Well, it's quite silly

The two-week-long Sundance Film Festival finally came to an end, with all 28 participating films shining on the stage. It marked the end of the celebration for film enthusiasts, and many people reluctantly made their way to the main venue to attend the closing ceremony and the accompanying awards ceremony, which would take place tonight.

After today, Park City would return to its usual tranquility, waiting for the arrival of the next year.

Lyman, George, and others arrived at the venue early, and soon Lyman saw that Miramax's people had also arrived on the scene.

Harvey Weinstein had a calm expression on his face, and there was nothing particularly notable about him. Initially, Lyman wanted to see if he would do anything extreme. After all, he had once again been left out by Harvey, together with George. However, Chris, who was standing next to Harvey, had a slight smirk on his face and his gaze roamed freely over Lyman. There was a strange meaning in his eyes.

It was as if he was mocking? Teasing or ridiculing?

It was really inexplicable.

Lyman thought to himself, perhaps they made a fool out of him last time, leaving everyone dumbfounded. Immediately, he put on a very polite smile, raised his right hand, and waved it towards Harvey Weinstein and the others as a friendly gesture. Harvey also raised his right hand in response, still wearing a smile on his face, as if the two of them were close friends. To outsiders, this familiarity and closeness made it seem like they were two dear friends greeting each other.

"Why don't you want to negotiate with Miramax and make me agree to meet Harvey Weinstein?" George's puzzled voice sounded. "They're not easy to deal with."

Lyman hadn't told anyone about that matter, so naturally, no one knew why he had such animosity towards Miramax or Harvey. Including René, who spoke up at this moment, "Yeah, it was the same in Venice."

Lyman didn't turn his head, he just said to himself, "Yeah, they're not easy to deal with." When George heard this, he understood that Lyman might be hiding something, and that thing was the key to Lyman's animosity towards Miramax. But he didn't want to inquire further. Everyone has their own secrets, and as a friend, all he needed was to stand firmly by his companion's side.

"Well, it's not a big deal. Can they really do anything to EuropaCorp? If they offend us, they offend us,"

"Thanks," Lyman said, looking at George seriously.

George shrugged indifferently, "It's nothing."

René looked at the two of them speaking vaguely and quickly realized what was going on. So, he stopped talking about Miramax and changed the topic to something else. Thomas, on the other hand, looked around dumbfoundedly at the environment and setup, not having paid attention to this side all along.

Music began to play, and the host appeared. The awards ceremony had begun! In fact, hosting such events followed a familiar pattern, with the same kind of rhetoric.

"Appreciating the charm of films," "expressing gratitude," and so on. In short, they all said more or less the same things. Lyman sat below, bored to the core.

"Lyman." René, sitting beside him, apparently shared the same sentiment. He leaned his head slightly closer and whispered, "The film is about to be released. Do you have any plans for a new movie?"

Lyman nodded slightly, "Yeah, I have a lot of ideas."

René was frustrated. What did "a lot of ideas" even mean?

Lyman looked at him and saw that his expression was somewhat unnatural, which made him smile inwardly. Seemed like his words weren't taken seriously. Well, he did have many ideas, but he didn't have a specific plan for a new film yet.

He wanted to wait until "3 Idiots" was released and see the market response before thinking about what to do next. If it performed well and made money, he could set a higher production budget. But if it flopped, he would just have to go back to working on low-budget films.

This is the reality that directors face, and Lyman understood it very well.

As the two of them talked below, the award ceremony finally began. The first award was for Best Documentary Director. Watching the recipient express their excitement and gratitude, Lyman and the surrounding crowd applauded them in encouragement.

Based on the official program booklet released before the awards ceremony, everyone's attention was mainly focused on a few films: "3 Idiots", "The Last Kiss", "Personal Velocity: Three Portraits", and "Bloody Sunday". These films were considered the frontrunners for the major awards of the night.

So when the host announced that the Audience Award in the World Cinema section went to "Bloody Sunday" and the Cinematography Award went to "Personal Velocity: Three Portraits", George suddenly smiled at Lyman and said, "You can prepare your acceptance speech now and think about what to say."

Objectively speaking, George had a reason to be confident. With the quality of the film itself being highly regarded by the judges and critics, combined with the goodwill generated by Robert Redford and some connections Lyman had, "3 Idiots" had a very good chance of winning awards. Moreover, several of its competitors had already received recognition, increasing the likelihood of "3 Idiots" being chosen.

Who says foreign film festivals don't divide the cake? When it comes to interests, people around the world behave the same way. Some people just consider their reputation a little more.

There's a saying that it's all about standing out among peers.

"What's the point of all that? Even if we win, it still depends on how the market receives it," Lyman said nonchalantly.

"Don't you want that kind of affirmation? And winning an award could also have a significant impact on your reputation and the film itself," George replied.

Lyman had a warm smile on his face as he clapped his hands for the upcoming award for "Tadpole". "Let's see. Actually, I prefer the recognition from the audience."

The Sundance Film Festival's award ceremony proceeded quickly, with one announcement following another, leaving almost no pause in between.

"Nominated for the Audience Award Dramatic is the film "The Last Kiss"," the host said, and the screen displayed scenes from "The Last Kiss".

The film had a completely different style from Lyman's realistic approach; instead, the visuals had a dreamy quality.

"The film "3 Idiots"." The screen switched, and a scene mocking the dean's educational methods appeared. Aamir Khan's sharp gaze made the director furious.

Even though the people present had seen it before, they still felt shocked.

"The film..."

After mentioning two more nominated films, the host smiled and said, "Congratulations, "3 Idiots"."

Yes, it won the Audience Award at Sundance.

"Go on." George smiled and leaned to the side. René and Thomas beside him were very excited, applauding continuously. Lyman stood up, hugged everyone one by one, and then calmly walked to the aisle and made his way to the stage.

"Congratulations, congratulations, Director Lyman," the host said, still speaking kind words.

Lyman received the trophy symbolizing the honor, and a staff member handed him a microphone. And then came the acceptance speech. Actually, Lyman hadn't rehearsed it in advance, so he wasn't prepared.

At this moment, standing on the stage, his gaze swept over the audience below. Some people were happy, some were disappointed, some sneered, some were hypocritical...

"Thank you to the Sundance jury for their recognition and thank you all for showing love and appreciation for "3 Idiots"." After the customary pleasantries, Lyman's brain attempted to organize his thoughts and continue speaking, but it was clearly not an easy task.

Impromptu speaking was a bit of a challenge.

"Well, the original intention of making this film was to objectively tell such a story, and fortunately, I did a decent job... um, finally, thanks to my crew members, they were great. Thank you all!" Lyman raised the trophy in his hand and returned the microphone to the staff member.

After finishing his acceptance speech, applause filled the venue as usual. Lyman came down from the stage and returned to his seat, but the nervousness in his heart had not yet dissipated. It felt a little embarrassing to be watched by so many people.

"Let me see the trophy." René eagerly said.

"You can hold it." Lyman handed the trophy directly to René. Thomas also approached, joining René in the excitement of winning the award. They caressed the trophy as if they were touching a priceless treasure. But George's expression seemed a bit off. Sure enough, when the final award of the night was revealed, he blurted out a curse, "Sh*t!"

At the Sundance Film Festival, there were many award categories, including separate divisions for documentaries and narrative features. But there was only one award that truly represented the biggest winner and honor, and that was the Grand Jury Prize.

Its importance was equivalent to the Palme d'Or at Cannes, the Golden Bear at Berlin, the Golden Lion at Venice, and the Best Picture at the Oscars. There was only one grand prize! So, when Robert Redford personally stepped onto the stage to present the award, the atmosphere in the venue became charged.

Amidst enthusiastic applause, Robert raised the envelope in his hand and said, "The answer is in my hands now, and I'm honored to be the first to see what this captivating choice is." Lowering his head, he opened the envelope. "Oh... so it is."

Robert looked up with a smile. "First of all, I must say that this award-winning work is one I personally love, and it's my privilege for the Sundance Film Festival to have it." Robert's brief yet sincere words made everyone in the audience hold their breath involuntarily. Even without deliberately creating suspense, the suspense still built up.

"The winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 18th Sundance Film Festival is... "Personal Velocity: Three Portraits"! Let us congratulate this outstanding film." The answer was revealed, instantly turning George's face ashen.

He had already doubted it when "3 Idiots" won the Audience Award, but when the final results were announced, his anger couldn't be contained. Looking at Robert on the stage with a fake smile, he knew he had been played.

"What's wrong?" Lyman saw George's uneasy mood and asked with concern.

"It's nothing."

...

The closing ceremony ended, and Lyman stood up to go backstage and have his name engraved on the trophy. Many people in the venue offered their congratulations and the atmosphere was lively with mutual celebrations.

"Lyman, how does it feel to win the top prize?" Harvey Weinstein asked enthusiastically as he passed by Lyman's seat.

"It feels great."

"Oh, really?"

"I'm heading backstage now, let's chat later."

Watching Lyman quickly disappear from sight, Harvey smiled contentedly. To him, Lyman looked like a dog fleeing in panic.

You dare to compete with me, trash!

"We're leaving," Harvey said, and he walked towards the exit first. What Harvey didn't know was that Lyman really had no knowledge of the arrangements made by EuropaCorp, which was behind George. He thought it would be a surprise, and he never expected the outcome to change. But when it did happen, apart from George occasionally feeling frustrated, who cared!

Some people just like to assume that others think the same way and will believe what they themselves value.

Did Lyman need the recognition of awards? He did, so he turned around and handed the trophy to René.

"You keep it."