I whanau a Nolan i Westminster, London, i tipu ake ia i Highgate. Ko tana papa Ingarihi, ko Brendan James Nolan, he kaiwhakahaere whakatairanga, ko tana whaea Amerikana, ko Christina (née Jensen), i mahi hei kaihauturu rererangi me te kaiako Ingarihi. I wehewehea tana tamarikitanga i waenga i Ranana me Evanston, Illinois, a he taangata Ingarihi me te US. He tuakana tana, ko Matthew Francis Nolan, he tangata hara i whakawakia, me tetahi teina, ko Jonathan. I tiimata ia ki te hanga kiriata i te whitu o ona tau, i te nama i te kaamera Super 8 a tona papa me te kopere kiriata poto me ana ahua mahi. I te tipu ake, i tino awe a Nolan i te 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) me Star Wars (1977). Tata ki te waru o nga tau, i whakauruhia e ia he whakaari whakaari ki te Space Wars.
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