About us

Award-winning video, audio and content production company based in Gateshead. Candle & Bell creates cinematic, story-led content for brands, broadcasters and organisations.

We produce bold, original and cinematic content that inspires audiences and elevates every story.

Our values

Driven by connection

  • Collaboration sits at the heart of everything we do. We work side-by-side with clients, creatives and communities to shape ideas together, ensuring every project feels shared, aligned and authentic. By combining your insight with our creative expertise, we produce work that’s stronger, sharper and truly resonates.

  • We set ambitious standards for every project. It's not just about value for money - it's about doing our absolute best for you. We take creative risks, challenge ourselves to find fresh approaches, and work relentlessly to ensure your content gets the views and impact you need. Your success matters to us, and we'll push ourselves to deliver work that genuinely makes a difference for your goals.

  • We're conscious of production's environmental impact and work to minimize it wherever we can. From reducing waste on set to making sustainable choices about travel, equipment and materials - we think about our footprint. We're committed to decisions that consider the planet as well as the project.

  • We believe talent exists everywhere, and we're committed to finding it and supporting it - especially in the North East. We work with charities and educational institutions to give young people real opportunities, not just placements. We create working environments where people actually want to be, and champion voices that don't always get heard. We're building an industry that's better than the one we came up in - ambitious about the work AND about who gets to make it.

A man with a shaved head and beard, wearing a black shirt with orange logos, holding a small bird while a camera operator films him with a large professional video camera.

Our people

Close-up photo of a smiling woman with brown hair, wearing black glasses, a white blouse, layered necklaces, and an orange cardigan. White background.

Maria Caruana Galizia
Producer and Managing Director

  • Maria is a Maltese-born producer and filmmaker who studied in Glasgow before working at Scottish Television, with early credits spanning major film and TV productions including Agora (Alejandro Amenábar) and HBO’s Game of Thrones. In 2013 she founded Candle & Bell to build a North East production company making work for national and international audiences. Since then, Candle & Bell has been recognised as one of Creative England’s Top 50 Emerging Creative Companies (2017), received the BBC Small Indie Fund three times, and secured the Audio Indie Fund (2025), while producing branded and digital campaigns for Jo Malone, Greggs, Pinterest, END., Adidas and Newcastle United. Her recent credits include the feature The Date (co-produced with Oscar-winner Julie Foy), two series of Tom and Lauren Are Going OOT! for BBC Radio 4, and series producing ShortFlix 2 (Sky Arts) and Doppelgänger (BBC Three, TX Feb 2026), alongside a slate in development including Soon We Will All Be History Here and a BBC Studios sitcom.

Close-up of a smiling woman with short curly hair wearing glasses and a green hoodie, standing against a plain neutral background.

Zahra Zomorrodian
Head of Comedy

  • Zahra is an award winning producer who started her career a stage manager in various theatres in her home town of Newcastle. After getting tired of carrying heavy things, she started producing comedy shorts, then 3 micro budget features including the raucous comedy The Stagg Do - which featured Lost Voice Guy in his first screen role. In 2019, after a detour in documentary with the RTS award winning feature doc We Are The Geordies, she moved into producing comedy sketches for Channel 4’s Sparks. One of which - If Boobs Were Like Balls - won a commendation at the RTS Awards (February 2020), and to date has amassed over 3 million views online. She currently heads up the comedy slate for Candle & Bell and has projects in development with BBC Comedy and BBC Studios. Zahra produced Candle & Bell’s hit radio sitcom for  BBC Radio 4 commission Tom & Lauren Are Going OOT! And ‘Doppelganger’ for BBC 3.

A young man with short black hair, wearing a black knit beanie hat with a small red logo, and a black zip-up sweater, smiling against a plain light gray background.

Alex Hooper
Production Assistant

  • Alex Hooper is a graduate of Northumbria University, where he studied Film and TV Production. He joined Candle & Bell as an intern in 2022 before becoming Production Assistant. He plays a key role across the company's productions — working as a camera operator and in post-production.

Trusted by leading companies
Black and white illustration of Newcastle United football club crest on the left and Adidas logo on the right.
Greggs logo with four yellow squares and the company name in blue text
The word 'END' in bold, black capital letters with a period at the end, on a white background.
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BBC Comedy logo with black squares, each containing a white letter, and the word "COMEDY" underneath in bold black letters.
Anthony Gordon and Jacob Ramsey wearing Santa hats sitting at a table in front of a blue wall with gold tinsel. They both have their chins resting on one hand and are looking at the camera. There is a roasted pig on a white platter in front of them.

Big ideas, real impact. Thoughtfully crafted to elevate what matters most.

Our work

Let's Work Together

Let's Work Together

Whether you need a powerful brand film, standout commercial, or compelling story-led content, Candle & Bell is here to bring your vision to life.

hello@candleandbell.com

0191 303 7734

Adjusting studio lights for filming