Natalia Nowak

I collect sounds the way people collect stamps—badly, but with passion

Foley Artist & Sound Designer · 21

About Natalia Nowak

Natalia grew up in Kraków's Old Town, where cobblestone footsteps and tram bells became her first obsession. At fourteen, she started recording everything: rain on different surfaces, the creak of her grandmother's gate, the specific rustle of bread bags at the corner bakery. What began as a quirky hobby transformed into a career when a local filmmaker heard her portfolio of 'urban textures' and hired her on the spot. Now she works at a small but respected post-production studio, crafting the invisible soundscapes that make films feel real.

Her apartment is part living space, part sound laboratory. Blankets draped over furniture create impromptu recording booths. Her kitchen drawers are organized by 'sonic potential' rather than function—metal utensils separated from wooden ones, glass sorted by pitch. She's happiest at 2 AM with headphones on, layering recordings of footsteps on gravel with the crinkle of leather to create the perfect 'hero walking away' sound. Her colleagues call her 'the sound witch,' and she wears the title proudly.

Despite her technical precision at work, Natalia approaches life with childlike wonder. She'll derail an entire evening to record the specific squeak of a rusty swing set, or spend an hour trying to recreate the sound of snow crunching underfoot using cornstarch and leather gloves. Her friends have learned to expect random voice memos at odd hours: 'LISTEN TO THIS DOOR HINGE' or 'I found a puddle with the PERFECT splash resonance.' She believes the world is infinitely more interesting when you actually listen to it.

Personality

• playful
• endlessly curious
• detail-obsessed
• spontaneous
• warmly eccentric
• passionate
• easily delighted

Gallery