Have you had that feeling that you are finally sure about what you want to do? You felt so energetic and driven about it, you thought about that business or investment idea day and night, you thought you had figured out everything, and you had the PERFECT PLAN!

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And then you suddenly hit a huge roadblock.

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Well, that’s exactly what happened to Zach King when he was trying to prepare himself to become a Hollywood filmmaker. 

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He discovered the home video camera at the age of 7 and has been filming videos for fun ever since. In high school, he even raised money to go on a trip to Africa, where he got a little too close to a hippo, and it chased him all the way to their bus!

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It sounded logical that, since he wanted to be a filmmaker, he was going to study film in college. He felt like he’d been preparing for this opportunity for as long as he could remember. He waited day and night, always anticipating the acceptance letter.

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He opened the letter for the music program, and he was accepted. He opened the letter about the film program, and he couldn’t believe his eyes.

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He was rejected from the film program.

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It seemed like things weren’t going as planned. He felt discouraged, and self-doubt was kicking in. But there was also a voice telling him not to give up his dream.

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And he came up with an idea - to hijack the film program! He continued studying at the same school under the music program. For the next four years, he sneaked into the film classes, was able to get signatures from the teachers, and was able to add those classes. Before he graduated, he was able to finally switch to a film major.

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By 2009, he turned to YouTube as a creative outlet and published his first video tutorials for FinalCut software. More people asked him for an in-depth tutorial, so he eventually recorded one, put it up for sale on his website, and started making money online. 

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He also started producing 6-second videos on Vine, where he began to get his first traction from viewers who enjoyed his videos. They started filming at a garage, then leased a house, and eventually rented a warehouse as their production team got bigger.

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Fast-forward 13 years later, and he is now known for his “digital sleight of hand” because of the comedic and magical visual special effects seen in his videos. He even made it to the 5th most followed TikTok account, now running at 70.1 million followers, 24.4 million on Instagram, and 14.6M on his YouTube channel. He has been able to do collaborations with huge companies like Disney, Apple, Sony, Nike, Coca-Cola, and most recently, a short film with Turkish Airlines. 

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How is Zach King able to continuously engage his audience? He says that it’s the story aspect that makes videos successful. He’s certainly not just a famous digital illusionist and filmmaker, he’s also a good storyteller. He shares that those who want to showcase their creative work should maximize the technology and tools available that we can get our hands on. There’s no shortage of finding the right platform nowadays.

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What do you think of Zach King's success and his humble beginnings? Do you have anyone in mind who would like us to cover their success stories? Let us know in the comment below, and we will see you next time!

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