We recently connected with Jiapeng Xiang and have shared our conversation below.

Jiapeng, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to start by getting your thoughts on what you are seeing as some the biggest trends emerging in your industry.

This question can be separated into two aspects: the film production industry and the color grading industry. Regarding the film production industry, I’ve noticed a significant recent trend – virtual production is becoming increasingly popular. I’ve observed that more commercials, music videos, and even movies are utilizing virtual production techniques. It offers a financially friendly solution and provides greater flexibility in adjusting the production design in various ways. Consequently, I have decided to embrace this new technology and am currently actively collaborating with a virtual production company.

As for the color grading industry, the work for VFX involves a different approach compared to traditional movie color grading. As a VFX colorist, I am not dealing with footage from the real world; instead, I work with assets in the Unreal Engine. This distinction gives me more control to make foundational changes and collaborate closely with production designers.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I entered the color grading industry out of sheer passion, dedicating myself to learning the craft subconsciously. One day, I realized I had honed my skills to the point where I could earn a living from it. Motivated to expand my career, I made the decision to move to a bigger city, such as New York City. It was there, quite serendipitously, that I met a group of people running a virtual production company. To my surprise, they lacked someone proficient in mastering the art of coloring for their productions. That’s how I ended up working with them.

In my role, I provide color grading services for virtual production and collaborate closely with production designers to craft the perfect color palette. What sets us apart is that unlike most virtual production companies, we don’t outsource the color work. Instead, we have the expertise to design the color palette of assets from scratch, allowing for precise color management and streamlining the post-production color grading workflow.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

I would recommend actively networking with people you know from work and life. Talk to those you feel comfortable working with. Sometimes, if I find someone I really look up to, I offer my services for free on small projects as a starter. If both parties are happy with the results, we can push our collaboration forward. In the early stages of your career, I don’t believe money is the biggest issue. The most important thing is building your clientele. As a trade-off, sometimes I will do free work to expand the client base.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I believe that successful team management is essential for building a strong reputation. Clear rules, employee training, and standardized workflows are vital. Using communication tools like Lark or calendar software enhances efficiency. When clients experience this professionalism, they are impressed and trust the services provided. Effective management and streamlined communication create lasting business relationships.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.xiangjiapeng.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jiapeng_xiang/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jiapeng-xiang-a638ba265/

Image Credits
Jiangshan Li, Steven Zhu