Production Guild Appoints Nicky Ball as New Director of Membership Services

The Production Guild has appointed former ScreenSkills Head of HETV Mid-Level Career Progression Nicky Ball as Director of Membership Services.

Yorkshire-based Nicky joins the Guild after working at ScreenSkills in the High-End TV Skills fund delivery team for over 8 years. She brings over 25 years of experience in crewing and training, as well as extensive experience in supporting freelance crew and industry across the UK.

In her most recent role as Head of HETV Mid-Level Career Progression at ScreenSkills, Nicky led on the delivery of placements for training in response to industry-identified grade shortages, such as electrical trainees, accounts industry transfers, job shares and access coordinators.

Nicky has also overseen Make a Move, a professional development programme designed to enable freelance crew to step up to senior roles, and was a key part of the team who developed ScreenSkills’ industry-approved slate of skills checklists across 17 scripted departments, including Accounts, ADs, Locations and Production.

Before joining ScreenSkills, Nicky worked as the National Crew & Facilities Manager at Creative England (now Filming in England) and was responsible for the Crew & Facilities database, with over 6,000 listings across the UK. She also worked for Screen Yorkshire, managing professional development opportunities for local freelance crew and establishing a pan-Northern England crew database.

Nicky’s appointment reflects the Guild’s commitment to ensuring we represent film and HETV talent from across the whole of the UK, and, further to this commitment, we are today announcing the first in a series of planned changes to better reflect our position as a UK-wide members-first organisation.

Rather than continuing to be based in the current office space at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, as of the 1st of April 2026 the Guild’s core team will transition to a fully remote model of working. This strategic shift is designed to enable a focus on increasing member and industry collaboration, with greater flexibility for travel to sets, studios and post-houses in the UK’s prominent production centres, and to foster deeper links with both historic and emerging infrastructure across the country.

Kaye Elliott, Production Guild CEO says: “We are delighted to welcome Nicky on board at the Guild. She brings a wealth of experience, talent and knowledge, alongside a clear passion for HETV, film and screen production. It’s also a huge statement for the Guild to hire another senior member of staff based in the North of England, as part of our commitment to ensure we best represent talent across the UK. She joins at a time of exciting change for our whole team, which will enable a refreshed focus on collaboration with industry in every nation and region. I’m sure many of you will have had the pleasure of working with Nicky before, and I know she’s looking forward to working with you all to shape the Guild’s next chapter.”

Nicky Ball, Director of Membership Services, Production Guild says: “I'm excited to join the Guild at this exciting time as we look to the future, how we can support existing loyal members, and encourage new members to join. Being based regionally, I really understand how the Guild can be a welcome benefit to members and hirers working across the UK. I can’t wait to get started!”