Mr. Zhang held a lecture titled Essence of Filmmaking for students majoring in film studies. The lecture was held in a dialogue format with Mr. Zhang answering questions from Professor Kuroiwa Toshiya of Kyushu Sangyo University. The session started with Professor Kuroiwa introducing Mr. Zhang's movies as “highly artistic and original works where time and space fantastically overlap,” before deciphering the film director’s views of the world.

Regarding what he focuses on in his filmmaking, Mr. Zhang said: “Love and inspiration sometimes emerge from our ordinary daily lives. As a creator, I desire to properly capture events that are engrained in our memories and to connect the moments that moved us.” He also added, “Even people who have passed away exist in our memories,” and expressed his unique idea where life and death that are integrated and time and space are linked through our memories. Mr. Zhang also emphasized the importance of observing things from a range of perspectives, just as we would photograph things from various angles and distances. When asked about the beauty of films, Mr. Zhang answered: “Films are not created but revealed. They are something we discover using our eyes and emotions.”

At the end of the lecture, Mr. Zhang answered questions from the audience about his methods of creative expression and the content of his works. To conclude the lecture, Professor Kuroiwa summarized the characteristics of Mr. Zhang’s works as “films that continue to transcend borders.” The professor mentioned Mr. Zhang’s achievement in establishing the new genre of “East Asian” films and praised the filmmaker for his creativity and artistry that transcend conventional frameworks.