Nick Nanton

Nick Nanton is an American author and director and producer of film and television projects. He is the co-founder and CEO of the production company DNA Films, has produced and directed documentary films including Dickie V, Operation Toussaint, Rudy Ruettiger: The Walk On, Visioneer, and A New Leash on Life: The K9s for Warriors Story. He is also the former CEO of the Dicks + Nanton Agency, a celebrity branding agency that he co-founded with his business partner J.W. Dicks in Winter Park, Florida.

He is the host of the Amazon Prime Video interview series, In Case You Didn't Know with Nick Nanton. He has won 24 Emmy Awards, in multiple regions across the United States, and received national and regional Emmy nominations for his work in film and television. He is the author of multiple books including Celebrity Branding You and Story Selling.

Early life and education Nanton was born in Barbados and immigrated to the United States with his family when he was one year old. His father opened a furniture store in the Orlando area in central Florida, where Nanton largely grew up. His first job was as a tennis instructor when he was 12 years old. In his late teens, Nanton became interested in songwriting and music production. By the time he was a college student at the University of Florida, he had a recording studio in Gainesville where he was able to work with acts such as Stan Lynch He also made music of his own. with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) in finance. He went on to earn his J.D. from the University of Florida's Fredric G. Levin College of Law in December 2004.

Career

Nanton began his career as an entertainment lawyer. He is a member of The Florida Bar. Early in his career, Nanton was CEO of the Cinemark Music Group before he cofounded his law firm Dicks & Nanton with his business partner J. W. Dicks. The firm primarily focused on liability, trademark, and entertainment law.

In July 2007, Nanton was elected to serve on the executive council of The Florida Bar Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Committee. That year, he was also voted "Best of the Bar 2007" by his peers as published by the Orlando Business Journal, and he became a member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences with a vote in the Grammy Awards. In the same year, Nanton began to focus on celebrity marketing, consulting, and public relations. With J.W. Dicks, he formed the Dicks and Nanton Celebrity Branding Agency in July 2007. Nanton also began serving as the agency's CEO at that time. In 2008, he co-wrote (with Dicks) his first book, Celebrity Branding You. The following year, he began contributing content to compilation books starting with Big Ideas for Your Business.

In 2010, the Dicks Nanton Agency branched into documentary film production. Nanton produced and co-directed the documentary short, Jacob's Turn. Nanton was honored with an Emmy award in the Director (Post-Production) category at the 47th Ohio Valley Emmy Awards that year. In the following years, Nanton continued producing and directing films. Films were produced as part of the CelebrityFilms production company started by Dicks and Nanton. That company would later start a new division known as DNA Films. Nick Nanton and family in 2022 receiving a star on the Las Vegas Walk of Stars.

Nanton continued authoring and contributing to books. In 2013, he published Story Selling which appeared on The Wall Street Journal Best Seller list. He directed and was executive producer of the documentary Mi Casa Hogar about the Casa Hogar children's home in Acapulco, Mexico. Nanton won multiple Suncoast Regional Emmy Awards in 2013 for producing and directing the documentary shorts, Esperanza and Mi Casa Hogar. In 2014, it was announced that Nanton would direct a biographical documentary about the founder of the X Prize Foundation, Peter Diamandis. The resultant film, Visioneer, garnered Nanton another Suncoast Regional Emmy Award in the Director (Post-Production) category in 2015.

In the following years, Nanton produced and directed a number of other biographical documentaries, including Maximum Achievement: The Brian Tracy Story (2017), The Soul of Success: The Jack Canfield Story (2017), Rudy Ruettiger: The Walk On (2018), and Game Changer: The Dan Sullivan Story (2018), among others. In 2018, he won six Suncoast Regional Emmy Awards for producing and directing Rudy Ruettiger, Game Changer, and A New Leash on Life: The K9s for Warriors Story. The Ruettiger film was adapted into a one-man show called Dream Big: Rudy Ruettiger Live on Broadway which Nanton produced and directed. The sold out one-night performance marked his Broadway directorial debut and was staged at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre in February 2019.

Also in 2018, Nanton's Prime Video interview series, In Case You Didn't Know with Nick Nanton, premiered and has since featured guests such as Larry King, Dean Kamen, and Anthony Scaramucci. This film garnered a national News and Documentary nomination. A 2019 follow-up to that film, Triple Take, followed the eponymous Operation Triple Take undertaken by O.U.R. in Colombia. Triple Take was the basis for the feature film Sound of Freedom. He also won for From Shelter to Service: A K9s for Warriors Story.

In 2020, two episodes ("Nido Qubein: Extraordinary is a Choice" and "Lisa Nichols: Born to Win") from his Prime Video series won Emmy Awards as individual documentaries. He also directed the documentary, Folds of Honor, that year which details the charitable efforts of the non-profit organization of the same name. Also in 2020, he directed and produced It's Happening Right Here, a documentary about survivors of sex trafficking. He also directed the film Dickie V, covering the life and career of Dick Vitale, which premiered on ESPN+ and Disney + the same year. In 2022, he directed and produced Tactical Empathy, a documentary about FBI hostage negotiator and author of the New York Times Best-Selling Book Never Split the Difference, Chris Voss. He also directed the Broadway show When My Soul Speaks: Lisa Nichols Live the same year. The film received a Silver Telly Award in May 2025 and was shortlisted for the International Documentary Awards that same year.

In 2024, he co-founded The Difference Business Bourbon, a bourbon whiskey brand with Chris Voss and Roy Milner.

Nanton won two Suncoast Emmy Awards in 2025. He served as a judge for Miss America 2026.

Personal life He is married to Kristina Nanton and they have three children.

Filmography Year Title Role Notes 2010 Jacob's Turn Executive producer, co-director Documentary short 2012 Tackling Taxes Executive producer, creative director Documentary short Practicing Perfection Executive producer, creative director Documentary short Car Men Executive producer, executive creative director Documentary short The Flower Girl Executive producer, director Short film Cracking the Celebrity Code Executive producer, executive creative director Documentary short Filling the Financial Gap Executive producer, director Documentary short 2013 Life & The Party Executive producer, executive creative director Documentary short Esperanza Executive producer, producer, director Documentary short Faith Family and Taxes Executive producer, director Documentary short Life in Balance Executive producer, director Documentary short Back to Health Executive producer, director Documentary short Coach Pete's Financial Safari Producer, director Documentary short Real People, Real Systems, Real Profits Executive producer, director Documentary short Making the Difference Executive producer, director Documentary short Mi Casa Hogar Executive producer, director Documentary short The I.T. Guy Executive producer, executive creative director Documentary short A Life of Success and Significance Executive producer, director Documentary short 2014 Stand and Serve Executive producer, director Documentary short Get Your Life Back Executive producer, director Documentary short Heritage Executive producer, director Documentary short If It Is to Be It's Up to Me Executive producer, director Documentary short 2015 Visioneer: The Peter Diamandis Story Executive producer, director Documentary film 2016 The Rebound Executive producer Documentary film Return to Esperanza Executive producer, director Documentary short Armonia Executive producer, director Documentary short 2017 Maximum Achievement: The Brian Tracy Story Executive producer, director Documentary film Live Your Quest Executive producer, director Documentary film The Soul of Success: The Jack Canfield Story Executive producer, director Documentary film 2018 Game Changer: The Dan Sullivan Story Executive producer, director Documentary film Rudy Ruettiger: The Walk On Executive producer, director Documentary film Operation Toussaint: Operation Underground Railroad and the Fight to End Modern Day Slavery Executive producer, director Documentary film Getting Everything You Can Out of All You've Got: The Jay Abraham Story Executive producer, director Documentary film A New Leash on Life: The K9s for Warriors Story Executive producer, director Documentary film 2018–present In Case You Didn't Know with Nick Nanton Creator, executive producer, director, host Amazon Prime Video docuseries 2019 From Shelter to Service: A K9s for Warriors Story Executive producer, director Documentary film Triple Take Executive producer, director Documentary film 2020 Folds of Honor: A Fighter Pilot's Mission to Deliver Healing and Hope to America Executive producer, director Documentary film Choose Yourself: The James Altucher Story Executive producer, director Prime Video docuseries Dreamer Executive producer, director Documentary film 2022 It's Happening Right Here Director, Executive Producer Documentary Dickie V Director Documentary film 2023 Hero Director, Executive Producer Documentary 2024 Tactical Empathy Director, Executive Producer Documentary When My Soul Speaks: Lisa Nichols Live Director Broadway play Brisa Director Shortlisted for Best Feature Documentary at the 40th IDA Documentary Awards