Traveler set to be on top of the world

She even stopped the project halfway through and tried to develop a tourism app in 2019 to promote her documentary. It only saw Zheng spread herself too thinly. She had to dismiss her team soon after the release of the first season of her documentary. "It was probably the most dispiriting time of my life," she says.

After she had to halt her documentary project, Zheng invited her friends over to her rented apartment in Shanghai where they exchanged ideas about their careers and life, while trying to figure out a way to pick up what she was forced to leave behind.

After a couple of sessions, Zheng was acutely aware of how her guests were enjoying this small get-together. "I found that people in a big city were keen for a cozy place to express themselves and learn from each other," she says, adding that it was her friends at first, and then friends of her friends, and the circle has continued to grow.

Zheng ritualized her little session, calling it Forest Cabin, and promoted it via social media. So far, 200 visitors from Shanghai attended the events, which not only brought her a membership income, but also helped her see things more clearly.

In April 2020, Zheng restarted her documentary program and developed a more sustainable business model, which proved to be a successful one. She first comes up with a filming plan and contacts distinctive homestay owners who offer in-depth local experiences and have a need to publicize their property. Then, she recruits a professional photographer who is interested and willing to do the work for free, as well as a guest, chosen from among her fan base, who will pay to experience what she has planned and be a participant in her film. Spinoff products from her documentary, such as postcards, will be on sale.