Flora Nolan
Class of 2024
![Flora Nolan](/content/dam/tisch/collaborative-arts/student-profiles/flora nolan.jpg.preset.square.jpeg?)
You like experimenting with Super 8mm and recently made a short film. What about this specific medium attracts you?
My dad taught me how to shoot on Super 8 when I was younger and I’ve been into it ever since. I just love the way it looks. Shooting on film has given me a really great understanding of light and color and I would love to shoot on larger format if I get a chance. WHITE LIE is a film I made in Rebecca Haimowitz’s "Reality and Creation" course last semester. It gave me a chance to play around with footage I had already shot. I got to score it as well which was super fun.
![WHITE LIE](/content/dam/tisch/collaborative-arts/student-profiles/student-profile-works/flora-work.jpg.preset.600.jpeg)
Still from Flora's WHITE LIE
You also make music and often use your voice in your music. What is your approach when starting a musical piece?
If I'm ever stuck, I like to do is take a recording of something around me and use that ambient sound to layer in more musical elements. I’ll record the birds outside or rain or people talking and use that as a starting point. I love singing and it just feels like a really interesting tool to use. There are a lot of ways you can sample and chop up the human voice to create all kinds of sounds.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently producing a short film that two of my friends are writing/directing (producing is a first for me!). I’m also working on a score for a dance film that another Collaborative Arts student is producing. Making music for other people is super intimidating for me but I also love being able to work with other Collaborative Arts students.
Last semester I started a bi-weekly podcast for WNYU called The Good, The Bad, and The Similar with two of my friends. We watch three films for every episode to compare and discuss. I edit the podcast and post it do different social media platforms. We started it just for fun and while we don’t have a ton of listeners, stats on Spotify tell me people have listened in Sweden, Estonia, and Brazil which is awesome!
What made you choose Collaborative Arts as your major, instead of a specific discipline like acting, film, or writing?
I am interested in so many things it was hard to narrow it down. I think initially I was worried that Collaborative Arts may not give me as much structure or discipline as a film or acting major, but I’ve discovered that Collaborative Arts is really what you make of it. I’ve developed so many new interests that I may not have been able to explore in another program. Collaborative Arts connects you to so many different areas and students in other majors at NYU, so I seriously can’t imagine being anywhere else. I don’t think anything like this program exists in any other place.