Chapter 513: Duke's Speech

Sunlight beat down on the campus's flagstone paths as two young men hurried along the tree-lined avenue. They moved so fast they were practically sprinting, as if something incredibly important awaited them up ahead.

One of them complained as he ran, "Jiang Qingfeng, this is all your fault. How could you forget where you put the file? I want to kill you right now!"

"My fault, my fault!"

Jiang Qingfeng clutched a document bag tightly to his chest, urging his friend on as they power-walked. "Zuo Qiang, just save your breath. Let's hurry! Faster!"

They sprinted toward the university's main auditorium.

It wasn't a speech by a political figure or a famous billionaire, but an address from the world's best director held just as much of a draw.

Furthermore, both Zuo Qiang and Jiang Qingfeng were literature majors with a special interest in film. They had even prepared specific questions to ask the great director during the Q&A session.

Stepping into the auditorium, they looked around to find it completely packed. Fortunately, the event wasn't open to the public; practically everyone inside had submitted an application and passed the School's screening. With seating pre-arranged, the crowd felt full but perfectly orderly.

Zuo Qiang and Jiang Qingfeng's seats were near the front. After squeezing their way in, they sat down to quietly wait for the speech to begin.

Members of the student union were maintaining order. Though conversations buzzed throughout the auditorium, it didn't feel chaotic.

After a ten-minute wait, a group of about a dozen people walked in through the auditorium doors. Zuo Qiang and Jiang Qingfeng's eyes immediately locked onto one particular figure.

He stood around 185 centimeters tall with a somewhat lean build, yet he exuded a sense of power. Dressed simply but smartly, he had sharp facial features and spiky dark brown hair that made him look exceptionally sharp and capable.

Forgoing any special introductions or ceremonies, the man carried his speech notes straight up to the podium.

"Good afternoon, students. I'm very happy to be here at..."

Though they had already seen his Chinese proficiency on the Yang Lan Interview, hearing this crisp, articulate, yet slightly stiff Mandarin in person made Zuo Qiang and Jiang Qingfeng unconsciously feel a sense of warmth and validation.

For a foreigner to speak such fluent Chinese, he must have spent a long time studying and practicing, which meant he surely held a deep fondness for the country.

Unlike the old foxes at the film festivals, Duke knew exactly what he was doing. These young, inexperienced students were much easier to influence, making this the perfect venue to show off his Chinese.

In front of people like Mountain Eagle, speaking Chinese more flawlessly than a news anchor wouldn't yield any practical benefits. But with everyday people, it could unconsciously bridge the gap between them.

"In North America, university speech tradition dictates that the speaker say a few words about 'chasing your dreams' and the like," Duke said.

Standing at the podium, Duke looked out over the auditorium seating. There were at least several hundred people in the audience. True to his usual style, his prepared speech lacked vague, ethereal platitudes.

"But I don't want to talk about that, because I don't buy into it," he continued. "I'm sure none of you lack dreams or the determination to pursue them, and you certainly don't need me to preach about it. I believe that grasping reality is far more important."

The auditorium was dead silent, with only Duke's voice echoing through the air.

"Time and time again, I get the feeling that, on some level, we've started treating reality like a dream's tragic, miserable cousin. But I want to convey an idea to you: whether it's our dreams, the reality we experience, or the abstract concepts we obsess over, they are all subsets of reality. And these subsets are what we can most easily grasp."

Taking one last look at his notes, Duke began to speak off the cuff.

"Take the film industry, where I've worked for over a decade. Movies are dream-making machines, but the process of making those dreams is incredibly grounded in reality. It leaves no room for romantic fantasies. If you don't treat film with a realistic attitude, the only path waiting for you is failure."

"This is a personal viewpoint, drawn from my own experience. In the earliest days of my career, I hit wall after wall. To shoot Speed, I went to every major studio in Hollywood and pitched my dream to at least thirty different producers. But dreams were no match for reality. Not a single company or person was willing to invest in my movie—until my mother stepped in."

A burst of laughter erupted from the crowd. Duke smiled as well, then continued, "I'm a lucky guy. I've never shied away from that fact. My family's support saved me from taking a lot of unnecessary detours."

"When the opportunity came, I seized it. But turning an opportunity into success requires a massive amount of knowledge. I always felt like I had accumulated as much knowledge as a wheel of Brie cheese!" he joked. "But when I actually started directing, I realized that a decade's worth of knowledge was far from enough. What was on my plate was more like Swiss cheese—the gaps in my understanding were the real problem. The reason knowledge is so important is that even after you leave this place, you still have to fill in the holes in that cheese, holes you might not even know you have. You will use experience to fill them."

"Along the way, your life and your work will sometimes be fantastic, and sometimes be terrible. But through it all, you will gradually learn more."

"The achievements you earn here will help you overcome difficulties. You aren't just learning a set of facts; you're learning how to learn, and you're learning the value of learning," Duke continued. "Most importantly, some of those gaps will be filled by the most vital things of all—new thoughts, new ideas, and everything else that can change the world."

A round of applause broke out in the audience. Duke made a pressing motion with his hands to quiet them down and said, "People can adopt certain ideas and believe in them without a shadow of a doubt."

"As someone who has been through it, I want to remind you of one thing. When you step off this campus, you must remember to keep moving forward. No matter what obstacles you encounter, never stop your advance."

Duke spoke with complete sincerity; he placed a lot of importance on this speech.

"Looking at you all, I'm reminded of when I graduated from college. Social injustice, income inequality, endless wars—I'm sure you all know what the world was like in the early nineties. And the reason you know is because, frankly, the world is still exactly the same today."

Another round of laughter rang out.

Duke gave an exaggerated shrug. "What have we done over the past twenty years? The world is still a mess. It's not easy to achieve success in this world. If you already have the knowledge and the realistic opportunities, then you need to remember one more thing—never neglect teamwork!"

"Many people have asked me, 'How do you keep succeeding? How did you get to where you are today? Why are you so celebrated?'"

Duke paused for a moment before saying, "I've won the Oscar for Best Director, and the combined box office of the films I've directed is an astronomical figure. It looks like this is all my personal glory, but what is the reality? Behind me stands the support of countless individuals. People like Miss Tina Fey, who is sitting among you today, or the production crew I've worked with for over a decade. Without these people, I would still have the confidence to shoot Speed and The Rock, but there is absolutely no way I could have completed The Lord of the Rings Trilogy in such a short amount of time."

"I've learned a lot on my journey of filmmaking. I haven't just acquired technical knowledge; I've learned leadership. Many people assume that a director inherently possesses great leadership skills, but I had to learn how to guide a team through the actual process of shooting."

He knew very well that despite his unique experiences, he never could have reached his current status without a highly cooperative, cohesive team.

"Sometimes, when making a movie, I ask myself, 'Why am I here? Why do I keep making films? What am I getting out of this?'"

"For the challenge—movies are like oceans and mountains waiting for us to explore. For the discoveries. And also for a strange kind of relationship—a tightly knit team. The core dozen or so members of my production team have worked together for many years, sometimes spending the vast majority of the year together. In this kind of relationship, I've found that the most important thing is respect. I am here for you, and you are here for me. None of us can fully explain the work we do to the others, so we have to build a relationship. We have to build respect."

"When I started shooting The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, I tried applying this principle of mutual respect and leadership to the production, and things quickly changed. During the shoot, my team was massive. We were working in uncharted territory, creating a new world. It was deeply fascinating and highly challenging. Over those few years, we became a family, and it completely changed the way I made movies."

In truth, all speeches were largely the same. Eventually, the topic always had to come back to the speaker themselves.

"There was a review that said Duke Rosenberg putting monsters on Earth was the reason for the success of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy," he said. "But for me, it was the basic principles of how we worked and the process itself that brought about the results we have today."

"Finally, let me talk about what I believe are the key elements to the success of my career."

Duke held up one finger. "Curiosity. This is the most important thing you possess."

He held up a second finger. "A healthy, grounded imagination. This is your most important strength."

He then raised a third finger. "Respect for your team. This is a law more important than any other law in the world."

Stepping forward from the podium, Duke moved closer to those young faces and said, "Many young film directors come to me asking for the secret to success, and I tell them—never set limits for yourself. Others will try to draw boundaries for you, but you must never do it yourself. You have to take risks. Failure is one of your options, but fear is not. No film has ever been completed with an absolute safety net. You have to be willing to take those risks."

"Thank you!"

Enthusiastic applause filled the auditorium. Although the speech was over, the event would continue. Up next was the Q&A session—an essential part of any celebrity lecture.