CHAPTER 718: CHAPTER 499: POACHING TALENT

The red carpet at Cannes is actually not long, quite short.

When Zhou Yun and the others appeared on the red carpet together, being part of a Chinese film crew, everyone was already mentally prepared to not receive the same overwhelming welcome as walking on domestic red carpets.

Even though Zhou Yun could now be considered extremely popular in China, she didn’t dare to claim herself as an international movie star, not to mention her—Yao Yuanfeng, who admired her greatly, didn’t dare to say so either.

For a person to have global influence, it requires a combination of luck and opportunity.

Zhou Yun had not reached that level yet.

Song Chi had already gone ahead to meet with the judges of the "Un Certain Regard" section, having walked the red carpet.

Zhou Yun saw him on the live television broadcast.

He was dressed in a suit, his arm in a sling, with handsome features, pushed onto the red carpet by his assistant, along with other judges.

Zhou Yun also heard the voice calling out Song’s name in awkward Chinese amidst the live audio.

There were many media photographers on-site, many of whom recognized Song Chi.

Zhou Yun stood to the left and Zeng Lili to the right of Xue Qin, with You Jiang and Wang Jing standing next to Zhou Yu and Zeng Lili, while Shi Luoqi stood at the farthest side.

After the group entered, they immediately heard the voices of Chinese photographers.

To Zhou Yun’s surprise, some blond, blue-eyed photographers turned their cameras towards her and shouted, "Yun!"

At first, Zhou Yun wasn’t sure they were calling for her.

After all, there were many people on the red carpet, and they didn’t have the privilege of a cleared space.

It was Shi Luoqi who gave Zhou Yun a reminder, and then she realized that foreign photographers were calling out her name, asking her to look their way so they could take a frontal photo.

Zhou Yun didn’t want to say it, but at that moment, she indeed felt a sense of pride.

She waved at the people and smiled.

The flashing lights flickered even more frequently.

"Lili seems to be quite well-known overseas," Zeng Lili whispered to You Jiang.

Xue Qin, upon hearing this, said to Zeng Lili: "The movie ’Life’ she starred in last year has recently been released in Europe and received high praise, it’s very popular."

Zeng Lili suddenly realized.

"So that’s why."

She patted Wang Jing on the shoulder and said, "Fight on, and strive to one day be like your Sister Xiao Yun, acting in a Chinese film and showing these foreigners the artistry of our Chinese films."

Wang Jing looked timid and nervous, saying, "I can’t do it."

Zeng Lili: "What can’t you do? Today is the first step."

Wang Jing responded with a soft hum.

But Wang Jing knew herself that both the company and Sister Lan positioned her mainly in TV dramas and secondarily in movies. Her acting skills were not yet enough to carry a film, and moreover, the company didn’t wish for her to act in too many movies. TV dramas were more profitable than films.

She looked at Zhou Yun, standing a step away from her, bathed in the flashing lights, exuding the aura of a goddess.

Even though they stood together, all the camera lenses of the photographers looking in their direction were only focused on her.

Wang Jing suddenly thought back to the anxiety she had felt earlier, worrying she wouldn’t make it to the red carpet, and now she found it somewhat ironic.

What difference did it make if she made it onto the red carpet or not?

Standing on this red carpet, she felt like nothing more than a backdrop.

At that moment, Zhou Yun suddenly turned her head, smiled at them, and waved, indicating for everyone to gather for a group photo.

...

At the top of the stairs, Cannes’ Art Director Brian stood there, personally greeting the most important red carpet guests.

Shi Luoqi took the initiative to raise his hand and greet Brian.

"I’ve brought my new crew this time."

Brian greeted Shi Luoqi with a kiss, saying, "We’ve been waiting for you, welcome."

He then turned to look at Zhou Yun and Xue Qin and the others.

"Hey, Qin!" Brian also took Xue Qin’s hand, saying, "We’ve been waiting for your debut as a director. I’ve watched your film, it’s brilliantly talented, with your unique perspective, I’m happy for you."

Xue Qin seemed quite familiar with Brian, leaning in to whisper in his ear: "I’ve always been waiting for you to say that to me."

Brian laughed.

Finally, he turned his attention to Zhou Yun and the others.

"Hi, Zhou, we finally meet." Brian considerately gave Zhou Yun, whom he was meeting for the first time, a kiss on the hand, saying, "You are now the new actress often mentioned by my old friends, a genius that appears out of nowhere, welcome to Cannes."