Atlanta, GA, USA
1 review$750 - $1500 / Day
Emmy Award-winning Filmmaker, video journalist, and PhD candidate, Nolan combines a passion for storytelling with a commitment to social change. Currently, Nolan serves as the Video News Producer at Atlanta Community Press Collective, where they are trailblazing new approaches to local documentary news—focusing on immersive, intimate, verité news stories that resonate with diverse audiences. Beyond the newsroom, Nolan is embarking on an exciting venture as the director of their first feature documentary, "A City in the Forest." This ambitious project delves into the intricate tapestry of Atlanta's identity, and a radical movement trying to the defend the city's urban forest. Nolan's accolades extend beyond the documentary realm. Their work has garnered recognition at film festivals, and their storytelling prowess has been showcased in prominent outlets such as Rolling Stone, NPR, Flood Magazine, Vinyl Mag, Ghetto Blaster Magazine, and numerous other publications. With an impressive portfolio, Nolan has directed, shot, or covered projects for a range of organizations, including The Debt Collective, the Union of Southern Service Workers, Pineapple Street Studios and Hulu, R2ise Theatre, PBS, Al Jazeera, More Perfect Union, The Mainline, Linqua Franqa, Ernest Jenning Record Company, The Real Young Prodigy's, and many more. Their ability to craft visually stunning narratives has left an indelible mark on the projects he undertakes. As Nolan continues to build their body of work, their overarching dream remains clear — to leverage the power of film in building narrative strength for a more just and equitable world, a vision they relentlessly pursue in each frame of their storytelling journey.
Produced for More Perfect Union
Amazon workers in Georgia walked out last week to protest unsafe working conditions. The day before the walkout a worker passed out on the job after being forced to keep working. Workers are demanding $25/hour, longer breaks & safer working conditions.
Led by students, hundreds of people took to the streets of Downtown Atlanta on Thursday in support of Palestine, calling for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory and apartheid against the Palestinian people. Since 2007, the Israeli government has kept the Gaza border closed, preventing Palestinian people living in Gaza from travelling through Israel and creating the world’s largest open-air prison. In the days following a surprise offensive by Hamas that destroyed Israeli military infrastructure and captured police bases near the Gaza border, the Israeli government carried out devastating air strikes against the Gaza Strip, leveling buildings throughout the territory. From the start of the fighting on Oct. 7, through 10:30 p.m. local time Thursday, the air strikes and other Israeli military actions have killed 1,537 Palestinian people in Gaza, including 500 children and wounded thousands more according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Israel has shut off power to the Gaza Strip, and stopped food, fuel, and medical supplies from entering the territory, leaving its 2.2 million residents in increasing jeopardy. Thursday’s demonstration in Downtown Atlanta took place just hours before Israel ordered the mass evacuation of Palestinian people in North Gaza – home to 1.1 million – ahead of an expected military ground offensive into the territory. Supporters of the Palestinian people gathered for a march from Hurt Park around the Georgia State University (GSU) campus, which ended at Centennial Hall. Police officers from the Atlanta Police Department (APD) and the Georgia State Patrol arrived on scene after the march reached Centennial Hall but did not approach the march itself. Two GSU police officers briefly walked into the rally to inform organizers they were not allowed to use audio amplification devices. Several dozen people attended a pro-Israel rally at nearby Woodruff Park, and organizers of that rally hired off-duty APD officers for security. At least one attendee of the pro-Israel rally was using a megaphone, and the Atlanta Community Press Collective did not witness police instructing that individual not to use amplification devices. After the pro-Israel rally dispersed, several attendees wearing blue and white and waving Israeli flags arrived at the Palestine rally to counter protest. The two sides yelled at each other from across the street before organizers of the pro-Palestine rally instructed attendees to ignore the counter-protesters. Once ignored, the counter-protesters soon departed, though several vehicles continued to drive by the Palestinian rally with occupants waiving Israeli flags and yelling taunts toward the crowd. The connection with the Palestinian struggle runs deeply in Atlanta, as evidenced by the diverse mix and large number of attendees at Thursday’s rally. “A big majority [of the crowd was] Black people,” said Neda, a Palestinian student activist who has family living in the West Bank. “I saw some Jewish people. I saw people who were looking just to stand up for basic human rights, and that’s our goal. It’s not just Palestinians. It’s not just a Palestinian issue.” Local police departments have trained both here and abroad with Israeli police for decades under the privately funded and controlled Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange (GILEE) program, which is run out of GSU. The GILEE program was one of the targets of Thursday’s march. GILEE and GSU weren’t the only target of ire for Palestinian supporters, depictions of the Palestinian struggle in the media also drew focus. “Don’t lie about us,” one Palestinian activist leading the march said directly into ACPC’s camera. The fear of misrepresentation amongst Palestinians is well founded. In the days since Hamas militants launched their offensive against Israel, numerous unverified stories took hold in both social media and the press. A story about Hamas beheading infant children spread rapidly on Wednesday. President Joe Biden repeated the story while speaking to Jewish community leaders on Wednesday saying, “I never really thought that I would see and have confirmed pictures of terrorists beheading children.” Hours later, CNN reported that an Israeli government official stated those reports could not be confirmed. The White House walked back Biden’s statements. The Washington Post reported Wednesday, “a White House spokesperson later clarified that US officials and the president have not seen pictures or confirmed such reports independently.” American journalists are not the only source of problematic reporting. Canadian journalist Davide Mastracci compiled a list of “a variety of Canadian columnists, editorial boards, panelists and hosts [who] have called for and/or supported Israel’s brutal actions.” “You really have to look at Palestinian sources to see what’s going on,” Neda said of the skewed reporting.
Monday, two activists using reinforced pipes locked themselves to construction equipment at the 12th and Juniper Brasfield & Gorrie work site in Midtown. Bike locks blocked vehicle entrances, interrupting construction for several hours. Activists targeted the site hoping to pressure Brasfield & Gorrie to end their role as the lead contractor for the controversial Atlanta Public Safety Training center, known by most as Cop City. Atlanta Police arrived on the scene two hours after the activists began their lockdown. Wearing Brasfield and Gorrie construction helmets, officers spent four hours extracting the activists from the site, which required sawing through the reinforced pipes police called “sleeping dragons”. Both activists were arrested and charged with misdemeanor trespassing and released the next day, each on a $3,000 bond. In addition to being the lead contractor for Cop City, Brasfield & Gorrie pledged to donate over $1 million to the Atlanta Police Foundation, the entity behind the project. Brasfield & Gorrie Division Manager Justin Rannick also sits on the Foundation's advisory board. Local activist and labor organizer, Mariah Parker believes the community will not allow Brasfield & Gorrie to get away with this level of collaboration with the Atlanta Police Foundation. Parker is confident this action is the beginning of a targeted, decentralized campaign of direct actions to stop work at Brasfield and Gorrie offices and construction sites. "Brasfield & Gorrie should expect disruptions at their worksites everywhere, and anytime,” Parker said, “People of good conscience will continue taking action against Brasfield & Gorrie until they join the host of other contractors who have cut ties with Cop City.”
Produced for R2ise Theatre
Follow a Recovery Community Organization that digs deep for hope. Experience how R2ise Theatre uses the power of art to bring healing to their communities, and find freedom for themselves. This 5 part original series takes a deep look into the intersections of art, recovery, trauma, love, healing, and community. Let's take a look behind the scenes and into the heart of R2ise Theatre's annual art collaboration: Chronicles of Hope. Chronicles of Hope is a collaboration of artists in recovery facilitated and directed by founder Alexia Jones. Through our recovery Episode 1: Toyia Mather, a dynamic writer and storyteller, shares the story behind her powerful skit, The House That Love Built. This skit that provides a blueprint for Chronicles of Hope 2021 is a relatable piece of art that illustrates how trauma isolates us and love heals us.
Produced for Union of Southern Service Workers
I shot, directed, and produced this evergreen video for the Union of Southern Service Workers
Produced for AJPlus
Atlanta is building a $90 million state-of-the-art police training facility that activists call "Cop City." Major corporations like UPS, Home Depot and Delta Air Lines are investing millions of dollars into the project, financially pressuring politicians to push the plan forward. The Atlanta Police Foundation is one of the most powerful police foundations in the country. Forest defenders are occupying the forest by living in trees and destroying equipment to resist the building of the campus. The city calls them "domestic terrorists." We take you inside the battle against "Cop City" as both the city and defenders refuse to back down.
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