Zachary Joel Johnson is an award-winning writer and director in Los Angeles.

He is best known for his feature screenplay BREAK POINT, a high-stakes story of a young immigrant tennis player turning pro, which was featured on the Hollywood BLACK LIST in 2022. Zachary is passionate about telling thought-provoking stories in a high concept space — spanning genres from sports dramas to thrillers and science fiction — while exploring intimate themes of identity set against an epic canvas.

Zachary's short films have screened at Oscar-qualifying film festivals including Austin, Rhode Island International, Newport Beach & Aesthetica. He hails from Florida State University where he directed a nationally televised commercial and won a Student Emmy. Upon arriving in Los Angeles, Zachary worked in development at Scott Free and Skydance, eventually landing as a production manager for Dreamworks Animation. He currently directs branded content while developing his upcoming narrative projects.

Zachary grew up in South Carolina. His love of storytelling was born from his grandparents’ community theater where he spent summers listening to Shakespeare in southern drawl.

WritLarge
Michael Claassen
mc@writ-large.com

Direct
zacharyjoeljohnson@gmail.com