Like many young people, Zach Sobiech had a dream. In the case of the Lakeland, Minnesota, native it was to write and play music that audiences would listen to. Sadly, he faced an obstacle that threatened to thwart that effort; battling osteosarcoma, a bone cancer that mostly strikes children. But in a lesson of sheer perseverance and talent, Zach refused to let the ticking clock of his life interfere and after securing a record deal, his single of the song “Clouds”, reached #1 on the iTunes chart. Though he passed just two weeks after his 18^th birthday, and never got to relish in the glory of hearing that audience appreciation, his story has proved inspirational and has just been made into a film, aptly entitled Clouds.

The responsibility of telling Zach’s story has fallen to the gifted arms of another musician, Fin Argus, a Chicago native who by his mid-teenage years was proficient in playing guitar, piano, ukulele, mandolin, and banjo.

As a musician yourself, how much did you relate to that quest to showcase your creative side?

Zach was in a unique position because he knew he had limited time. When you are faced with that kind of deadline, it reminds you that you need (to do) what you want to do with your life as soon as possible. That is exactly what he did. He used music as a way to connect with people. He did that with his family and his friends and ultimately did that as a way with millions of people. He did it in such a beautiful way, he is still connecting to people in an extensional way, people like me.

How do you use your music?

I use music in a very similar way when I deal with difficult emotions that I cannot figure out how to verbalize and create a space for. I think that anyone else dealing with a similar struggle just wants to feel seen and heard. If I can help by giving them a cathartic release by listening to a song or watching a movie, then that is amazing.

When did you know you had musical aptitude?

You can ask my parents. I was singing by the age of three. I could sing before I could talk. I was constantly playing the piano or guitar. Music found me. It wasn’t that music became my way. It just always was. There is something in the way my brain is hard-wired, that is the way I know how to communicate best. I do it with acting as well. Just performing in general, it is the easiest way for me to convey things that I couldn’t do otherwise. I started writing songs at 10. It was a game-changer for me. I could combine these words with these sounds and it created these bite-size ideas that became a map of sorts for me to deal with problems. It became a mantra in a way.

Watching the film, it was so admirable the way Zach dealt with pain and accepted his fate and yet remained so optimistic. That is a testament to courage.

It really is. I am in awe of Zach. I don’t handle pain well and the only way I deal with it is to get music out. Zach was this 17-year-old guy that faced this with such courage. It is inconceivable to me. I don’t know how he did it. The more I looked into his story and got to know his family, it was this deep sense of understanding that he possessed. I don’t know where it came from, but he tapped into something higher than himself. He did that with his music.

Clouds is based on the true story of 18-year-old Zach Sobiech’s fight against osteosarcoma. The Zach Sobiech Osteosarcoma Fund was founded in 2012 by Zach and his family to help raise vital funds for osteosarcoma research. By supporting the fund, you can keep Zach’s legacy alive and help find a cure for the cancer that took his life.