This is the first of three special episodes that were recorded during the RMeS/NICA career event in June 2023. In this episode, Bjorn Beijnon (UvA) interviews Pepita Hesselberth, director of NICA and lecturer in Film and Digital Media at Leiden University.  Pepita shares her academic journey and which choices she has made to find funding for her research. How do you write just the right PhD proposal? How do you make sure that your research is appealing to NWO?  Pepita provides in this episode some tips, tricks, and practical suggestions for these questions.