Last year, Lance participated in the Oscar Night, when the "City of God" won three statuettes, which made Lance one of the high-profile new stars of the night, and many high-level people took the initiative to make friends, and the "Kill with a Knife" project appeared on that night.

However, this year's Oscar night in Reims was very different. At Tom's suggestion, the two of them left the outdoor pool and ballroom on the first floor and went to an intimate parlor on the third floor for a cigar talk. It's just a door, but it's like two worlds.

There were less than twenty people seated in the living room, each with a glass of whiskey or vodka at a table, a fine Cuban cigar in hand, and gossiping with each other. In fact, the so-called small talk does not have much substantive topic, most of it is mutual praise and praise for each other, and Tom, who achieved a career breakthrough tonight, is obviously the central topic, giving Lance a good insight into what it means to "tell nonsense seriously - say good things".

Lance couldn't help but think of a scene in the movie "Titanic", Ruth's fiancé Carl was forced to invite Jack to their lunch party, and after the party, Carl and his group were ready to go to the room for a "men's meeting", and Ruth obviously disdained this, and chose to go to the lower class with Jack to participate in the real ball.

Today's cigar talk was a bit of a "men's meeting". It is worth mentioning that all the people present were indeed men. Paramount's CEO, Shirley Lansing, didn't show up - at this point in time, Shirley was about to resign, and it wasn't unusual that she didn't show up, and Lance was even more curious, so what about before? Has Shirley ever been to such cigar talks before?

Most of the people in the meeting didn't know Lance, except for Barry Mayer and the legendary Michael Esner, Clint Eastwood, Sidney-Lumet, and Morgan Freeman all appeared at the meeting, but the rest were all unfamiliar faces. They are either major shareholders in the Big Six studios, top Wall Street figures, or other prominent figures in the field, including the mayor of Los Angeles and a member of Congress.

It is worth mentioning that Thomas Toole appeared in the second half of the meeting - the founder of Legendary Pictures, he was like a fish in water during the meeting, and it was clear that he was close to many people on the scene.

Thomas was talking to Clint about the current state of American finance, and Tom and Lance walked out together, "It's always so boring in meetings like this. Tom said in a low voice, with a hint of amusement in his eyes, "However, after attending once, I will not be a stranger in the future." ”

Chinese/Chinese people pay great attention to the friendship that comes out at the dinner table, especially the friendship that comes out of the wine table, and the table itself may have no practical significance, but the deep meaning after the end is long and far-reaching. Obviously, in the United States is no exception.

"Whew, so many unfamiliar faces, you remember them all the first time?" Lance asked curiously, frowning slightly. Even for Lance, who is a man of the third generation, this is still a new experience, completely different.

Tom was stunned, then chuckled and shook his head, "No, of course not. "On such occasions, no one will introduce themselves, because acquaintances do not need to be introduced, and new strangers have already been understood, there is no need to introduce, and for novices, how to identify each person, how to remember every name, this is also a test.

As an introducer, Tom has been secretly introducing Lance during the conversation just now, but the time is limited, there are too many characters, the conversation speed is too fast, and the amount of information is too large, so it is definitely not that simple to grasp the situation clearly at the first time. "Don't worry, when I go back, I will ask my assistant to compile a copy of these people's information and send it to you, and the next time we meet, as long as you can say their names, they will immediately recognize you."

In the real upper class, the threshold is unimaginably high, and it definitely doesn't mean "I know you", which means that a friendship has been established. In addition to the so-called supremacy of interests, family inheritance, network extension, and social circles will all be interlocking.

"I thought you were from an Ivy League." Tom had thought that Lance should be familiar with this, but now it seems that it is clearly not. Lance cast a puzzled look, and Tom couldn't help but explain, "You know, they're actually the same as the Ivy League fraternities. I always thought you were from the Ivy League. ”

In the United States, the Ivy League colleges are not only the highest institutions, but also the lifeblood of high society. The so-called Wall Street connections, presidential election connections, etc., are all born out of Ivy League fraternities, sororities, such as the history-changing Barack-****** (Barack-Obama), who studied at Columbia University and Harvard University, which is the root of his networking.

Getting into an Ivy League college is obviously not an easy task, and getting into the school's long-established fraternity is even more difficult. Generally speaking, only those with family traditions can enter, otherwise the new aristocracy will win the corresponding status through donations and gifts to schools, and then obtain the qualification to join. As for those ordinary people who have no background and no power, the price they pay is unimaginable.

This is the reason why many American parents want their children to attend their alma mater, and it is also the reason why many young people with big ambitions want to attend an Ivy League college. The aristocratic culture of the United States is not as long as that of Europe, but the distinction between the upper class and the common class is not inferior, so the gap between the rich and the poor in the United States has not only not narrowed, but is getting bigger and bigger.

Tom didn't come from an Ivy League background, he didn't even finish his college studies, but he relied on his own efforts to climb to where he is today. Twenty years of persistence and hard work in the idol baggage, this is the price he paid, so it is difficult to say whether he gained more or lost more.

"No, I graduated from the University of Southern California." Lance shook his head with a smile. He once thought that Li Jin and Lance's souls had been completely fused together, and he knew enough about this land, but now, his understanding of this world was only scratching the surface. No wonder people always say that vision limits cognition, but also limits outlook on life, values, and worldview.

"That's not a problem." Tom didn't care, because that's how he got there, "We're celebrities, and a lot of times for them it's like trophies, collected and flaunted, and then reduced to decorations. Entering this circle is not as difficult as you think, at least not more difficult than making a great film. Tom chuckled, seemingly pleased with his joke, "It's just that if you want to win the corresponding recognition, you have to rely on yourself." ”

Lance noticed Tom's wording, "celebrity", not a star, not an actor, not an entertainer, but a celebrity, and in an instant the images of countless Hollywood famous actresses flashed in his mind, like trophies, displayed in the cupboards of those high-class. Listening to Tom's understatement of this fact, Lance couldn't help but shudder slightly.

Tom's gaze stayed on Lance, and he looked at it for a moment, he knew that it was not easy to digest so many things, but it was the part he couldn't help. "I'm going to go get a beer and enjoy the cheers and compliments that belong to me. How about we'll meet again later? ”

Lance knew that Tom was joking, and he smiled as well, "Trust me, as soon as you show up, everyone will flock to you, be careful not to get squeezed into the pool." Tom laughed out loud at the joke, and he patted Lance on the arm, and without any pause, turned and left.

Standing at the top of the stairs and looking down, sure enough, as soon as Tom appeared, someone around greeted him. Not only the actors and directors, but also the reporters, editors, and producers have their eyes on Tom. It is foreseeable that Tom's career will reach a second peak, and as for what his agent team intends to plan, Lance does not know.

Lance didn't go downstairs right away, he needed time to gather his thoughts. He was thinking about whether the people he knew in the room just now had anyone who could be linked to the distribution, and he hadn't forgotten that Sin City was going to be released by Chaos Pictures itself, and in such occasions, he could often have unexpected connections and promote the cooperation of distribution channels.

Although Ian is more suitable for dealing with such occasions, Lance is very bad at it, but after the polishing of the previous life and the tempering of this life, Lance has gradually grown up and can handle similar things on his own. However, if he had the chance, he should have Ian represent Chaos Pictures on such an occasion next time, and he should be at home like a fish in water.

Lance recalls that there seemed to be a VC CEO in the room, and if Lance remembers correctly, he was chatting with someone and brought up Philip-Anschutz, the big boss of North America's largest theatrical chain, Royal Entertainment, and they seemed to have a good relationship.

Generally speaking, the boss will not be directly involved in the operation of the company, they will hire professionals to take care of it, and the CEO and chairman of the board of directors are such positions. So, Chaos Pictures wants to seek a distribution partnership, and Philip obviously shouldn't be the target, but if it can be launched, things will be much easier.

Just when Lance fell into deep thought, a force suddenly grabbed his wrist, and then pushed forward strongly, Lance's first reaction was to grab the opponent's wrist in turn, counteract, stand firm with both feet, take the right foot as the center of the circle, take a step back, let go of the left body, the opponent rushed forward with force and lost his center of gravity, almost fell down, and looked really embarrassed.

When I looked closely, it was Angelina Jolie. (To be continued.) )