An Inspired Chat with paul gunn of Los Angeles, CA.

paul gunn shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Hi paul, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: Who are you learning from right now?
There is a saying that when the student is ready, the master will appear. This has more to do with whether or not the student is ready and in a state of mind where they are able and willing to learn, as humility is teachability; I must also specify the caveat that because of my stubbornness, I have not always been the most teachable student and that there were bad habits that I first needed to address. Throughout my life, there have been a few different masters and mentors that I admire and have had the honor of studying and learning from. They often appeared when I was not searching for them, they were just brought into my life out of circumstances.
But, as the person of greatest influence in my life currently, my good friend and business partner of the past year and a half, Mr. Chris Ross Leong would say, knowledge is given to those who actively and consciously seek it.
Chris and I met on the set of an action film starring Bai Ling that has yet to be released. I was the main antagonist of the film and he was the cinematographer and camera operator. In between takes we started chatting and found that we had many things in common and that he had faced many of the same challenges that I did growing up; the difference was he was an Asian kid growing up in the UK and I was an Asian kid growing up in America. He has been in the entertainment industry for over 50 years, has had many experiences, traveled the world and been to many of the same places that I have and has many of the the same dreams, philosophy and life aspirations that I do. And, most recently, when the love of my life of the past three years, Joanna Heckman passed away unexpectedly this past January, Chris was there to talk to me, counsel me, encourage me and helped make sense of the situation. Not only does he possess a world of wealth in knowledge and life experience, but, he is also the friend to pull you aside and give honest feedback; it’s feedback that says that I need to be aware of someone, something, or of myself. He was there to show me many times that I have not tried hard enough, that I was frustrated too easily or that I was simply capable of doing and being better. And to me, this is simply an invaluable quality to possess in a person that sees the potential in and wants to see you succeed. I most certainly owe him my eternal gratitude.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is paul gunn [sic]. My family and I immigrated from Thailand in the 70s and settled initially in Dallas, Texas. Growing up, I was shy, so I forced myself to volunteer or audition for parts in school functions. I eventually developed a love for performing and entertaining. For the majority of my career, I have been involved with performing in live stage shows. In my teens, I was able to attain singing and dance lessons free, and was cast in shows in theme parks such as Disneyland and Six Flags, in live stage musicals, Princess Cruise Lines, the Las Vegas Strip, and bus and truck tours throughout the US, Europe and South Africa for The Chippendales. I was able to put myself through college and have a Bachelors of Science in Management Information Systems degree from the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. In my 40s, I left the dance world and began performing in live medeival and pirate themed stunt shows which then led me into the world of acting on camera.

In the short amount of time that I have been involved in film production, I have been able to work on the different studio lots of Hollywood and formed my and my colleagues’ production company, EP!C Film Foundry. I’ve worked with such names as Taika Waititi, Fred Savage, Jon Favreau, Eric Roberts, Robert LaSardo, Jake Busey, Michael Pare, Kevin Sorbo, Richard Grieco, Tara Reid, Tom Arnold, Bai Ling, Zachary Levi, and more. I have been able to work on such films as Bullet Train, Free Guy, Snake Eyes, The Mandalorian and I was Taika Waititi’s photo double in “Our Flag Means Death”. Our company, EP!C Film Foundry has a slate of 20 films including a project called Love Beats that has won 65 festival awards and are currently working on a screenplay that has won over 200 film festival awards called Neverwere: A Lycan Love Story by my close friend and business partner, Chris Ross Leong.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
Many people in recent years have played a part in my life and career. My manager Gloria Tait of Athena Talent Management and my agent, Michael Zanuck of the MZA Agency, who are both LA legends in the realm of film and television entertainment. (I’m not joking, Google them, they are Hollywood royalty.) My business partner, Chris, whom I have mentioned earlier, has been on the forefront of entertainment for many years, in multiple countries, having worked with many reputable people have helped shape me and my self image.
But, the relationship that truly solidified my self-worth, what I feel I am capable of and how I see myself today the most, was with the love of my life, Joanna “Ziggy” Heckman, who recently passed away unexpectedly in January earlier this year. We were together for three years; she had been dealing with chronic health problems from past unfortunate incidences for years and suffering from chronic nerve pain nearly everyday for a very long time.
She not only saw the best in me and encouraged me to grow to my potential, she also was a role model for me on how to live life. Because she had been stricken with so many medical challenges, Joanna was only given a few years to live and she defied all that, and lived for over twenty more years than predicted. She made the most of EVERY day, she never complained and she lived her life as she wanted to till the very end. She also taught me to be fearless and not ever require people’s approval.

She was also very kind, generous and empathetic; she was good at making random strangers, just people she would run in to feel good about themselves, gave them compliments, lifted them up emotionally, made them feel seen, made them feel heard and made them feel unique and special.
She touch very many people’s lives including mine and I am an exponentially better person for having spent the short time we had together. I am grateful for my time with her and I will never forget her.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering. In my experience as an artist, truly masterful performances tend to have been given by artists who have endured a good deal of suffering. I have often said to people in the past that as an artist, you must be willing to suffer for your art. So, for one, suffering gives the inspiration to be a better artist.
Let’s take for example we have a singer/songwriter who is good at their work and they have been performing for a good amount of time. (We tend to hear these stories quite often from shows such as American Idol or America’s Got Talent.)
Now, let’s say this singer went through a terrible breakup, or they lost a loved one or had a bad car accident/health scare; all of a sudden, this hypothetical singer channels all that pain and emotions into their performance and now starts singing the most poignant, tear-jerking, soul-wrenching, heart-breaking songs. Well, it took that performer having to go through the phases of pain and heartbreak in order to touch the deepest, darkest corners of depression, hardship and despair in order to have a taste of that, and to gather the emotional fuel necessary to showcase their music in a way that touches others that may be going through the same trials or ones that have been there and can relate to the picture that the singer is painting with their song.

Secondly, suffering has also taught me what is truly necessary in my life. So, for instance, at a point in my life when I had financial consistency in the form of a regular show I was performing in and had enough money to purchase more, I tended to feel strained, overworked and tired from having to constantly maintain that lifestyle by working more of my time; the things I owned started to own me and my time. When making the transition from dancer and singer in Las Vegas to being an actor and stuntman in Los Angeles, I needed to get rid of, I’d say 90% of my belongings. In doing so, I only carried the bare minimum of possessions that I really used on a regular basis. I had less to maintain. I was happier more and I found time to do the things that really called to my heart. I had less toys and outfits, but, at the same time, I did not need to afford to pay for their storage and maintenance.

And, finally, the last thing that I would say that suffering has taught me is about people. Suffering has been a study in psychology as well as sociology. You see, at the time I was more “successful” and able to afford more toys or clothes, it also tended to attract certain types of people. These people tended to be the opportunistic types of people who asked to borrow money or to borrow tools or other things I possessed. And, a majority of the times they did not return what was borrowed or “it went missing” or “it got broken”. After having gotten rid of my many things and having chosen a life with only necessities, that got rid of all the “borrowing” types of people.
When you suffer at a low point in your life, whether it is through a bad accident, devastating setback, financial loss or one like I endured, the loss of a loved one: you will know for sure, who your real friends are because the ones who stay with you, will be the ones who truly have your best interests in mind and that care about you. You see, when you’re “hot”, EVERYONE loves you and will be nice to you. But, when you are at a low or suffering, people disappear except the ones who have your best interests in mind and that’s how you know who your REAL friends are.

Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
Without a doubt, our company, EP!C Film Foundry’s flagship project is and has always been the project that I am most committed to; it’s a screenplay called Neverwere: A Lycan Love Story.
So, just a little backstory: my girlfriend who recently passed, Joanna “Ziggy” Heckman and I met our business partner, Chris Ross Leong approximately two years ago. We formed our production company in March of 2024 and Chris had an idea for a film which he wrote in screenplay as well as scriptment form. It is a fantasy romance that is based on Ziggy and my love story together. He took many elements of our own personal lives, our speech patterns, our interactions, our personal likes and dislikes and wrote our very own love story. The book debuted on Amazon in September of 2024. Attention and accolades soon rallied behind it and it began winning award after award and soon became the festival darling of 2025.

We began work on the production, prototypes, concepts, posters, budget, and essentially the pitch deck to start work on Neverwere. Ziggy was to play the lead and love interest to my character as well as be the production designer for the film. Unfortunately and unexpectedly in January of 2025, just four months after the book was released, Ziggy passed away. I was devastated to say the least. This had been for me the most challenging hardship I have personally endured to date. I was caught completely off-guard. We had so many plans and goals together. She had devoted so much effort, time, faith, love, energy, and belief into this that it is now a mission for me to produce and bring this into fruition. Neverwere now stands at over 200 film festival wins as of the time of my writing this. And, because of her untimely death, it is without a doubt, the best way to preserve Ziggy’s work and legacy.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
Without a doubt, I am doing what I was born to do and have always been. It most certainly has been arduous and comes with its challenges. From my earliest memory, I made it a point to choose to live the life of an artist rather than to live a 9-5, Monday to Friday style work life. Now, let me say there is nothing wrong with that particular lifestyle, just that it did not reflect my soul’s true calling.
I personally, decided to only work from a place of love and passion; furthermore, in general I refused to pursue anything that did not truly call to my heart. My personal theory is that you can fail at doing something you dislike, so, you might as well work and pursue the things that you do like; also, if you do the things you have a passion for, you will naturally excel at them because they’re things you simply enjoy, and as a result you will make the time and give the attention necessary to do them correctly. Being an artist means instead of working set hours and days, it is working when you are inspired and is not as financially consistent as it is to having a regular job. But, each one of us is on a different journey and in a different set of circumstances, so we all must weigh out what is most important for us on a case by case basis. What works for me might not work for everyone else, and vice versa.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Killer Imaging, Chris Ross Leong, Joanna Heckman

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