Nicolas Calzada is a recent alum of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where he received his MFA in Film.  His thesis film, Gloria & Eric (Starring Deirdre Lovejoy from HBO's The Wire) premiered at the prestigious Palm Springs International Shortfest, where it won a Jury Prize Runner-Up Award. It was also a co-winner of the Screenwriting Prize at the NYU Wasserman Awards. His previous films include Vitamina, Vitamina, a documentary shot in Cuba about a Church-run residence for the elderly; and Waking Olguita a short drama about a reclusive widow who finds renewed reason to live when she cares for an American exchange student. The latter film was nominated for NYU's top award, the Wasserman Prize, and screened at the Director's Guild of America in Hollywood as well as the NYU Showcase at the Clermont-Ferrand Film Festival, known as the "Cannes of Short Films."

He has directed commercials, as well as promotional films for a number of N.G.O.'s, non-profits, and human rights organizations (contact Nicolas to view his full portfolio). In late 2008, he edited the documentary Freddy Ilanga: Che's Swahili Translator, which premiered at the Encounters South African International Documentary Festival in Cape Town and has since been screened on five continents in over 15 festivals and a dozen universities. He has crewed on over 40 short films in Production, Art, Camera, Sound, and Grip departments, including on the Sundance-Award-Winning films Victoria Para Chino (in which Nicolas also had a small acting role), Aquarium, and Sikumi, directed by his NYU classmates Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre), Rob Meyer, and Andrew Maclean, respectively. On the production side, he has been an associate producer on several commercial spots, including ad campaigns for AARP and Toyota.

Prior to attending NYU, Nicolas graduated Magna Cum Laude from Yale University with a BA in History. His father is the Cuban-American artist, Humberto Calzada. Nicolas speaks four languages and has traveled to nearly 30 countries.

His first feature-length film, a comedy based on his recently-completed screenplay Sunset Bakery, will be going into production shortly. The project recently won NYU's Columbus-Vague Feature Production Grant, chaired by Richard Vague and legendary filmmaker Chris Columbus (view a narrated preview of Sunset Bakery here). Nicolas is also at work on two other screenplays.

Contact: films@nicolascalzada.com