“I wanted to work on things I was passionate about, to play roles I was really interested in and to see the stories I liked coming to life. As an actress, it can be difficult to just pick what you want to do and sometimes to even get cast if someone doesn’t think you ‘look’ the part. I wanted to be able to play what I wanted to play, to show stories I believed in, and have some ownership over them. Producing was the way that I found to make sure I really got what I wanted. Sometimes I get cast in films that I’m happy and excited about and those are great but sometimes, especially in the beginning, you do films you have to do. Producing gave me the opportunity to do the stories I feel good about and that I believe in.”
Nicole Fahel communicates this reasoning for her current dual status as both an accomplished actress and producer in the film community. It might be described as cinema manifest destiny. This template is what has cultivated most of the world’s success stories in nearly every industry, entertainment or otherwise. For Nicole it has culminated in a career that is both recognized for its excellence onscreen and behind the scenes.
Her performance as Violet in Summer with Alicia was spotlighted for its intensity. The cast received Honorary Mention for Best Ensemble at the Actors Awards (2017) while Nicole took the award for Best Actress at the Festigious International Film Festival. In the plot, what begins as larceny develops into felony with dire situations. Violet [Fahel] is quiet and only interested in protecting her friend but a betrayal refocuses her aims and she transforms into a threatening force at the climax of this film. Describing her vision of Violet, Nicole communicates, “Director Nicholas Joseph Cunha and I talked a lot about Violet’s feeling for Summer and Alicia and how she dealt with things. Violet is quiet for most of the movie. She usually has one word answers for everyone. I conveyed a lot about her feelings through physical gestures; how she walked and dressed, how she wanted to be perceived as this strong/unstoppable girl but was really fragile on the inside. In order to have Violet perceived as the antagonist during most of the film, we gave her a little darkness. She had darker clothes and I dyed my hair black to contrast with Summer and Alicia.”
At the opposite end of the spectrum for this actress was the role of Alison in Sam. The tragedy fated girlfriend of a multiple personality killer, Sam is a murder thriller that switches between the present day investigation and the past as it becomes clear who killed her and why. Nicole describes this Festigious International Film Festival winner for Best Thriller as, “A great experience. The story is exciting and keeps you wondering if you have it figured out or not. As for my work on Sam, everyone should be killed at least once on screen. It was more enjoyable for me than for my character.”
To keep audiences and fans guessing, as well as herself, Fahel switched gears to appear as a well-intended woman who happens to possess the ability to read minds in the comedy film Bus Stop. Nicole plays Sera who, for all her benevolent intentions, seems to spark the ire of others and tension for herself. While the world is currently evaluating what is and what isn’t off limits when it comes to privacy, Bus Stop takes this idea to a hyperbolic and highly amusing state. Nicole loved the script and believed in the role so much that she agreed to serve as producer to guarantee the film was made. Her nomination for Best Actress from the Actors Awards vets this decision. Fahel confirms, “I really loved playing Sera. She’s a very sweet person.
She’s an only child who is comfortable in her own world. She enjoys colorful/bright clothes and likes to laugh at the little things. She is not sure how she got this ability. Because it only works at a designated bus stop, she’s unsure if the magic is within her or the bus stop. Since discovering this ability, Sera spends most of her free time at the bus stop, hoping to make friends and help people. She’s a giving person at her core.”
For 2018’s upcoming feature film Bang! Bang!, Fahel took on a project that went international. Bang! Bang! is the story of five friends whose idea of a small supermarket robbery goes bad and alters their lives forever. As EP and lead actress in the film, Nicole plays Gabby. Gabby sees her friends as her true family and wants to take care of them. Although not confrontational early in the story, Gabby is forced to step up and be a decision maker if she and her friends are to survive the events that occur. Shot on location in Vitoria da Conquista, BA, Brazil, Nicole describes, “This was a dream come true for me. Brazil is home and filming such a great story there…it was my favorite professional experience so far.”
Fahel’s talents don’t always place her in dual roles. She received the Best Producer award (Gold Movie Awards Goddess Nike 2017) for the award-winning (Best Short at the Top Indie Film Awards 2018) film Immigrant Brothers. This tale of three immigrants struggling to survive on the streets of Los Angeles was compelling to her. She relates, “There are some stories which demand to be told. With the proper cast, crew, and writing…you simply have no choice but to make it. We had a great team and the investors were really behind this production. I took part in a Q&A with the director of the film at film festivals and it was apparent how moved everyone was by the message and performances.”
