While the two companies were rapidly expanding, Gilbert hit up the 66th Academy Awards with Naomi Watts by his side.
This year's Oscars were held a bit later, goin' down on March 21st at the Los Angeles Music Center, and ABC was broadcasting it live for everyone to see.
Gilbert was pretty much just there to fill a seat, you know? He got a nomination for Best Film Editing, which is, like, a technical award.
Even though editing is super important, it's totally not on the same level as Best Director when it comes to awards.
Bummer, too, 'cause there wasn't a Best New Director award this year, otherwise Gilbert might've snagged another nomination.
But the Oscars didn't leave him hangin'; they actually asked him to present the award for Best Foreign Language Film.
In the mix for Best Foreign Language Film at this year's Oscars, there was this movie Gilbert was kinda familiar with, Chen Kaige's Farewell My Concubine.
And then there was Ang Lee's The Wedding Banquet, which Gilbert hadn't seen before, but Ang Lee was gonna be a huge deal later on.
The Wedding Banquet was one of the earliest movies co-produced by the U.S. and China, a collab between MGM and a production company from Taiwan.
But, big bummer, the crew from Farewell My Concubine didn't make it to the Oscars, so Gilbert didn't get to meet the legendary Leslie Cheung.
As for The Wedding Banquet, Ang Lee showed up by himself, no date or anything, lookin' pretty lonely.
For an Asian director to make it big in Hollywood, you gotta put in way more work than most people can even imagine.
Ang Lee wasn't the main event at this year's Oscars; the real buzz was all about Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List.
With Hollywood basically run by the "Y-word" folks, it seemed pretty much guaranteed that this super "politically correct" movie was gonna sweep the Oscars.
Before the awards, all the media hype was practically shouting that this movie was gonna clean up at the Oscars.
There was another movie that stuck with Gilbert this year: Tom Hanks in Philadelphia.
That's where Tom Hanks really started his journey to becoming a megastar.
If he remembered right, Tom Hanks won Best Actor for Philadelphia, even beating out Liam Neeson from Schindler's List.
That gave Gilbert a little spark of hope, 'cause the editor for Schindler's List was also nominated in his Best Editing category.
If Best Actor could go to Philadelphia, then Best Editing could totally go to him, right? After all, he's "one of them" too!
The big night came quickly, and Gilbert was all decked out in his fancy duds, rollin' up to the awards ceremony with Naomi Watts.
His turn came up pretty early. Even though he was a big name, his status wasn't quite there yet.
There were still a lot of big shots comin' up, so he was up front.
But, like, it was super obvious that Gilbert was a huge deal among directors now. The minute he hit the red carpet, the crowd went wild.
A lot of people recognized him from his TV debate with the animal rights group last year, and then they started checkin' out his movies.
Same deal, a bunch of movie buffs who'd seen his flicks but didn't know who he was as a director only figured it out after that whole thing last year, realizing just how crazy young this director was.
Every time you walk the red carpet, it's this awesome feeling, like you're livin' a dream.
Especially when you've got this insane roar of cheers, screams, and applause all around you, and the camera flashes are just goin' off non-stop on both sides of the carpet.
It's like a drug, man, totally intoxicating, totally addictive.
Naomi Watts, who was still a small-time actress at the time, totally got to experience the perks of the Oscar red carpet thanks to Gilbert.
She looked at the fans goin' wild on both sides of the carpet, posing with Gilbert and thinkin', "One day, I'm gonna be on this stage, holdin' that golden statue I've always dreamed of."
"Hey! What's up, Director Gilbert, no way you're sittin' next to me!"
Gilbert and Naomi Watts had just found their seats when some dude talkin' to someone else turned around and gave Gilbert a friendly shout-out.
Gilbert recognized the handsome guy right away: it was Leonardo DiCaprio, who was already pretty well-known.
"Hey," Gilbert said, shaking Leo's hand. "I saw your awesome performance in What's Eating Gilbert Grape; you were really good."
Of course, he was good; Leo got a Best Supporting Actor nomination for that movie, or else he wouldn't be sitting there.
Leo was stoked to hear that and complimented him back: "I saw your Final Destination and Speed, man, how'd you do it? How'd you come up with those stories?"
Gilbert just gave him the shrug, like, "Just thought 'em up, dude."
"Oh!" Leo just ran with it in his head: "I get it, you creative movie people, sometimes inspiration just flies down from the sky.
Hey, rumor has it a lot of people gotta, like, take drugs to get into that creative zone, is it the same for you?"
"He doesn't do drugs, actually. He's totally against that stuff," Naomi Watts chimed in from the side.
That's when Leo noticed Naomi Watts and asked, "Who's this?"
Gilbert stepped in and introduced her: "This is my... girlfriend, Naomi Watts, she's a British actress."
"Hey, Miss Watts, you look awesome tonight," Leo said, offering his hand.
Naomi Watts gave it a quick squeeze, then let go: "You too, Mr. DiCaprio."
"Just call me Leo..."
They were all young, so the three of them just started chattin' away, oblivious to everyone else, until the awards show started.
Gilbert also spotted Winona Ryder, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for The Age of Innocence.
Winona Ryder saw Gilbert too and, totally ignoring Naomi Watts, crooked her finger at him.
Then she made a circle with her left hand, put it to her mouth, opened wide, and made a few, like, "active" movements.
They were all pervs, so Gilbert knew exactly what Winona Ryder was getting at.
But with Naomi Watts right there, even though she didn't see Winona Ryder's moves, he still felt awkward respondin' and just kinda laughed it off.
Winona Ryder was pretty bold, and it wouldn't be good if someone saw her.
But maybe she was messed up by Johnny Depp, or maybe it was her family, but that girl's always been a little off. Otherwise, a huge star like her wouldn't be caught shoplifting at a supermarket.
Gilbert even tried to help Winona Ryder get back to normal, but it didn't work out in the end.
Messing with other people's freedom is a huge no-no in North America.
When Winona Ryder started getting weirder, Gilbert just kinda stopped hangin' out with her.
As for Leo, on the surface, he was the good boy, but deep down, he had a rebellious streak.
Facing the super-formal Oscars, he sharply commented, "This Oscar ceremony stinks, just like those old farts in the Academy."
This was at the Oscars, so it wouldn't be good if someone with influence overheard Leo talkin' like that.
So Gilbert quickly cut Leo off before he said something stupid: "Leo, you can't be talkin' like that in a place like this; it's not good if someone hears you."
"My bad, got a little carried away," Leo said, scratching his head, then asked Gilbert, "You won't spill the beans, right?"
"Nah, I'm with you, I totally hate how stuffy and old-school the Oscars are."
Gilbert's comment totally clicked with Leo, and he immediately considered Gilbert a kindred spirit.
He stopped dissing the Oscars, and Leo went back to his chatty self, spillin' his thoughts and sharp takes on all the nominated movies.
But when it came to his own Best Supporting Actor nomination, Leo went quiet.
It's normal for a young guy to be nervous about his first nomination, and all that chattiness could totally be seen as him tryin' to calm his nerves.
But, man, it was a real bummer, 'cause just gettin' a nomination was like a huge favor from those old farts in the Academy.
If those old Academy guys knew Leo was dissing them, they probably wouldn't have even given him a nomination.
Best Supporting Actor ultimately went to Tommy Lee Jones for The Fugitive. Ralph Fiennes from Schindler's List didn't snag that award.
Over on Winona Ryder's side, she lost to Anna Paquin, and it was pretty clear Winona Ryder wasn't thrilled about not winning. Her face didn't look too happy.
When the big screen showed her, she barely cracked a smile.
After Best Supporting Actress was handed out, it was quickly Gilbert's turn for the Best Film Editing nomination.
An old guy Gilbert didn't know walked up, read some pre-written lines, and then announced the winners: "And the Oscar for Best Film Editing goes to... Gilbert Landrini and Mehdi Thomson for Speed."
"Sweetheart, you got a little gold man!" Naomi Watts clapped excitedly, then threw her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his cheek.
The big screen showed Gilbert, perfectly capturing the moment.
But no one was mad; instead, there were friendly chuckles.
If Gilbert were some old dude in his forties or fifties, it totally wouldn't have been the same, and people would've been secretly cussing him out for being an old creep.
But he was a young guy, and it's totally normal for a young guy to be stoked about his first Oscar win.
Leo also sent his congrats: "Whoa, dude, no way, you actually won Best Editing!"
Even though it's "just" Best Editing, don't act like it's not an Oscar. It's still a golden statue, and Best Editing is a pretty important award.
On the other side, Mehdi Thomson was tearing up. He was almost forty, and this was his first Oscar nomination ever.
Winning on his first nomination made him practically want to cry.
Of course, he knew who the real MVP was, and he waited for Gilbert so they could go up and accept the award together.
After a quick hug with Leo, Gilbert walked onto the stage with a calm swagger, in front of all the directors, stars, and millions of viewers watching on TV.
Even though it was just a Best Editing Oscar, and he was sharing it with someone else, it felt like he was walking up to get the Best Director award.
A bunch of people around him congratulated him, either by shaking his hand or giving him a hug.
When he passed Winona Ryder, that bold chick even gave him a kiss, right on the lips.
But nobody really thought much of it. A young, talented, and good-looking guy is always gonna have a lot of women who dig him; that's just how it is.
Plus, this is the Oscars; even though the awards are taken seriously, the entertainment aspect is a big deal too.
Earlier, Tommy Lee Jones won Best Supporting Actor and even kissed Julianne Moore.
Gilbert was a bit startled by Winona Ryder's bold move, but thankfully, she didn't do anything too crazy or over the top.
Finally, he and Mehdi Thomson got on stage and took the golden statue together. Gilbert motioned for Mehdi to speak first.
Mehdi was super emotional, thanking his family, friends, and everyone who had supported his work. He especially thanked Gilbert at the end.
He said that without Gilbert, he probably never would have won an Oscar.
Even though it was a joint nomination, Mehdi Thomson clearly knew who deserved most of the credit.
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