Brooklyn-based filmmaker Nicole Sylvester, recognized for her debut feature film Maya & Her Lover, started her career as a producer/director in Detroit's local cable company, receiving a national Cable ACE nomination and a local Cable ICE Award. After transitioning to film production, she gained reputation in Detroit's independent filmmaking scene with successful short films The Stop and minor blues.

She also participated in an international collaboration, The Owner, earning a Guinness World Record for the most directors on a film. Sylvester produced several award-winning films like Cargo, which won the Amnesty International Human Rights prize. Her professional experience extends to studio productions including Venom 2, Power, Harlem and Purple Rose Films.

Currently part of numerous film and women's organizations, she has received three Public Benefit Corporation grants and previously taught filmmaking workshops at the Detroit Film Center. Sylvester is in the process of developing new television and feature film projects.