Hi, my name is Nicole Liss

Growing up in Atlanta, I became interested in film at a very young age. I have always been a storyteller first, and film has given me a medium to tell those stories and express myself in new and different ways. I am currently finishing up school in Athens at the University of Georgia, majoring in Entertainment and Media Studies with a certificate in Entrepreneurship.

A little bit about me personally is that I aim to maintain creative and active outlets in my free time. I really enjoy playing guitar and painting, which are things I never thought I would excel in before taking certain classes on a whim. Since middle school, one of my favorite sports has been lacrosse. I have been lucky enough to continue with the sport into college, playing seasonally with friends I have made from high school and the university’s club team. I love doing more outdoorsy activities, such as hiking and camping, which actually indirectly led me to discover my interest in writing and directing.

I have attended and worked at the YMCA Camp High Harbour at Lake Allatoona for almost 10 years. I have worked my way up from Counselor in Training to my current roles as the Leadership and Water Sports Program Director. I have been responsible for executing a complete camp experience by coordinating activities, training new counselors, working in the kitchen and dish room, and ensuring campers enjoy the best all-around experience possible. High Harbour has also helped me explore my love for writing and directing, as we write and perform creative sketches for and with the campers before every meal.

I am the youngest of three girls, and growing up, I always had my older sisters, Victoria and Cameron, to look up to. We all attended high school at St. Pius X in Atlanta, and we each have a great love for the Georgia Bulldogs, our parent’s alma mater. However, this venture is one I am taking entirely on my own. To be completely honest, I originally had no idea where or how to start, or where to go for guidance. Eventually, COVID-19 hit, and a worldwide pandemic shut everything down. It felt like very important years were stolen from me, opportunities to meet people, network, learn, work, and more. Nevertheless, I continued to work and spent a lot of time writing and creating on my own.

Quality, not quantity

Over the past couple of years, I have been a part of many short films, including some I have written and/or directed myself. I have assisted in operating lighting, sound, camera, and more. Personally, my favorite projects have been “Lovestruck” and “Jordan’s Story,” in which I drafted storyboards to facilitate an efficient filming process and capture the vision of the film, instructed cast and crew members on how to successfully execute each shot, producing an accurate representation of the script and storyboard, and I reviewed filming footage and developed directions for post-production effects and editing to achieve the greatest impact on the audience. I am continuously learning and evolving and loving every moment of it. Now I am trying to break more into the film industry in any way I can to learn and grow even more.