Nicolas Sawyer

Heya! My name’s Nicolas Sawyer and I’m a diehard and dedicated film student at the University of Central Florida and member of the LGTBQ community as a self-identified queer male. I love bike riding, reading, and cooking vegan! I’m studying abroad in Prague, Czech Republic so that I can study the way Czechoslovak New Wave film rebelled against its communist regime in order to gain social equality against censorship in the 1960s. I hope to model these filmmakers’ courage in using my own marginalized perspective to send a message to the world through the lens of my camera that every voice is worth hearing. While abroad, I will attend the Mezipatra, a queer and transgender-themed film festival where I hope to connect with like-minded film buffs that I can learn from and collaborate with! I also hope to sharpen my camera skills while volunteering at the Lobkowicz Palace within the precinct of Prague Castle where I will help photograph and catalog the extensive and rare Lobkowicz art collection. For me, studying abroad is about gaining a new perspective—or a few new perspectives—one for every country I visit. With each new outlook I gain, I hope to continuously sharpen the focus of my perception so that I can really see people for who they really are, not for who my society has taught me to see them.