Interviewing Ziyu Gao: Building a Community for Minoritised Artists
Where are you from and how does that affect your work?
Originally, I am from Beijing - I was born in Beijing - and I moved to Singapore when I was very young, then my family moved to New York. Now, I live in New York and this is where I do all of my work. Being a first generation immigrant to the United States has definitely broadened my mindset, I’ve seen lots of different cultures which I feel has given me a very unique perspective which affects the way in which I work with others. In my most recent film, ‘Ways of Talking’, the narrative focus is through a character who is a first generation immigrant - her character works through the way in which she perceives the world, adjusting to American culture. I’m really enthusiastic about my use of an all-Asian casting for this upcoming film; since moving to New York, I feel like I’m always seeking representation and my choice of casting in this film provides that.
How would you describe your profession?
I do a little bit of everything! I describe myself as a filmmaker first, but being from New York you are exposed to so many things. New York is a melting pot of culture and so it’s hard to live here without dabbling in multiple industries. I like to draw connections between industries - through film I have gotten really into fashion. Actually, I’ve just wrapped up New York Fashion Week - to me it’s a fun thing to do on the side. When it comes to film I also like to get involved in all creative roles - acting, producing and directing.
What inspired you to get involved in the filmmaking industry?
I started off as an actress, I was involved in theatre throughout my entire childhood then during COVID hit and it was really difficult not being able to get out of the house and act. I decided to start filming: I was making self-tapes as a way of exercising my acting-muscle. I was booked for a short film during COVID - I would wake up at 4am every morning, driving for 2 hours to get to upstate New York and shoot. I loved working on that piece so much that it definitely contributed to my inspiration to start filmmaking. I had never thought of directing really but it occurred to me very naturally that it was something I loved - on set in between shots I hated sitting around and would always get up, trying to help. ‘Industry rules’ say that everyone stays in their specific roles so in order to expose myself to directing I took a film class at USC with their cinematic arts program.
What are some of the challenges and rewards you have experienced as a result of founding your own production company?
About seven months ago I started my production company ‘Creative Picture Productions’, at that time I had 5 films that I had made and produced myself but they weren’t under a company. I thought to myself ‘why not make your own then?’ I wanted to create a community where particularly women of colour could come together and would receive help in producing their films. The main challenge was being laughed at when I would tell people about the concept. It was definitely difficult trying to figure out the logistics of starting up your own business and convincing people that they should take me seriously. Once the brand was up and running it felt really rewarding that people were reaching out to me and asking to pitch their scripts. I feel so proud that it’s creating a community where women of colour can uplift each other and create films that address the lack of representation in current cinema.
What is your favourite project - film, acting, or modelling - that you have worked on so far?
Thinking about my answer to this question is hard because I’ve done so many different projects. My favourite probably would be a piece of film that I’ve worked on, this summer I worked on a film titled ‘The Ascent’ with a group of my film friends at USC. I was involved in the writing, directing, production and editing of that piece - as a film student you have to be flexible to work in different roles. What was amazing was how well everyone could work together. We were given 3 days to create the entire film - 1 day for pre-production, 1 day shooting, and 1 day editing. It was chaotic running around to get filming permits, we couldn’t manage to get the correct permit for what was needed in my script but instead had one for an elevator in a rental equipment building. We shot the entire piece in this big, red elevator - it was a challenging task and pushed the group to find creative solutions to production issues. After production the film went on to win a handful of awards and we premiered it at New York Yonkers Film Festival which was a great feeling.
Are there any themes that you keep coming back to address within your filmmaking?
My films and themes definitely relate a lot to things that I have experienced both as a person of colour and as a woman in the film industry. One key theme in all of my films - be it horror, comedy, action - is identity. Specifically, finding your place within the world and understanding your connections to people. My most recent film that is currently in post-production is called ‘Ways of Talking’, it resonates very deeply with me. The film takes on the perspective of a young woman being interrogated by police after the suicide of her brother - it speaks to issues such as the lack of communication and stigmatisation of mental health, especially within Asian households. Growing up, no one spoke to or taught me about mental health - it’s an important topic and I think this film was interesting in its exploration of family dynamics especially within the context of incidents that are considered taboo.
What advice would you give to someone who is interested in pursuing a career in the arts?
I would say to be sure of what it is that you want to do. When you’re very young it is hard to know what you want to do, which is fine, but pursuing an artistic career requires a lot of difficult work. Once you find your niche, you need to stick with it. My main advice after that point is to fight for yourself and believe in yourself, you need to have thick skin especially within this industry.
Can you tell us about any upcoming projects? When can we expect to see more from you in the future?
I have a lot coming up this year that I’m very excited about. I just wrapped up New York Fashion Week so now I’m finding more time to focus on myself and working in film. I’m going to be producing a film pretty soon, we’re going into production in about 3 weeks time which I’m really looking forward to. I’ve also just had confirmed news that in the summer I will be attending the Cannes Film Festival which is something I’m super excited about both because it’s an incredible opportunity and I get to continue networking to see where this career takes me.
