Hollywood, I became a legend with special effects.

Chapter 63: It's all an act

As soon as the party started, Jiang Yu was surrounded by people.

Bigwigs like Han Sanye, Tian Zhuangzhuang, and Principal Chen naturally had to accompany them, but soon, heads of various brokerage companies began to seize every opportunity to join them.

The first one to approach was Wang Jinhua.

"President Jiang!" she said with a beaming smile. "Congratulations! 'The Witch' was a fantastic film! The special effects were truly eye-opening."

"Sister Hua, you flatter me." Jiang Yu raised his glass in acknowledgment.

"I'm serious," Wang Jinhua lowered her voice. "President Jiang, we have several really good young people in our company. Chen Hao, you saw her just now, right? Good acting skills, good English, and she studied acting in Los Angeles for six months. And Jiang Yiyan, so full of talent..."

Before she could finish speaking, Mani Fok squeezed in with her wine glass.

"Mr. Jiang, congratulations!" Huo Wenxi's Cantonese-accented Mandarin was very distinctive. "The movie was really good! Our Emperor Entertainment artists are also very suitable for international projects. Charlene Choi and Nicholas Tse both speak excellent English, and he was originally..."

"Sister Wenxi, Sister Hua," Jiang Yu interrupted gently but firmly, "Thank you for the recommendation. So, once casting starts in October, all interested actors can submit their materials through official channels. Director Nolan will personally review the audition recordings, and may even fly to Asia to conduct auditions. I believe that talent will always shine through."

These words shut them both up.

At this moment, Ye Ning arrived with Jing Tian.

"President Jiang!" Ye Ning laughed heartily, "While watching the movie just now, Xiao Tian kept saying that the special effects were amazing, and he never imagined that they were done by a domestic team."

Jing Tian chimed in at the opportune moment, his voice clear and crisp: "President Jiang, really, especially that scene in the subway station, I was completely mesmerized. President Jiang, the digital lighting technology is amazing."

As she spoke, her eyes sparkled as she looked at Jiang Yu, her expression sincere yet tinged with admiration.

Jiang Yu smiled and said, "Thank you. The technical skill is the result of the team's efforts, not just my achievement."

"Xiaotian has also been preparing for internationalization recently," Ye Ning said, adding, "She has hired professional acting and English teachers and practices for four hours every day. She said that regardless of whether there is an opportunity or not, she wants to prepare herself first."

That's a clever way of putting it; instead of directly asking for roles, it shows that "we are working hard."

Jiang Yu nodded: "It's always good to be prepared."

As they were talking, Yang Siwei walked over and whispered something in Jiang Yu's ear.

Jiang Yu smiled apologetically at everyone: "Excuse me, I'll have to leave for a moment. Director Zhang Yimou has to rush back to the Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games. I'll see him off."

He left with Yang Siwei, leaving a group of people looking at each other in bewilderment.

"Director Zhang has a lot of influence..." someone whispered.

"Nonsense. But Jiang Yu's attitude is also very clear: today we won't talk about Inception, we'll only talk about The Witch."

After seeing Zhang Yimou off, Jiang Yu finally got some peace and quiet and hid in a corner of the banquet hall to eat some snacks. He hadn't eaten much since noon.

I had just popped a small piece of cake into my mouth when I heard a familiar voice behind me.

"Hiding here to sneak a bite to eat?"

Jiang Yu turned around and saw Liu Yifei.

She didn't walk the red carpet today; she quietly entered through a side door, wearing a simple floral dress, no makeup, and a baseball cap. I almost didn't recognize her.

"What brings you here?" Jiang Yu asked, somewhat surprised. "Isn't the training for 'Black Swan' quite intense?"

"I'm off today." Liu Yifei sat down next to him and took a piece of cake. "Lu Yang is my classmate, and I definitely have to come to support his movie premiere. The movie is very good, and Wang Zhi's acting is excellent."

"Thank you." Jiang Yu smiled. "How's training? Ballet must be tough, right?"

"It's not just difficult..." Liu Yifei said with a bitter face, "The first thing I do every morning is to stretch my legs, and now I even dream about standing on my tiptoes. Director Darren also wants me to be so thin that you can see my ribs, and I haven't eaten any carbs for a week."

When she said this, her expression was vivid, completely losing the fairy-like demeanor she had in front of the camera, and she looked more like a student complaining to a friend about having too much homework.

Jiang Yu laughed: "Hang in there, after filming is over, I'll treat you to hot pot, all you can eat."

"You said it! I've got it!" Liu Yifei's eyes lit up, then she lowered her voice, "Honestly, today's scene is quite exaggerated. When I came in just now, I saw more reporters outside with their long lenses and microphones than at any event I've ever attended before."

"Everyone came because of Inception," Jiang Yu shrugged.

"Aren't you under a lot of pressure? So many people are eyeing those two roles."

"The pressure is on Nolan, not me." Jiang Yu took a sip of water. "My job is to oversee the process; as for who to choose, that's the director's job."

Liu Yifei looked at him and suddenly asked, "So... do you think I'm suitable for an audition?"

Jiang Yu turned his head and met her eyes.

The girl's eyes were serious; there was no probing, no calculation, she was simply asking a professional question.

"You want to go?" he asked in return.

"Hmm." Liu Yifei said honestly, "...That's Nolan, and I've read the news about the script. The Dream Weaver character is really captivating."

Jiang Yu thought for a moment and said, "If I were you, I would focus all my efforts on making 'Black Swan' a success. It's your first Hollywood leading role, and if you succeed, your career will be completely different. As for 'Inception,' casting doesn't start until October, and filming won't begin until next year, so there's no time conflict. You can wait until 'Black Swan' finishes filming before deciding whether to take the role; perhaps there will be a better opportunity."

Liu Yifei remained silent.

She knew Jiang Yu was right.

"I understand." She nodded. "Let's focus on the task at hand first."

After chatting for a few more minutes, Liu Yifei quietly left; she didn't want to be photographed by the media and have some nonsensical news written about her.

Jiang Yu remained in the corner, observing the diverse reactions of people in the banquet hall.

Chen Daoming was chatting with Tian Zhuangzhuang. The two of them were talking about something, and their expressions were serious.

Meanwhile, at Huayi Brothers, Huang Xiaoming was trying to get close to Lu Yang, holding a poster of "The Witch" and asking for his autograph.

Fan Binbin chatted with Huo Wenxi, both of them smiling broadly.

Jing Tian followed Lu Zheng closely, politely greeting the directors and trying his best to play the role of a "polite junior".

Yang Mi was much bolder and went straight to Ning Hao's side.

Everyone is striving for their future, in their own way.

As Jiang Yu looked at all this, he suddenly remembered his past life.

Back then, he was just one of the masses, working desperately to earn the title of "Special Effects Director" in the end credits of a movie.

Now, he sits in this position.

It can determine the fate of many people and change some things.

The campus of Communication University of China is bathed in a golden glow under the summer sunset. Students walk by carrying books, and couples chat on the lawn.

Inside the window is half of China's entertainment industry.

Jiang Yu took out his phone and sent Nolan a text message:

"Chris, because of those two roles in Inception, I'm now surrounded by half of the Asian entertainment industry. You'd better come to China in person in October, otherwise I'm afraid our company's doors will be broken down."

A few minutes later, Nolan replied with only one sentence:

"Those who are capable should do more."

Jiang Yu looked at that sentence and smiled.

(Recommendation for my wife's new book: "Entertainment: I Became a Top Star by Reaching Debt")