Today I am sharing an interview I did with writer, actor, and creative Elena Zazanis. This is an interview series I call Artist in Residence.
I heard this great quote recently: “On the bright side, I am no longer calling this shelter-in-place. I am now an artist-in-residence.” It got me thinking about how times of adversity and challenge are often what inspire action and creation for us artists.
I decided to seek out some peers whom I admire and ask them how they are using this time to be working artists. What has changed for them? Where are they finding room to create at home if they previously worked in an offsite studio, out-of-doors, or are now sharing a home studio with other working-from-home family members? What are they creating now – is it influenced by the current situation or on a similar path as before? Are they feeling called to action or struggling to create?
Everyone is responding differently to this crisis. Let’s learn how others are coping with their new status as Artists in Residence.
A little bit about this video:
This interview is with my dear friend Elena Zazanis. Elena is a true renaissance woman: a singer, actor, producer, writer, director, a wonderful cook, and much, much more. She has recently organized a roundtable group of creatives that I participate in and in this interview she talks about her motivations for getting this group together and the benefits of communing this way. She also discusses her daily life before the pandemic as an actress at a local law school where she helped students role play different legal scenarios, rehearsal with her music group, auditions, and meetings with collaborators. She describes how the current situation is effecting her routines and her apprehensions about getting back to it once restrictions are lifted, an exciting new script she is writing and her new focus on personal projects, and her techniques for warming up her creativity.
You can follow Elena here on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elenazazanis/
… And watch a trailer for her short film here: https://www.rgbshort.com/clip
…Elena’s musical group Cabaret Sauvignon can be found here: https://www.cabsavjc.com
…And here is a link to her website: https://www.gemprodsllc.com
