Nikolas Car

Nikolas Car
He/Him
Video Technician, Novatech Creative Event Technology

I had a keen interest in music and production throughout my schooling, playing guitar and singing in many school bands. After class one day my music teacher handed me an information packet about SAE and suggested I may be interested in going down that path.

Flash forward to 2014, after dropping out of uni in search of more creative fulfilment, I started studying a Diploma of Sound Production at SAE Adelaide. With the audio skills I was developing there, I began working with a local cover band who were producing cabaret shows in regional venues.

After completing my diploma I was brought into the realm of corporate AV and live events. I worked with a national AV company where I was provided great opportunities to invest in myself with training in the basics of lighting and video. This is where I really fell for video as a discipline. A few shows were coming through that had more advanced video requirements and I took it upon myself to be the technician for the job.

The challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic prompted the shift into online experiences, I immersed myself in the world of streaming and hybrid events. I was able to work with amazing teams building multi-site, hybrid conferences and putting together the tools to make them work effectively.

More recently I have been working at Novatech Creative Event Technologies where I have been able to specialise in the video field. We work on festivals, large-scale corporate events, interactive AV installations and high-end special events. I have also taken on a role in mentoring the more junior members of the video team, helping them through training to achieve their goals.

While my employment journey has been very rewarding so far, I think that anyone interested in pursuing this kind of work needs to understand some of the challenges the industry faces. Work/life balance is a huge one, but I am starting to see it get better. We often work very long, inconsistent hours, but I have found great satisfaction in the experiences we deliver.

Be open to opportunities to learn, especially when the content may be on the fringes of what you expected your job to be, you never know when you might find a passion outside of what you expected.

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This article is part of the Festival & Event Industry Career Profiles series, a collection highlighting the diverse stories of Adelaide’s finest festival professionals.