Every month, Screen Alliance Wales wants to shed a spotlight on those who have had a particularly interesting route into working within the Film and TV industry. No two people are the same, and it’s been fascinating learning each individual story of those who are now working in the Film and TV industry. This month, we want to introduce Nikhil, Screen Alliance Wale's first trainee!

Nikhil’s story started when took the brave step of moving to Cardiff from Malaysia to study Film at the University of South Wales.  Determined to break into the TV industry, he took his own initiative and researched the TV shows that he enjoyed, scanning through the credits at the end and researching the names online to see if he could find any contact details. Although most of his research was fruitless, it was through this method that he was told about a work experience opportunity on the first season of Bad Wolf’s `A Discovery of Witches’ via Screen Alliance Wales. After doing so well on this, he was offered the position of a receptionist job at Wolf Studios Wales.

He did this for 8 weeks before getting a job as a runner on the first series of `His Dark Materials’. From the contacts he made on this, he gained work on another Bad Wolf production, season 2 of A Discovery of Witches. After this, lockdown hit and like the rest of the world, Nikhil had to stop work.

Fortunately, he found work again once things had started up again working on several productions including War of the Worlds, Doctor Who, We Hunt Together and Grantchester, stepping up to becoming a Production Coordinator. He is now working his way up to being a Production Manager.  This progression is testament to all his hard work and determination, and it just goes to show what you can achieve if you just keep trying!

Because of his hard work, Nikhil is now working as a Production Manager on Call the Midwife which will run throughout 2022. Nikhil wants to become a Producer in the future, which we fully believe he can do, and we look forward to watching his career go from strength to strength.

Trying to get into this area of work can often seem like a closed door so Nikhil recommends doing as much research as you can and learning from industry professionals themselves. The reality of the industry is not always as it appears and can sometimes be a difficult field to work in so ensure that you show your passion for your work. Many thanks to Nikhil for taking time out to talk with us!