Today we’d like to introduce you to Jiayun “Lucy” Zhang.
Hi Jiayun “Lucy”, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in Shanghai, a city shaped by cultural heritage and global influences. My childhood was painted with vibrant traditions and constant creativity. When I moved to the United States eight years ago, I found myself disoriented by the cultural shift, and art became my anchor and compass. A chance encounter with the Thespian Club at my high school had unexpectedly introduced me to the power of visual storytelling. What began as a curious spark soon grew into passion, then obsession, ultimately leading me to UCLA, where I’m now pursuing a B.A. in Theater – Design & Production, with a minor in Film.
At UCLA, I have worked as the Production Designer on multiple thesis films and various theatre pieces featured in international festivals such as Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Hollywood Fringe Festival. It was the most rewarding experience for me to navigate different narrative mediums and create sets that reflect characters’ inner journeys under the camera lens and on stage. Beyond my personal fulfillment, all these various projects have also strengthened my adaptability, collaboration, and creative problem-solving skills. Whether a minimalist stage play or a lush period film, every project taught me to balance creativity with logistics. Design isn’t just a craft; it’s about transcending perspectives. It has the power to make characters seen and help audiences feel seen through every well-researched detail.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It certainly hasn’t always been smooth, but I think every unexpected encounter along the way – rough or otherwise – has shaped my journey. They taught me to adapt, innovate, and find my voice as a designer. When I first moved from Shanghai to Florida at 16, I grappled with cultural displacement. Designing sets allowed me to communicate and express visually when words failed me. Later, when I tried to gain experience as an emerging designer, I threw myself into multiple projects all at once, and sometimes ended up in a whirlwind of overcommitment. Sometimes when assisting, there were few creative outputs, yet the exposure to different processes and logistical execution helped me grow. It’s a skillful balance to navigate work and life, creative and logistic, vision and budget, but it soon became a joyful dance as I learned the steps.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Today, I’m driven by the belief that design holds the power to shape narratives. In both film and theater, I strive to create work that celebrates specificity while inviting universality. My work merges rigor, precision, and imagination. Drawing from both my Eastern heritage and Western experiences, I aim to build spaces that resonate across cultures.
In a Chinese classic play Sunrise (dir. Cerulean Long), I created a “gilded cage” on stage – an evocative set that merges the elegance of a grand hotel with the grittiness of a lowly brothel in 1930s Tianjin, China. My work also extends into more abstract, experimental visual storytelling: in a multilingual play devised by in-version ensemble and premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe, I designed a set of symbolic blocks representing diner items from Hong Kong and Los Angeles – cookie versus pineapple bun, ketchup versus soy sauce. Each pairing served as a visual metaphor for the cultural clashes and dialogues that push a magical connection across time and space. In the film Gardeners (dir. Merry May Ma), I subtly embedded the Asian heritage of the protagonist throughout the mise-en-scène: through wooden furniture, instant ramen, details of cooking utensils, and culturally specific dining habits.
I hope that my work can reach more hearts while amplifying marginalized voices. I am eager to keep collaborating, creating, and finding new ways to turn cross-cultural imagination into meaningful impact.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I think the best way to get inspiration is to go out and experience the world. Nature is always my haven. I love hiking and embrace the magical simplicity of the great outdoors. Museum is the place I’ll go when I search for inspiration. I have the habit of taking photos and creating boards to keep track of what I’ve seen and experienced. I also enjoy watching designers’ processes of making specific set and prop pieces online. The specificity and different details of a designer’s process fascinate me. I love collecting cool, weird books I encounter in indie or thrift bookstores – I bought a book that displays all the storefronts in New York. As an artist, it’s important for me to always keep my eyes open and absorb the world like a sponge.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jiayunlucyzhang.com/about
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lucy_zhangjy/#
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jiayun-lucy-zhang
Image Credits
Yuxin Cha, Elizabeth Mealey, Paloma Ronquillo, Ruby Wang
