This time at the Oscars, "Pirates of the Caribbean" received an unprecedented six nominations, which thrilled the fans of Laila and Roy.
As soon as the nomination list was released, Laila's Facebook page was flooded with countless well-wishes. Fans congratulated her for her film making its debut on the grand Oscar stage. Her fans had high hopes for her, believing that this was just the beginning and that she would continue to appear at the Oscars with her films.
However, some people felt that it was unfair for her to "only" receive six nominations, especially in the Best Director category. They thought it was a missed opportunity for Laila to secure a nomination.
The discussion wasn't limited to the online world; many media outlets were also debating the matter. Some believed that the Oscars had become outdated, focusing only on films that weren't popular with audiences. They argued that the Oscars should pay more attention to nurturing a new generation of directors and be open to challenges from new types of films.
Many media outlets thought that Laila not receiving an Oscar nomination was yet another instance of the conservative Oscars discriminating against young talent and commercial films. Why shouldn't young people receive the award? Why should commercial films be seen as inferior?
As the vanguard of those criticizing Laila, Cooper naturally took the opportunity to criticize her at the Oscar judging panel.
"It's not that the Oscars discriminate against young people and commercial films; it's that her talent hasn't reached the passing mark. Besides making films that flatter the audience and make money, she hasn't contributed anything significant. What do we get from watching commercial films? A bucket of popcorn and two hours of boredom? Yes, there's nothing more to it! But the films selected by the Oscars can give the audience valuable life lessons, which is the true meaning of cinema!"
In simple terms, his point was that Laila's commercial films were nothing but garbage, and watching them would turn the audience into garbage as well. On the other hand, the films selected by the Oscars were treasures that, after viewing, would make the audience feel enriched for life. Therefore, not including Laila as a candidate for Best Director was the right decision and didn't disappoint the trust and support of people around the world... and so on.
As soon as the reports came out, Laila's fans naturally flocked to Cooper's Facebook and blog to criticize him. Some even took the trouble to call the newspapers to relay their insulting words to the "garbage that spews vomit as soon as it opens its mouth."
Laila wasn't angry; it would be strange if Cooper didn't criticize her. She had long stopped paying attention to whatever he said about her. She couldn't make everyone like her. If 80 out of 100 people liked her, why should she be sad about the remaining 20 who didn't?
At this year's Oscars, besides "Pirates of the Caribbean," another highlight was "Moulin Rouge," which received a total of eight Oscar nominations.
However, Laila remembered very clearly that this year's Oscars did not consider "Moulin Rouge" as the biggest winner. It was more like "making a big noise but with little result." And because of her presence, it bumped other films out of the nominations. She wondered how much surprise they would bring to the awards ceremony this time.
It was her first time attending the Oscars, and everyone who received nominations, including Janet, was excited. As the mother of the boss, Janet generously provided clothing and styling services to all the nominated individuals in the company. It was a matter of good dress sense. Dressing people beautifully, not only in an eye-catching way but also in a way that didn't steal the limelight from Laila, was never a problem.
After the nomination list was released, everyone was sent to Janet to get dressed up. Laila and Roy, of course, didn't need to be reminded. Every time they appeared in public, they wore matching outfits designed by Janet, which gained the approval of the fashion world and fans.
For others, it was their first time experiencing such a thing, especially for Xiao Ye. After stepping down as "Jia Xiaoming," he had fully transformed into a makeup artist under Laila's wing. He had hoped to showcase his skills within the company to prove his ability to shine in any position. Little did he know that even before he could shine, he had already received an Oscar nomination.
Xiao Ye felt a sense of disappointment and a "sense of frustration" from achieving something great but unrewarded. Fortunately, he was smart enough not to show his disappointment on his face. Otherwise, some people who had struggled for half their lives just for an Oscar entry ticket would surely find an opportunity to vent their frustration on him.
Compared to the Golden Globes, the Oscars had a more serious atmosphere. Most of the attendees dressed more formally and soberly. Men generally wore black suits, while women were slightly more extravagant but never over-the-top with their attire.
On the weekend, Janet called Laila and Roy back to New York to try on new formal wear. Laila, who was well aware of what could happen if she didn't go, even if she was busy, had to appear obediently in front of her mother.
To her surprise, when they arrived at her mother's company, they found the representatives of Burberry waiting there.
"Well, we want to re-sign a contract with Roy to make him our global brand ambassador," they said.
Laila was a bit puzzled, "Isn't he already?"
The representatives of Burberry felt somewhat embarrassed. When they initially signed the contract, they had low expectations for Roy's popularity. Therefore, the contract had been quite relaxed, based on the value of a model. Little did they know that in just two or three years, he had grown into a global superstar. In this situation, continuing with the old contract would be embarrassing. While Roy had contributed to Burberry's popularity in some photo shoots, Burberry wanted to leverage Roy's global fame to further promote their products.
In the past, Burberry had provided him with some clothing for red carpet-events. However, Janet had taken over the responsibility of designing outfits for him, creating a coordinated couple look with Laila, which had been well-received by the fashion industry and fans.
Burberry didn't like this situation. Why should they provide clothes for him to walk the red carpet and promote other brands? When they reviewed the contract, the head of Burberry almost lost it. What kind of garbage contract had they signed? It didn't even specify that only their brand's clothes should be worn on the red carpet! Did they not know that the red carpet was the perfect place to achieve brand exposure?
In reality, no one at the time had expected that the little guy who had played a few small supporting roles would have a chance to walk the red carpet. Even if they had, they wouldn't have thought that someone would be so foolish as to provide him with free clothes.
But the fact was, they had.