Dominate the Super Bowl-Chapter 1536 - 1535: Black Hole Vortex

"’Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always,’ a work highly praised by Li Wei at the Berlin Film Festival."

"What’s the name of that long and strange movie? It’s the one Li Wei praised in Berlin, what’s it called again?"

"I never would have thought that Li Wei’s taste in films would be so remarkable."

"Come to think of it, apart from his performance on the field, we know nothing about Li Wei."

"Indeed, Li Wei is someone you can rely on. Not only is his fashion sense impeccable, but his taste in movies is just as insightful. ’Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always’ has blown up in Berlin with rave reviews."

Li Wei. Li Wei. It’s still Li Wei.

Chatter, hustle and bustle, social media is in a complete frenzy, with Li Wei as the catalyst, propelling the Berlin Film Festival to the peak of discussion.

In recent years, the Berlin Film Festival has gradually declined. Although it remains one of the top three film festivals in Europe, its authoritative status and professionalism have faced significant challenges, with the influence of the Cannes Film Festival surging ahead and leaving Berlin and Venice trailing behind, with Berlin even lagging slightly behind Venice.

Social media?

The traffic for the Berlin Film Festival might not even be a tenth of Cannes’.

Of course, there’s always the opinion that art is art and should not cater to the market. Once art starts running after the market and loses its personality and spirit, it will become part of popular culture, losing its edges and colors.

Undoubtedly, balancing commerce and art is always a topic of interest.

But we shouldn’t deny the fact that without attention, without topics, without traffic, there is no market. If the works showcased at the Berlin Film Festival can’t find distributors through market screenings, can’t make a profit, can’t be promoted, or even lose money, the number of films willing to come to Berlin for exhibition will dwindle.

So, commerce and market are not everything, but they are also parts that art cinema should not ignore.

Up until now.

Solely because of Li Wei, traffic has exploded with fervent enthusiasm!

Precisely because of the unexpected, precisely because of the crossover, precisely because Li Wei has nothing to do with film festivals, precisely because of the surprising combination, unexpected sparks flew, even the professional media attending the film festival were shocked, let alone the general public.

Overnight, attention poured in from all corners of the globe, and discussions about the Berlin Film Festival unfolded in full swing, spreading across social media at a visibly fast pace.

Who could have imagined that "Football X Film Festival" could create such sparks?

In fact, if it were a football star or a basketball star, or even racing or tennis, the effect might not have been as pronounced.

In any case, whatever the circumstances, it happened. The Berlin Film Festival successfully broke into the hot search list.

And not just once, every so often, news would refresh, with everyone tracking Li Wei’s every move in Berlin, giving Berlin a taste of the Cannes treatment. Naturally, the films praised at the festival also seized their opportunity to shine under the spotlight.

At the forefront, naturally, is "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always."

Initially, on the second day of the film’s premiere, all the focus was entirely on Li Wei, completely overshadowing the film itself. People eagerly shared tidbits of that evening, that press conference, that surging spectacle, discussing fervently.

At the same time, accompanied by heated discussions, the movie "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always" repeatedly entered people’s sights. Due to its quirky and particularly long name that’s hard to remember, it easily left its mark, quietly gathering a flow of traffic.

Until a certain moment, discussions began to delve further, as questions and interactions from Li Wei at the press conference were gradually revealed—

The Los Angeles Times even had a news article penned by Li Wei. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

As a result, social media crashed directly.

From the beginning, Li Wei never hid his university major information, and fans often marveled at his interactions with journalists. However, watching Li Wei exhibit his journalistic talents firsthand was a different story, sparking a new wave of intense discussion.

People couldn’t even pronounce the movie’s name completely; yet, undeniably, everyone knew there was a particularly uniquely named film at this year’s Berlin Film Festival worthy of special attention.

After all, the name indeed stands out.

However, if that were all, it would only be a gimmick. The attention remained focused on Li Wei, while the movie rode the waves of traffic without truly distinguishing itself. People quickly realized Li Wei wasn’t the only one praising this uniquely named work.

A torrent of accolades!

Among the main competition films that have premiered so far at the Berlin Film Festival, "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always" ranks second in the official magazine’s scores.

Amidst the wave of applause and praise that initially surged out, Li Wei was merely one voice among many. Now, fueled by word-of-mouth and quality, the film "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always," which entered the public eye due to its buzz, caused a second wave of traffic, gathering bustling discussions.

Even Thalia rode this wave to a small breakthrough, sparking a round of discussion.

Initially, Li Wei stole the spotlight from the movie, and now, because of Li Wei, the movie became the focus again. A perfect circular loop thus completes, starting with the film and eventually returning to the film, benefiting not only "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always" but the entire Berlin Film Festival.

Then, something even more magical and sensational happened.

Li Wei genuinely came to the Berlin Film Festival to watch films, not just one or two, entirely embodying the role of a professional film festival journalist, tirelessly moving between different theaters and different films, persistently attending various press conferences, and continually discussing films, sharing opinions, and exchanging ideas with other journalists and audiences.

Additionally, the Los Angeles Times seized the opportunity, continuously publishing Li Wei’s articles, drawing attention to social media time and again, so much that all participating films at the Berlin Film Festival were looking forward to the moment:

When is Li Wei coming?

This kind of treatment is entirely on par with that of an industry top-tier professional film critic.

It’s worth mentioning that Li Wei holds the highest-level viewing pass for the Berlin Film Festival, granting him access to any film, at any session, in any venue. He did not waste the value of this pass, making full use of it, traversing the wind and snow and cold of Berlin, integrating fully into the film festival—

Completely embodying a passionate film fan, his eagerly seen presence actively displayed his enthusiasm, indistinguishable from ordinary film fans.

Slowly, slowly, those prejudiced, arrogant, and picky gazes began to change. They no longer viewed Li Wei as a football giant nor as an intruder grabbing traffic, but genuinely regarded him as a film critic, a movie enthusiast.