Full name/age/job title

Meroë Candy, 42, Film and Drama Development Manager in the Broadcast, Games and Film team at the Wellcome Trust, the UK’s largest health charity. 

Please give us an overview of your average day

My day nearly always starts and ends with checking Twitter. I help creatives working in the film and broadcast industries explore science, medicine and health-related topics, so Twitter is an invaluable tool for me to stay on top of the film, TV and science news.

As with many jobs it’s normally a combination of meetings, emails, calls, planning and writing. I might be talking to filmmakers and writers about potential projects, reading scripts, researching scientists to be involved, planning projects with some of our key partners such as BFI, Film4 and the BBC. 

Wonderfully, I do get to watch films and TV as part of the job but somehow it rarely happens within the working day.

What is the most common misconception about your job? 

That I have a science background. I failed my GCSE Physics but maybe that makes me a good example of someone who has come to science later in life through the arts.

What is the hardest thing about your role? 

I have to say no to people a lot. We can only support a minority of projects that come to us even when they have merit. It never gets any easier. 

When did you decide what you wanted to do with your life and how did you set out to achieve it?

I’m not sure I ever did. I think there was a turning point half-way through my A-levels when it was clear I was far too inhibited to be the Shakespearean actress I thought I was. I realised I wanted to work behind the scenes in film and the arts and I started to pursue a route of study to achieve this. Since then I’ve gone down a few blind alleys but have always come back to my first love. I wrote my undergrad dissertation on the Alien films so I think I always knew sub-consciously that this was the job for me but it took me another 20 years to get here. 

What can you do to get a head start?

Know your subject and share that enthusiasm. I got my first job interview because I was the only candidate to talk about my interest in the sector. Learn how to write a really targeted application and focus your CV for every single job you apply for. Get as much work experience as possible in any field. I’ve worked in the arts, commercial and education sectors and every single job has been great experience for my current one. The most useful skills I ever learnt were adding up in my head while working in bars and speed typing. I use them every day. 

Could you describe the creative element to your job? 

My job is all about ideas. Whether it’s advising people on how to focus their ideas or coming up with ideas for events and capacity building programmes, my head is constantly full of thoughts and plans about what subjects might work for different audiences and who might be good collaborators to work with on creative projects. 

What’s the one thing you wish you had known at the start of your career that you know now?

That it’s OK to you change your mind. Don’t feel because you’ve started down a career path you can’t take a different journey. 

Which organisations/websites/resources do you think would be useful for people entering your industry?

Creative England, BFI, Arts Council, Creative Skillset, Independent Cinema Office,  Into Film and IdeasTap, of course. 

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