Meet Isaiah (Zay) Hammond | CEO & Creative Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Isaiah (Zay) Hammond and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Isaiah (Zay), can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
The idea of starting my own business originated from my love for film and photography. I learned that companies don’t take you seriously if you’re not represented by another company. Of course, anything is possible but I had to understand that there really are levels to life and you can never advance by staying comfortable. Starting my LLC automatically gets you certified in America so all I have to do was to continue to perform well. It 100% is NOT easy but I’m here to tell you it is possible with the right manifestations.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
What sets me apart from others is my ability to problem solve, my creative drive, and the connections I’ve been blessed with. Starting off in a creative field, you notice how it is not easy to get what you want. It takes a lot of persuasion, motivation, and consistency. I’ve had an outgoing creative drive since birth. people have tried to take this away from me but end up disappointed. All of my connections have been just enough to motivate me as well as humble me. This is the perfect balance of wisdom. I’m most excited about the festivals I plan to attend. Sunset was an amazing start and I highly recommend attending next year. That transfers over to how I got here today. I’m currently directing short films, running my own LLC, working as a photographer for Cady Studios, and I’m the Creative Director at a Real Estate company. This and social life are hard to manage but I accepted the challenge when I said I was finished with college which taught me the most life lessons. Wanting to be a boss but getting caught up in the system of Capitalism is not fun. In a way, it’s like a mental prison. The way I overcome all of my challenges is through meditation, communication, and relaxation. Meditation always opens doors, communication always brings advice, and relaxation always releases stress. Of course, I have people to help me along the way and I tell them all the time how much I am grateful for them.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would need to take them somewhere Iconic. The city of Atlanta no longer satisfies us because we grew up here. A nice nature trail with a beautiful waterfall is more of our kind of day. I wouldn’t take them to eat unless they request it. I’d cook for them because it’s more meaningful and I’ve learned some recipes exclusively from Disney Chefs. If we’re able to, we’d go to Sarasota, Florida because they have the most beautiful and cleanest beaches on the East coast. Plus it is peaceful. I wouldn’t want to put my friends in harmful situations.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to thank Sunset Music Festival as the first festival to allow Zinema Agency media access to their event. My Assistant Director and I were able to capture amazing content as Sunset was the first festival in the United States after the COVID-19 lockdown. Sunset is an EDM music festival that showcased amazing artists from around the US. Special thank you to Disco Donnie LLC for all their hard work. After interviewing 20 people, we can say the event was a success. The recap pictures and videos will be released soon. At this stage in my career, I would like to thank my amazing Assistant Director and “Partner In Crime” Mackenzie. She keeps me motivated, humbled, and adventurous all at the same time. I would also like to thank Andy because he is the Property Manager of the Zinema Agency office space. I would not be able to operate on this level without his support. I would like to thank Wyatt for all of his creative visions and the motivation he brings forcing me to do better. And finally, I would like to thank all the people that have supported me and worked with me since day one. This is a very special group of people and they already know how much they mean to me.

Website: www.zinemaagency.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zinemaagency/