Today we’d like to introduce you to Zachary Michel

Hi Zachary, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

I didn’t think a life in the arts was possible for me, to be honest. I thought it was something tantamount to wanting to go to the moon or be a king. It’s some far off thing that far off people do and I just learn about and watch from afar. That idea transitioned into a deep and painful desire to “make it” as a musician when I got older and learned that I could do it myself.

I think both of these ideas ultimately held me back, to be honest. They both put the onus on me to do something that was out of my control. It misses the point that the making of it should be the most important part, at least for me. I still struggle with that perspective, but it has helped me to look beyond the nebulous idea of success and refocus on growth and finishing new works.

In the past year, I self-financed, wrote, directed, and acted in my own short and co-produced a feature film. I’ve sought out and said yes to a lot of opportunities, no matter the scale and role, to just get better and focus on doing and not being perfect. It’s reassuring to recall all this, thanks!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?

NO! As I alluded to, there was a ton of self doubt. I regularly struggle to see myself as successful. I beat myself up a lot less than I used to though, maybe not at all. That’s mostly due to the change in perspective I mentioned – refocusing on creating, finishing, and learning, not on being perfect. Embracing making crap because I have to remember it’s all part of the process of making better work.

Also, money. I have to work to support my creative ambitions and that means most of my time goes someplace other than film, but it does provide structure, which helps, and it doesn’t pay great, but well enough that I can sock away something for the next project and still not be broke.

I also fear not finishing things. I successfully founded and ran this theater and arts festival for a decade. It was such an accomplishment and such a part of my identity, but it also was no longer serving me and I needed to step back. That was a huge challenge. I had to have faith that I will accomplish other things. I also had to accept that even if those things are just reclaiming my time and spending it on myself and my relationships, it was worth it. I’ve been fortunate and happy to find that I have been able to do both.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?

I’m a filmmaker. For me that means writing, acting, and producing. I’ve got ambitions to direct (just one under my belt so far). My goal is to be known for telling stories well and making people laugh. I’d like to challenge people and maybe get them to think. Has everything been done? Probably, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have new ways to look at something or new people and ideas to connect with. I’ve got a pretty heady case of ADHD and overthinking, so I tend to make a lot of connections that baffle and confuse people at times, but they also present perspectives that are pretty different from the norm.

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?

So many interests, what the parental types would call “well rounded.” I am an Eagle Scout. I played sports. Pretty standard kid stuff. I was happy and involved. As I do now, I loved to learn. Anxiety and ADHD didn’t even factor in, I was too involved. It wasn’t until I didn’t have heaps of structured activities around me that that crept in. I caused a little trouble, but I also always got caught.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mostlyzach/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MostlyZach

Image Credits

Brian Hmelnicky and Daniel St. Ours