讀後心得

The main character of "Enola," Maggie Madison, won the Oscar for Best Actress for her outstanding performance. The American independent film market has undergone significant changes after the pandemic, with a decline in fundraising and theatrical release opportunities, as well as a shrinkage in box office revenue, causing concern among industry professionals. Director Sean Baker, despite facing challenges, continues to shoot with a low budget and amateur actors, using his work to give a voice to marginalized members of society. His eighth film, "Enola," received four Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director, and tells the story of Enola, a Russian-American sex worker. The film begins in a luxurious setting, then shifts to a genre change with darkly comedic chase scenes, ultimately concluding with an emotional ending.

The female lead in "Enola," played by Maggie Madison (second from the right), delivered an outstanding performance and won the Oscar for Best Actress at this year's ceremony.

The American independent film market faces dramatic changes in the post-pandemic era, with fundraising becoming more difficult and opportunities for theatrical releases significantly declining. Overall box office revenue has drastically shrunk, causing anxiety among industry insiders. Despite these challenges, American independent filmmaker Sean Baker remains committed to low-cost productions, streamlined teams, and working with non-professional actors to amplify the voices of society's marginalized. This year, he won four major awards at the Oscars—Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Editing—for "Enola," setting a benchmark that will be hard to surpass in the industry.

Sean Baker, 54 this year, was inspired by movies from a young age, discovering various monster-themed films while visiting community libraries with his mother. He later watched classic works such as "Star Wars" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." During high school, he saw "RoboCop" and "Die Hard," and although he was not yet familiar with the blockbuster production system, he dreamed of directing Hollywood commercial films in the future. Upon entering New York University, he began exploring films by directors like Spike Lee, Jim Jarmusch, and Richard Linklater and started to appreciate independent cinema. For him, New York City felt like a vast film school; during his studies, he frequently visited the Museum of Modern Art, Lincoln Center, and the Film Archive, and became a regular at several art house cinemas, gradually falling in love with films that focus on human stories rather than relying on special effects, laying the foundation for his future directing career.

The award-winning "Enola" is Sean Baker's eighth feature film, telling the story of a young Russian-American sex worker, Enola, who meets the son of a Russian billionaire, leading to a life-altering transformation. The film's opening immerses the audience in the opulent Manhattan gentlemen's club, expansive Brooklyn waterfront mansions, and the dazzling fantasy world of Las Vegas. Although it initially appears to set the stage for a love story, it crosses genre boundaries in a critical scene, unfolding a chase filled with dark humor. By the end, the tone shifts once more as Enola returns home, leaving a heart-wrenching conclusion to the story, which earned Maggie Madison, who plays Enola, a crucial Oscar win for Best Actress.