Pearl Harbor", and no one really cared about her performances in "Miscreant", even though the film had sold well. It was actually Lyman who had the highest recognition among them.

Perhaps Kate knew the owner of this restaurant, as the owner personally arranged a private room for them. After taking their seats, Kate was quite enthusiastic and raised her glass to liven up the atmosphere.

Among the group, Johnsson had been relatively quiet the whole time, and Eva wasn't much of a drinker, and she didn't speak much. Basically, Kate was the one maintaining the lively atmosphere at the table to prevent it from becoming dull.

She was actually a rather lively woman, far from the vase-like actresses who always wore a stern face on the screen. She spoke humorously and occasionally shared some experiences from her acting career.

For example, she talked about how nervous the third-party security representative was on set when Michael Bay was filming an explosion scene. The representative was always afraid of accidents and the huge compensation that would follow, so before shooting began, he would carefully inspect the explosion wiring more cautiously than the director. She also talked about how Ben Affleck, like a child who never grew up, had the annoying habit of being overly vain. When shooting a kissing scene, he would even remind her not to fall in love with him because he had a girlfriend.

"Do you know, on that day, Ben Affleck even sprayed some perfume in his mouth. The director and the crew were all watching, and as an actress, I couldn't be shy. So, I took the initiative to kiss him, but he didn't react for a moment and even took a step back," Kate vividly recounted Ben's embarrassment, "It felt like he was the one being taken advantage of. My goodness, this was my first time working with such a male actor, and it was torture."

"Hahaha..." Eva couldn't help but laugh heartily.

Kate continued, "So, don't easily believe the news in the newspapers. Most of it is fake. If you really want to know what someone is like, you have to get to know them privately."

Lyman chimed in, "That's true."

In his heart, John silently complained: If you don't rely on the media to shape an image, should you reveal your true self? Most celebrities haven't had much formal education. If most of them can refrain from using foul language, drinking excessively, and getting into trouble, that's already a model of restraint.

During the meal, with Kate's candid stories, the atmosphere remained pleasant.

Lyman also understood why Kate was doing this, and John had a clear mind about it as well.

But that's society, that's networking, isn't it?