Meet Xandar | Screenwriter & Creative Director

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

Hi Xandar, what inspires you?
People inspire me. I think humans are the most fascinating thing on this planet. I mean, we’re all so unique and every single one of us experiences this world through different eyes; being our own eyes. Nobody’s story is identical. Whether you grew up in the same neighborhood or in the same family, we all experience life differently. As a storyteller, my key focus is to create realistic characters and what better place to draw inspiration than from humanity itself. And I believe the best way to do that is to watch, observe and understand as many people as I can.

Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
I’ve been told that what really sets me apart from others is the humanity that I bring to the table. Whether it be with the development of a particular character or the relationship between characters, their motivations, their fears, their interactions and so on. I’m very proud of my ability to be able to get my hands on someone’s story and doctor my way through it. Not that anyone’s story is imperfect, it’s just that every story is incomplete.

Growing up I’ve always had an overactive mind. I’d imagine a hundred different scenarios off of a single event and each one of those thoughts would play out in my head. The more I got to know a person, the more accurately these scenarios reflected my reality. To be honest, it drove me crazy sometimes, it still does. I think one of my biggest challenges was to learn how to convert that burden into technique, which simply came with age and wisdom. As a result, storytelling for me comes quite easy. I can put together an entire conversation between two characters in about the time it would take to have the discussion. I can’t even explain how it happens, it just happens.

I’m not sure I’ve ever been approached by someone who needed help with a story where I was left stumped. I don’t always see eye-to-eye and certainly I’ve encountered times where other people’s suggestions have inspired a better direction for a character or story, but I’ve yet to be left without direction. In most cases someone will plant a seed in my head and I’ll sprout for them a garden.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If I had a friend visit me from out of town, I think I’d probably make for an absolutely terrible tour guide. I lived in New York for over a decade and it took me coming back to the State as a tourist before I went to visit the Statue of Liberty or Niagara Falls. I feel like tourists have explored more of Los Angeles and Hollywood than I have. Probably, one of the places I’d take a friend is to the Scum and Villainy Cantina. If you don’t already know what that is, shame on you. Go watch Star Wars, it’s amazing!

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?
This is going to sound extremely silly. I think part of the reason I am where I am today is because of a fictional character. Which, when you really think about it is hilariously ironic considering the career path I’ve chosen. Here I am aspiring to be a great fiction storyteller, inspired by a fictional character. I mean, every fictional character has been written by a real person, so when you sit there quoting Rocky Balboa, you’re actually quoting the genius of the person that wrote that character. When you tell yourself, “with great power comes great responsibility”, you weren’t in reality inspired by Spider-Man. You were actually inspired by Stan Lee & the other creative minds behind the character. But the beautiful thing about fiction is that it can be whatever we want it to be and when you take a moment to stop and really think about it, our lives are no different. We are the author and the character. I wish I could sit here and thank every single creative mind that helped to inspire my career but whenever I trace it all back to the beginning, it leads to one name. Son Goku. Well, in this case Akira Toriyama who is the author of Dragon Ball. If it wasn’t for Dragon Ball, I don’t think I would have ever chosen to pursue the life I have now.

Website: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12467529/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/director_xandar/

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

Other: Free to Read Webcomic “Dragon Ball EndTime”, created by yours truly: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/dragon-ball-endtime/list?title_no=444157

Image Credits
Buffalo Dreams Film Festival, InfoList, KamehaCon, KHA Entertainment, Breaking Hits, YouTube Space LA