Mel Nickerson

CONTACT Phone: +64 210 227 7747 Email: mel@melissanickerson.com

ABOUT The world is made of light and motion - and stories. How these stories can be captured and retold, for the purpose of knowledge, insight, or entertainment, is what caught my imagination when I was still bouncing around in tree tops with my dads 35mm camera. By the time I was 7 I was hoarding National Geographic Magazines and had walls covered in maps, lenses and exotic lands. A strange child? sure, but aren’t all story tellers?

I moved from the vast wilderness of Oregon, USA, to the unique lands of New Zealand 10 years ago, and since then have been working either making documentaries or immersing myself in New Zealands commercial world of advertisment and branding. A place where no brief is the same, and every client has a different story that needs told. A different culture and perspective it comes from. It is what draws me to this fast past and high pressure world. You cant ever become stagnant and you need to constantly be learning and pushing yourself. For someone who is drawn to challenges and the extremes of the world, this works perfect.

My work as a photographer and filmmaker has taken me all around the globe, from USA, Thailand, Costa Rica, Mexico, Cuba, New Zealand and more.  My degrees in cultural anthropology, film production and fine arts photography have helped hone my skills, but I have undoubtedly learned the most through the talented and amazing people I have had the privilege of working with.

If I’m not outside climbing or caving or otherwise putting myself into some often dangerous or precarious position, I’m usually thinking up some crazy idea for my next project.  I believe in change and creativity and never becoming stagnant in my work or the way I view what I’m seeing.

CLIENTS 

Vero – Air NZ – Fonterra – Red Seal – Adidas - Reebok - HP - Les Mills – Fletcher Living – Manuka Health – Landcare Research  – Dairy NZ - Pacific Steel - Leave No Trace – DOC - Ryman Healthcare

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