Filmmaker Zach Lipovsky visits the YVR Screen Scene Podcast to reflect on his past, present, and future. His past includes placing fifth out of 12,000 on Steven Spielberg's filmmaking competition show On the Lot; collaborating with Adam Stein on the 2018 genre hit Freaks, numerous episodes of genre television, and 2025’s Final Destination Bloodlines, the last of which was the first Final Destination movie to cross $100 million in domestic earnings and gross more than $315 million worldwide. As for his present and future, there’s Gremlins 3 – which Zach and Adam are currently co-writing with Chris Columbus (the iconic director of Home Alone and Mrs. Doubtfire who also wrote the original Gremlins) – and the sequel to Freaks. Beyond the writing, directing, and producing, Zach has and continues to mentor emerging and aspiring filmmakers through organisations like Crazy8s and the British Columbia District Council of the Directors Guild of Canada (AKA DGC BC).

This weekend, the DGC BC will recognise Zach’s many contributions to the film and television scene when it honours him with the Industry Builder Award at its annual Spotlight BC Directors Conference. On the eve of the conference, Zach sits down with Sabrina Rani Furminger to talk filmmaking, his love for Vancouver cast and crews, Final Destination Bloodlines, Mogwai, his longtime collaboration with Adam Stein, how he helped save Vancouver’s Park Theatre, and what it means to be an industry builder. Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment