Meet Nóra Trokán | Actress / Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nóra Trokán and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nóra, what do you attribute your success to?
Success. It’s quite difficult to articulate what it means. It means different things to different people. When you feel successful professionally, perhaps when you become known, when you are part of a successful film or series or theatre production, or perhaps more importantly when you make a step forward in your own professional development, whether it is in an underground production in front of 30 people. I think the important thing is to have the belief in yourself, in what you want to achieve. Nobody else can represent that better than you. There are a lot of situations, especially as an actor, where you’re terribly vulnerable and you have nothing but your own self-respect. If you take the risk and dare to take steps for your career that may seem scary at first, there will be lows, rejections, and slaps in the face, but it’s important to learn that you can bounce back and go on with more strength. Success has many ingredients. I think you need a good dose of luck, timing, the trust of others in you, but most importantly you need to remain unwavering. It’s not easy, in return it is hard, but it’s worth it.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’m an actress. I graduated from the Budapest University of Theatre and Film Arts in 2009. In the first few years I worked mostly on stage and I must say I had a very lucky start to my career. Just to give a few examples, Irina from Chekhov’s The Three Sisters, Viola from Shakespeare’s Twelve night, Maggie the Cat on a Hot Tin Roof from Tennessee Williams, Hedda Gabler, Sen Te the Good Man from Sichuan and so on. I can’t say that I felt successful all the time, I was often not satisfied with my performance. Despite all the good opportunities in the first few years, I often felt like a failure, but I tried to get up and keep going. Fortunately for me, I was trusted in the theatre and I got very good opportunities when I found my voice, in which the aforementioned director, Sándor Zsoter, played a big role. But in the last couple of years I have consciously turned to film. After several Hungarian films and series, in 2019 I got a role in The Witcher. It was a great experience. I had to speak Elvish in the depths of a forest on the island of La Palma. You should know that very few people from Hungary work in the international market. Although this number has increased a bit since many productions, including American ones, come to shoot here. So there are more opportunities, even in small roles, to get a part in productions like The Witcher, Dune, or the recently released Halo series. I still felt that I would like to be more international. To try myself in different languages. I have a special affinity with English, which is a language I love to play in. And that is only possible with international representation, so I signed a contract with Panorama Agency. They’re a wonderful team, open, attentive and kind. And now comes the anticipation of what opportunities life will bring me. I’m looking forward to it. My other passion is photography. It has been in my life since childhood. Slowly and not at all consciously, it has become a vocation. I’ve worked for magazines, theatres and most recently my greatest desire has been fulfilled. I published my first, very own, independent photo album. It shows the moment before actors go on stage. I am immensely proud of this work.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
To be honest, I’ve only been to Los Angeles once, but it’s burned into my memory forever. I spent two weeks in the area, so I’ve missed a lot, but here are a few that I can already recommend. As a nature lover, I was primarily drawn to the natural beauty of the area, such as Topanga Canyon, Malibu Beach, or even a horse ride to the Hollywood sign. If you are hungry for culture the first thing I recommend is the Getty center. The setting is stunning too. Of course I would not miss Universal Studios and Hollywood Boulevard. And last but not least, I wouldn’t miss the iconic Santa Monica Pier.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First of all, my family, and my love. We are wonderfully close. My parents and my sister are both actors. It’s true that when they first found out (especially my mom) that my sister and I were going into acting, they were not very keen on the idea. They knew exactly all the difficulties of this profession, all the rejection and vulnerability. They were afraid. But my father, being the ever calm man, reassured my mother that at least they would be able to help us through the difficult times. They supported and stood by me from the beginning. I would like to mention the name of a brilliant Hungarian theatre director without whom I would not be here. And that is Sándor Zsótér. And also Lene Seested and Martin Jensen who run the Panorama Agency. Wonderful helpful people. I couldn’t wish for better international representation.

Instagram: @noratrokanofficial @noratrokanphoto

Image Credits
Niki Brozsek Sándor Bikali Nóra Trokán Bence Faragó