Hot Shots 2026: Caterina Bruce-Clayton

The Grenfell fire, the murder of Sarah Everard, capital punishment and war zones: the subjects of Caterina Bruce-Clayton’s projects speak volumes about her passion for social justice and contributor welfare.

These are demanding roles that involve sensitive institutional access and emotionally challenging subjects. Caterina approaches them with a trauma-informed approach that prioritises safety, trust and compassion for both contributors and crew.

As an official mental health representative in BBC Studios Documentary Unit, she’s there for any staff member or freelancer to discuss any personal or professional mental health issue.

On BBC3’s Life and Death Row – which builds on her earlier work with BBC Studios on Channel 4 single doc Grenfell: the Untold Story and BBC1’s Sarah Everard: the Search for Justice – Caterina volunteered to spend several weeks embedded on death row in Texas and Florida.

She says that being physically present enabled her to build trusted relationships with contributors while supporting the wellbeing of the production team.

“I ensured schedules allowed for proper breaks and debriefs, coordinated ongoing access to the project psychologist, and created space for the team to process difficult experiences while still delivering under pressure,” Caterina says.

“This baked-in support enabled me to build and hold the trust of both the team and contributors, where discretion, empathy and sensitivity were critical.”

Other productions to have benefited from Caterina’s careful handling include Amol Rajan Interviews and Planet Earth III.

She is now working on a three-parter for the BBC and Channel 4 that has involved difficult access negotiations which entailed coordinating security arrangements with the BBC Bureau and working with health and safety, high-risk and insurance teams across both broadcasters to ensure safe and responsible travel for the team.

“Cat exudes rare qualities of being able to listen and empathise and also act with confidence on what is being said to her,” says Documentary Unit senior creative director Katharine Patrick.

“She always tries to take on board everyone’s thoughts and comments and create a plan of action to allow everyone to feel heard, listened to, and respected. Cat is an incredibly, warm, empathetic and generous person who works so hard to ensure everyone on the team feels supported by her at all times.”