'I Want Work But I Don't Know Anyone...'

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— ABOUT THE CHANNEL —

👋 Hey, I’m Zach — a lifelong composer drawn to introspective music, dark textures, and honest storytelling.

I believe art is more vital than ever — and I hope these behind-the-scenes glimpses into my composing rituals, breakdowns, and breakthroughs remind you why you started making music in the first place.

[ZachHeyde]

I spent half a year in 2022 making the end-all course for composers who want exact steps to land paid work. Check it out below:

[iamfrankbiesta]

So very true, Zach. I experienced something similar recently. I work as a volunteer for a local museum, making videos. One of my contacts there owns a farmhouse which was used to make a short film. I said "well, I would like to make music to that movie so please give them my business card and a link to my website". That same afternoon I met with the filmmakers and they were interested.
One of the actors in that heard this - and she is the producer of a 90-minute movie. So she will present my current work to her team. Thrive on coincidences, I say.

[isaiahtricemusik]

Very wonderful video series. All the little things adding up help very much. God Bless!

[TitanK]

I feel the same way about becoming a sound designer. I have no connections, minus meeting a few at a film school during a studio tour. But thats as far as that went.

[TxFxAstaror]

I try everything and keep up the grind 💪🏻💪🏻

[thedoctor]

Perfectly sums up an area of the industry in which a lot of people give up; not because they aren’t passionate, but just because they have too narrow a focus on who they’re reaching out too. Great advice as always, Zach!

[jonathan_audet]

This is pretty good advice. And a good way to improve our craft.
Also, did you make this video so the first person who finds the cursor wins something? 😉
Very useful video as always. Thanks for making the time to do this.

[barnabascee]

1. As a so called "high functioning" autistic, I have very few friends/colleagues, etc. That's just a fact of life for me. I'm not set up that way. I don't wan't to compose for Pixar. I just want to compose commercially in any way possible, and actually get paid for it. I want to do it in a way where my music speaks for itself. I know everyone would probably want the same thing if they could have it. But for me, this is an absolute necessity. I think uploading to online music libraries might be my best bet. Am I wrong?

2. I've waited until my late 50s to make the decision that I want this more than anything in the world. I can't take decades now to reach this goal. I have the musical skillets necessary. But I still lack some of the technical knowledge. I have a music studio setup, but get bogged down in troubleshooting rabbit-holes. Are there any online classes, or forums, where I could discuss my exact technical issues and get timely useful ideas about what to try? Most of what I've learned about software & hardware has been self-taught, and mostly while trying to figure out the solution to an unrelated problem. But I need to accelerate this process.

Does anyone out there have some suggestions for me?

[SDSMOfficial]

Why do I never get recommended your videos.

[arekbogaj]

But spending hours in your cave composing is the most important thing to do, right? Right?
I’ve learned the hard way that building new connections is just as important as developing skills in composing.
Thanks for the good advice :)