Biographie
Nora Heschl is an Austrian actress born in a small town in southeastern Austria. Initially a dancer, she began ballet classes at age four. At 12, she achieved her first professional success on the Theatre Akzent stage in Vienna, starring as a lead in the musical 'X-mas a nice surprise!', inspired by the film 'Nightmare Before Christmas' and featuring Austria's top young talents. Soon after, she joined the musical company KMC and participated in numerous productions. Nora received comprehensive dance and musical training at Vienna's Performing Centre Austria and competed nationally and internationally in their competition division, earning champion titles in Hip Hop and Modern Dance.
At 14, director Harald Sicheritz cast Nora as Patritzia Schartl, a lead role in his comedy feature 'Poppitz', alongside prominent Austrian and German actors. The film became a major hit, ranking as the second most successful Austrian feature at the domestic box office. It won the Golden Ticket, the Austrian Film Award for Best Film, and the Platinum DVD Award for exceptional DVD sales.
Following 'Poppitz', Nora contributed to the accompanying book with her satirical essay 'Is this possible?' and included behind-the-scenes photos taken during filming on the Canary Islands.
She subsequently starred in some of Austria's top productions. Collaborating with director Xaver Schwarzenberger—known for his work with Rainer Werner Fassbinder—she appeared in four films that achieved high ratings in Austria and were broadcast across Europe, with 'Zuckeroma' winning the European Film Award Prix Europa.
Impressed by her performance in 'Poppitz', director Leo M. Bauer cast Nora in the sitcom 'Novotny and Maroudi', which became the most-watched sitcom on Austrian national television.
Nora played the lead role of Neele in the experimental short film 'Träumereien', which premiered at the Solothurner Film Festival in Switzerland and was screened at Cannes and other European festivals. She guest-starred in popular Austrian and German crime series such as 'Trautmann', directed by Thomas Roth, and 'Inspector Rex'. Additionally, she worked with director Wolfgang Murnberger on the socio-critical film 'The Black Lion', a true story about Nigerian refugees in Austria, which premiered at the Festival of Austrian Film (Diagonale).
Reuniting with Harald Sicheritz, Nora worked on the historical TV series '11er Haus', set between 1950 and 1980, and guest-starred in an episode of '4 Frauen und ein Todesfall'.
After seeing her work, director and producer Reinhard Schwabenitzky cast Nora as series regular Judith Schnabel, a young singer, in the prime-time TV series 'Oben Ohne'. Collaborating with producer Andy Radovan, she performed original songs for the show, which aired from 2006 to 2012 on Austrian national television and included several spin-off movie specials. The series was set across Salzburg, Vienna, Italy, and Turkey.
Austrian film critic Rudolph John nominated Nora for Best Actress at the UNDINE AWARD for her role in 'Oben Ohne'. The UNDINE AWARD honors outstanding performances in film and television across the German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland).
Nora's voice-over work includes campaigns for Procter & Gamble directed by Allistair Abell, recorded in Vancouver, BC.
She is a member of the Austrian Academy of Motion Pictures.
