Nikila (Nikki) Cole has established an international reputation as an award-winning writer, producer, and director. Formerly a critically acclaimed choreographer and theater director, she transitioned into film production and continued circling the globe with her 11-year old daughter Sarah for three years. They created a PBS and Vision TV documentary Wanderings: A Journey to Connect, as they explored strange and unusual Jewish communities from Korea to Iceland to India. She was the Series Producer/director of You…Me & the Kids for WTN and also produced audio-visual materials for Vancouver’s Pacific Space Centre, the King Abdulaziz Historical Centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and was production manager for several English and foreign language Motion Simulator Ride films including Mars and Seatrek for SimEx Inc. Her other documentaries and dance films include Paul’s Piece of Sky (PBS) about a struggling African American Dance Company and INTIMACIES about Michael Kearns, Hollywood’s first openly HIV+ actor. (Bravo, Audience Vote: Best Documentary, Palm Springs Int’l Film Fest).
Now, after an extensive career as a writer / producer / director / story producer of over 15 factual series including The Shopping Bags, Take This House & Sell It, Till Debt Do Us Part, Four Weddings, Storage Wars Canada, and Ice Road Truckers, she’s expanded into scripted entertainment with a dramatic BravoFACT short, My Father, Joe adapted from a story by Jack Engelhard (Indecent Proposal). After winning five international awards including the Special Jury Remi Award at WorldFest Houston, it was well received in the Cannes Marche, broadcast on The Movie Channel and released on iTunes.
She directed the Canadian Screen Awards nominated Tessa and Scott about Canada’s Olympic ice dancing champions for the W Network, as well the CSA nominated Keeping Canada Alive, and Canada’s Smartest Person for the CBC. She was the showrunner for a CBC pilot. Anything But Average, exploring the real life stories behind Canada’s statistics.
Nikki is currently developing two drama series, two features, and a documentary. One of the features, The Bride’s Wedding, was recently selected out of 2,000 submissions as a quarter finalist in the Screen Craft International Screen Play Competition in Los Angeles. She is looking forward to meeting potential international collaborators/ producing partners, broadcasters, and distributors and having fruitful and interesting discussions!
Education:
University of British Columbia, Arts
NYU:SCE Certificate Film Program
Women In the Director’s Chair, Banff
Beyond the Craft Screenwriting Workshop, James Jermanok, NYC
The Business of Pitching Seminar, Corky Kessler, Los Angeles
Awards & Nominations
My Father, Joe (short drama)
Distributor: Shorts International, iTunes. TMN
2011 Special Jury Remi Award, WorldFest, Houston
2011 Best Dramatic Short, daVinci Film Festival Oregon
2011 Best Family Film, Honolulu Film Awards, Hawaii
2010 Best Foreign Film, Shamrock Film Festival, Rosemont, Minneapolis
“A supremely touching film”, editor, columnist Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
“May bring a lump to the throat or two. Plus you gotta love the brief inclusion of a bagel bakery for an authentic 1940’s Montreal Jewish feel” – Martin Dunfy, Georgia Straight
In a Closed Room (short drama)
Best Short Film Award, Cincinnati Film Festival, NYU-SCE
Best Practical Information Nomination, CSA (Gemini)
“A film name to watch for!” – New York Filmmakers
Agent vs. Agent, Buy Me! Shopping Bags, Debbie Travis: Facelift (lifestyle series)
Best Practical Information Award, CSA (Gemini)
You…Me & the Kids (docu-drama series)
Best Information Series, Leo Award
Tonembee: Moving Forward with Vision (series of doc webisodes about Kenya)
2014 Remi Award, WorldFEst, Houston
Intimacies (feature documentary)
Audience Vote, Best Documentary, Palm Springs International Film Festival
“The show’s final performance was captured on film and melded with the HIV-positive actor’s own life story to create Intimacies; a powerful piece of cinema verite that charts the emotional landscape of AIDS in far greater detail than anything churned out by Hollywood.” – Portland Weekly
“A heroic film”! – LA Times
Wanderings: A Journey to Connect (one-hour documentary)
Best Documentary, Leo Award nomination
Best Documentary, Golden Sheaf nomination