Meet Mengyao Mia Zhang | Film Editor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mengyao Mia Zhang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mengyao Mia, why did you pursue a creative career?
I’ve always been a storyteller in my life. When I was about two years old, my dad heard me reading aloud the book Journey to the West. No one had told me how to read at that time, and he was so surprised and thought I was a genius born with the ability to read. But then he found out that what I was “reading” is nothing like what was written in the book, turns out I was looking at the images on the book and making up my own stories!

I went to boarding school for two years before elementary school, and one of the evening activities is me telling my “makeup” stories to the whole class. Every weekend I would “read” all kinds of image books and come up with new stories for the following week.

Later on, I grew up listening to Chinese storytelling. It’s always intriguing to me how they took me on a journey and made me care for those people in the story from hundreds or even thousands of years ago. I simply see film as a different way to tell a story, which is a passion that has always been in my blood.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve been told that I have magic hands. I take pride in helping directors tell their story most compellingly as well as serving their visions the best I can, having their voice being told and being listened. I enjoy the pleasure of taking the audience on a journey. It’s extremely exciting for me to build a bridge between the director and the audience, to be the invisible but indispensable power behind the scene.

I couldn’t feel luckier that I get to choose one thing I love the most as my career, and I have the pleasure to work with many great directors and collaborators along the way. One thing I always tell myself is to be the best I can, so when luck comes to me, I’m ready to embrace it; and to be the strongest I can, so when the challenge comes to me, I have the strength to face against it. With dreams in heart and ability in hand, I’m looking forward to the foreseeable future!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’ll take them to Malibu, lying on the beach and watching me try to get onto a surfing board but fall off immediately, and finally give up and choose Kayak instead. And seafood afterward!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to thank my parents for all the inspiration and enlightenment, and for opening my vision and giving me freedom. While most students around me were overwhelmed by extracurricular classes related to schoolwork, they gave me the privilege to immerse myself in art classes such as piano, painting, and calligraphy. Even though I didn’t choose any of those things as my profession, I think they all contribute to me as a film editor on different levels.

I’m also grateful for their unconditional love, respect, and support. No one in my family works related to film, so when I chose editing as my major for college, my parents didn’t even have a clear idea of what my major does. However, instead of disagreeing with my choice like lots of parents do, my mom went to Baidu and searched “What does a film editor do” to try to have a better understanding of my choice. Needless to say, it’s their unwavering support that gave me the confidence and ground to have long-term ambitions and to look at my career not for the next three years but the next thirty years.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mengyaomiazhang

Other: email: mengyaomiazhang@gmaill.com

Image Credits
Terry Hou, Kadri Koop, Moritz Rautenberg, Connor Bjornson, Arlene Muller, Ino Yang Popper