Zach Bowman

Zach Bowman is a survivor of childhood cancer. He was diagnosed with a form of rhabdomyosarcoma at the age of nine. Two years later, the radiation treatment of the smooth muscle cancer at the base of his brain would permanently stunt his growth. Fortunately though, his creativity remained intact. Since this incident, he has dedicated his life to being the best he can be at his passion and profession: art. Zach's talent as a visual artist was recognized in elementary school, when he was placed in the gifted program. His inspiration for his creative concoctions was primarily action, sci-fi, and horror movies. After cancer, Zach decided to explore movie-making! Zach realized that movies are the most complex art form currently in existence. He wanted to tell stories, provide compelling visuals for those stories, and connect with people using the most profound art available. His first "movie" was a LEGO stop-motion "Mission: Impossible" story that he made for his elementary school social studies class. A summer or so later, he began attending TV and multimedia production classes, where he got his first lessons in professional filmmaking. In middle school, there was no filmmaking, multimedia, or television program. So, following in his father's and sister's footsteps, he decided to join the school band, as a percussionist. However, he just didn't enjoy the kinds of music he was playing in band class, nor did he enjoy practicing. Instead, he enjoyed improvising on the piano, making his own music and playing themes from his favorite movies at the time. With middle school coming to close, Zach knew he didn't want to continue with band in high school. So he spoke with his counselor to discuss what his future in high school would have in store. For some silly reason, "filmmaking" never came up in their discussion. But, his counselor did make a suggestion that had never occurred to him before: Theatre. Immediately, Zach was horrified by the idea of "acting" on a "stage". He thought he would be providing a venue for peers to mock and ridicule him. Why? Zach, growing up, was socially inept. He had very few friends, if any, and less knowledge of how to make them. He only lived in his head. So, he was a victim of constant bullying and harassment. Throughout junior high and high school, he would come to fear what other people thought of him, while, unfortunately, having very little concept as to how his behavior was affecting those around him. He felt that by becoming the center of attention, by being thrown onto a stage, he would only make things worse for himself. But, he took a chance and discovered how incredibly wrong he was. Theatre had changed everything. It was the cure to his shell. In theatre, Zach came to recognize the potential - the spectrum - of his behavior, through the practice and replication of behavior of fictitious characters. He was able to learn and more easily discern what kinds of behavior were pleasing/displeasing, acceptable/unacceptable, humorous, etc, and he began molding himself into a new person - the person he is today. Along with assisting him in shaping his personality, Zach just grew to absolutely adore acting. He loves being able to leave his familiar life and enter the attractively strange, silly, intense, or obscure world of the characters on the page. It was, and still is, immensely freeing. Zach was involved in theatre for the first three years of high school, during which time he was also accepted into the film program at the Interlochen Center for the Arts. Feeling that he could combine both his illustrative and theatrical talents, he transitioned back to filmmaking and visual arts in his senior year, taking advanced classes in TV and multimedia, film study, and AP art. That year, he directed and edited the first feature-length film ever made at his high school. The film's completion is a proud achievement for Zach and it made him more confident in his filmmaking abilities. When high school ended, Zach had a choice to study illustration, acting, or filmmaking in college. It remains a mystery to this day as to why Zach didn't just pursue all three. He very well could have done so. The best explanation he has is that he felt he could educate himself on acting and illustration. Filmmaking, on the other hand, was different - more complex. There were still many details Zach could learn about filmmaking, which he thought he would learn more easily and effectively in a studio/classroom environment. So, he capped his formal education with two degrees in filmmaking: BFA Film and Photography, which emphasized independent, experimental and documentary filmmaking, and BA Cinema, emphasizing industry and narrative filmmaking. BFA Film was a major that allowed his creativity and imagination to run wild, and explore the possibilities of filmmaking. He also learned a lot about the technological aspects of filmmaking, particularly lighting, cinematography, and video editing. These series of classes helped Zach discover his filmmaking style. The second degree, BA Cinema, was a program that taught him the value of teamwork and professionalism when faced with the "real world" of filmmaking.