We recently connected with Zixuan Zhang and have shared our conversation below.
Zixuan, appreciate you making time for us and sharing your wisdom with the community. So many of us go through similar pain points throughout our journeys and so hearing about how others overcame obstacles can be helpful. One of those struggles is keeping creativity alive despite all the stresses, challenges and problems we might be dealing with. How do you keep your creativity alive?
For me, the best approach is to simply live my life and enjoy it. I love traveling and trying new things, so I spend time exploring new cities or picking up new hobbies. These experiences help me become more creative as they broaden my horizons. Filmmaking is all about capturing people’s lives, and by fully experiencing my own, I find inspiration to create stories in a fictional way. Many people say that every filmmaker puts a part of themselves into their films, and it’s true. To bring complex characters to life, I need to experience as much as possible.
But it’s not just about traveling or trying new things—you have to savor every moment. Ask yourself questions like: Why did I just do that? How do I feel right now, and why? What are the people around me doing? It’s about observation, learning, reflection, and taking notes. Traveling is the best way to immerse yourself in a completely different environment, where you meet people who live lives different from your own. You hear and see their stories, and you can learn from them, finding inspiration in their life experiences. One day, you may realize that one of your characters shares a story similar to theirs. Everything in filmmaking is grounded in and inspired by real-life events and stories.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I proudly call myself an artist. My work spans film, photography, fashion, and I’m constantly seeking to expand my horizons within the arts. I am the co-founder of Artistic Zone Inc., a company where we deliver a variety of art-related projects and services. There are so many art forms, and I don’t want to restrict myself to just one. All the arts are interconnected, something I learned through filmmaking. When producing a film project, I collaborated with graphic designers for posters, stylists and fashion designers for costumes, and fine artists for props within the film. As I worked with them, I became increasingly drawn to various art forms, appreciating the unique beauty each offers.
Film is such a powerful medium because it combines everything, and you can see the influence of various arts within it—fine art, photography, and more. I used to identify solely as a filmmaker, but I believe it’s time to broaden my role and embrace the title of artist. I don’t want to limit myself; I want to express my creativity across multiple art forms.
I also have some exciting news to share: a film I produced last year, “Memory of You,” has just been selected for the Dreamscape International Film Festival. Our film will be screened in Houston, Texas, in September, and I’m thrilled to be attending the event.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
First, being early to film sets and events helped me gain the most connections. Everyone understands the importance of being on time, but they often are not aware of the advantage of being early. It gives you the time to get familiar with the environment. I’ve had so many conversations start with someone being confused about where they should go, with the time I had to explore because of being early, I get to help them and also introduce myself. Also, it gives you the chance to chat with people who are also there early. These are the people who you want to get to know and potentially work with. They have shown their punctuality, motivation, and hard working.
Secondly, communication is a skill that cannot be emphasized enough. Communication is key for any teamwork and work relationship. It’s not only about communicating clearly but you need to know the communication style of your client. Talk to them and find out if they prefer shorter answers or more elaborated details.
Lastly, work life balance. I’ve seen people who work 24/7 and gain a lot of connections and money. However, I believe taking good care of your physical and mental health will make you more productive, creative, and stronger. It’s good to have time outside of work, everyone needs a break. It will allow you to come back to work being more motivated and inspired. Especially for artists, it’s important so you won’t get trapped in the bottle neck.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Yes! Always yes! Any artist who works in fashion, graphic design, fine art, or any area in Art who wants to connect please feel free to email [email protected]. We would love to get to know you and see your work, maybe we can work together in the future. Anyone in the LA area would be perfect but also open to outside since nowadays technology is so advanced.
Contact Info:
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zixuan-zhang-555b83230
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm14183515/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
