We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Phoenix Zito a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Phoenix, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

The thing is; nothing else ever was an option to me. I remember being 6-7 years old and being asked what I wanted to do all the time. I always said that I wanted to help make movies. When everyone around me said I NEEDED a plan B, I would only give in through sarcasm & say my backup plan was to be a super hero. I had my eyes locked in & nobody around me telling me there was no chance for a kid from the Midwest to make movies ever got me. I wanted to show them how wrong they were someday.

Phoenix, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Obviously, since there was nothing else I wanted to do; I went at it like it was a mission. No matter what state, or city I lived in, whether or not there was a film industry- there were always film-makers, local passionate hobbyists just doing film for the love of it. I just never stopped going and trying to do more and more of those projects with new people.
Working on so many, I really got to do a little bit of everything- work every role and position until I fell in love with certain ones.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

One of the best and biggest things is to keep AI out of the creative fields. Writers that have worked for decades are having to get other jobs for the first time since becoming professionals.
Also, if people want more original, creative movies out of Hollywood, then go out to see those movies when they do come out. What films get made is mostly a democracy and the people cast their vote with movie tickets.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I truly love collaboration from a bunch of passionate people coming together to try to make something better than any individual could.
That’s what film is and has to be; a purely, are truly collaborative art form, really the only one of its kind in that way. There are so many departments with so many people working in them because films can get so big that there’s no other way to even speech them.
Believe me, I’m not saying the Hollywood system is the only way to go. But it’s a system for a reason- it works.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phoenix_sol_/profilecard/?igsh=YjB2cTNyMTNjeWV4
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@comingsoononvhs?si=mWjr3TgJMe05_Iuk