(Left to right): TJ Thyne, Lyndzi Trang, Tiffany David, Lucia Tran, Alex Levine, and Derek Wood
We are constantly fronting tragedy (whether important or not) each and every day, and we have become experts at complaining and many of us have even evolved into pessimists. I, myself, have subdued to this misfortune but had the opportunity to meet numerous people these past months who have helped to change my outlook on life in general.
Zooey Magazine and UCLA’s group SEBN (Sports, Entertainment, and Business Network) hosted a Q and A Panel on November 15 and we met with a great group of students who were more than eager to learn about how to break into the entertainment industry. We were also joined by our good friend TJ Thyne (Bones) who exceeded all my expectations. An incredible man of wisdom and optimism, Thyne couldn’t help but spread his smiles. Every single person he met came up to me after our panel and said they were just marveled at how responsive and how kind Thyne was.
The struggles he had faced, the rejections he received, yet the positivity he still contained was more than inspiring. After hearing all of his past tales, nothing went through my mind but pure happiness. Here at Zooey Magazine, we stand for collaboration - the staff and our contributors work together to reach one goal: inspire our readers to simply embrace who they are and understand their own abilities to succeed in anything they attempt to do. With Thyne, it is like a fresh breath of air in a stifling town. People will want to eat you up and spit you out, and that is the raw truth. To meet someone with such unquestionable sincerity and unadulterated authenticity, is a great thing to behold.
Because Hollywood is an arduous industry, and not to mention, completely exclusive, Zooey seeks to break these boundaries and showcase talents who are remarkable artists in their field. There are so many lives in this world that are hidden behind others with power - by ‘power,’ I mean people with money, status, and available opportunities that are already within reach. It is surely difficult to make it into any caliber without the right resources. But to triumph, you have to ignore the oppositions and push against the barriers. There are no comments strong enough to bring a person down but one’s very own.
Now with a brand new year arriving, I hope for nothing more than to provide a basis for creative, intelligent women to express their individuality and help to turn their passions into reality through the magazine. Zooey serves as an open diary in conjunction with its many readers and contributors. 2012 is Zooey’s ‘Take Two.’ I have been very blessed to have this chance to pursue an aspiration that was dubbed ‘unattainable’ and I could not have achieved a second year in this industry without my arms and legs: the Zooey team.
The 9th issue, in your hands at the moment, is filled with wonderful content with fashion stories to just pawn over. Chic is our destination and chic is what we are aspiring to fulfill.
Happy holidays and we’ll see you all next year (2012)!
- Lucia Tran
Photo by Sam Cashdan