[1] In 2017, Zhang Ruonan received a private message from the official Weibo account of the anti-school violence film Cry Me a Sad River, inviting her to star in the project.

[2] In 2018, Zhang Ruonan made her acting debut as Gu Senxiang in the melodrama film Cry Me a Sad River, directed by Guo Jingming.

[9] On 1 October 2020, Zhang participated in the realistic short film College Entrance Examination 2020, broadcast during Hunan Satellite TV's "2020 National Day Gift · Hunan Satellite TV Blue Moon Mid-Autumn Festival Night."

[11][12][13] On 11 December 2020, Zhang Ruonan and Wei Daxun performed the song "Diary of Love" during Hunan Satellite TV's Pinduoduo 12.12 Super Fighting Night.

[20] On 18 August 2021, the female-themed youth emotional drama Be Yourself premiered, with Zhang playing Huangfu Shumin, a girl with "Princess syndrome" raised in a pampered environment.

[23] On 19 May 2022, the period drama Defying the Storm, starring Hu Yitian and Wang Jinsong, was broadcast on Hunan Satellite TV.

[24][25] On 12 August 2022, she participated in season 8 of the celebrity reality show Chinese Restaurant, which was broadcast on Hunan Satellite TV.

[33] In May 2019, Zhang Ruonan participated in the "Youth Season Entering Campus" series of activities organized by China Movie Report.

In June, Zhang supported the public welfare initiative "Yi Hu Bai Xing", raising awareness about respiratory health and the plight of pneumoconiosis patients.