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Nick Karner appeared in several theatrical productions around the United States. His credits included lead roles in: Beauty and the Beast (Tour), Macbeth, Brigadoon, Hamlet, Man of La Mancha, The Taming of the Shrew, Isolation (Original Cast), and several other plays. He became infatuated with film after viewing a documentary about Stanley Kubrick, "A Life In Pictures." Following the screening, he became an adamant film fanatic with a penchant for movie history and trivia.
Turning to filmmaking, he joined his friends in London, England, and began shooting short films around the country. The final film he directed was A Little Harmless Murder, which was honored at the Festival De Cinema Du Bruxelles. The New York Short Film Festival bestowed the award for Best Actor to the film's lead, Jon Campling.
Returning to his hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina, he made his first feature documentary, which tested the limits of good taste and was banned from several screenings due to its graphic images. This film was Babs Johnson and the Cavalcade of Perversion: An Exploration in Exploitation. Described as "the filthiest documentary ever made," the shooting of the film proved to be just as infamous as the finished product, with several production problems, theft, shutdowns, and creative differences. The film screened in his home state at the Cucalorus Film Festival, and received 5 international honors including Best Director and Best Cinematography.
In 2002, Karner slowly began to compile interviews with actors and directors in the North Carolina community theatre scene. Three long years later, he had enough footage to create his second feature documentary, Paid To Play. Not only is it an in-depth look at actors and the art of the audition, it is a celebration of small-town community theatre. In 2005, the film received the Accolade Award of Excellence.
Never one to rest, 2005 and 2006 were busy years for Nick. He helmed such films as Kamikaze, which premiered at the Pinwheel Film Festival and received the Best Screenplay award at the Festival Du Cinema De Paris, and the controversial PRANk, which caused a stir at the San Francisco Film Festival and won him a Best Director award. For the stage, he has directed such plays as Steve Martin's Picasso at the Lapin Agile and Tina Howe's Painting Churches. In 2006, he directed and starred in Ray Cooney's Run For Your Wife, which was a smashing success and set box office records. Adamant about bringing more theatre to North Carolina, he directed two NC premiere's of "Good Pizza Training" and the Richard Burton one-man show, "Playing Burton."
Since 2007, he has directed music videos, internet commercials, promotional videos, and short films. He's appeared in several films, most notably Foodie, which has won several film festival awards. He has also served as the director of photography for Jay O'Berski, the artistic director of Little Green Pig Theatrical Concern, on two films, Basilisk and Nadia.
