Master of Arts (Film, Television and Digital Media) Cinematography, 2004
Originally from Derbyshire, England, Nicola Daley had a nomadic childhood, living on four continents by the age of eight. She eventually relocated to Sydney, Australia, where she was one of four people accepted into the cinematography course at AFTRS.
Since graduating, Nicola has been working around the world on various film and television projects, including the Paramount series Paradise Lost, starring Nick Nolte, Josh Hartnett, and Barbara Hershey; season 3 of the Hulu series Harlots, a period drama starring Liv Tyler and Samantha Morton; and season 2 of Gentleman Jack for HBO/BBC.
In 2014, Nicola was the eighth woman to be accredited by the Australian Society of Cinematographers.
Returning to Australia in 2018, Nicola shot Season 2 of the hit Netflix comedy The Letdown, which went on to win the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards for Best Comedy Program and Best Performance.
Nicola’s first UK feature film Pin Cushion follows a mother and daughter who are rebuilding their lives in a small town. The film opened Critics Week at the 2017 Venice Film Festival and earned three UK BIFA nominations.
Nicola recently shot the Terence Davies film Benediction about the life of the World War I poet Siegfried Sassoon, which premiered at TIFF 2021.
AFTRS HIGHLIGHT
There were so many highlights from my time at AFTRS! One that springs to mind is sitting with Jan Kenny and John Seale as John regaled us with stories of all the brilliant films he had worked on, and his philosophy on camera operating and thoughts behind his beautiful lighting. This was a class to remember and cherish!
CAREER HIGHLIGHT
Career highlight so far has to be attending the opening of Critics Week at the Venice Film Festival in 2017, when our feature film, Pin Cushion, was premiering. Seeing all our hard work on the big screen for audiences to enjoy was such a thrill.