An Innovative Approach to Documentary Filmmaking

New York Tech’s master’s degree program at Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics (JUFE) in Shanghai, China, was one of the reasons Andy Zhang (M.B.A.’ 20) chose to enroll at New York Tech.

As a student, he gained invaluable knowledge. “I learned various business management methodologies and how to develop my career with business thinking,” he says. “Professor (Scott) Liu’s book The Strategy of Life also helped me gain a profound understanding of the M.B.A. curriculum. Dr. Liu, as well as many other professors at New York Tech, understand the needs of students and have developed effective learning programs to help us get the most out of the program.”

Zhang also gained a better international perspective, which is helping him as a documentary filmmaker. “I hope to document this world, this era, this society, and the extraordinary side of every person through my documentaries,” he says. Zhang hopes his documentaries will lead a global audience to focus on two things: the planet and human beings. “The planet [Earth] is our common home. I hope everyone can take good care of it,” he says. “I also hope that people from different countries, regions, and nationalities can get along with each other and make ourselves better.”

As he looks ahead, Zhang plans to continue to produce documentaries that will bring films and business together.

“In the past, documentaries were just a video, where the audience could only watch and had no other commercial function,” says Zhang, who is exploring ways to combine documentaries and e-commerce. “For example, when a documentary is broadcast on a website, it can become the entrance to e-commerce. While watching a documentary, the viewer can also buy goods. In this way, a new business model of ‘buy while watching’ can be achieved,” he explains.

Zhang is looking at ways to improve this approach and says he has made substantial progress.

“I hope to shoot better documentaries not only for Chinese audiences, but also for audiences all over the world. To allow viewers and entrepreneurs in China and around the world build a bridge of mutual communication through documentaries,” says Zhang.