Understanding Workplace Culture and Professional Identity

This week’s session with David Roberts shifted my thinking about what it actually means to work in the creative industries. Instead of focusing solely on job roles or technical skills, he explored the human side of creative workplaces; the values, behaviours and expectations that shape how people collaborate.

One idea that stayed with me was that professional culture isn’t about changing who you are to fit in. Every studio develops its own personality, and recognising this helps you understand where you naturally work best. For me, environments with open communication and room for creative exploration feel the most supportive, so the idea of professionalism as authenticity, rather than an act, was reassuring.

Dave also discussed responsibility and autonomy within teams. In animation and VFX, decisions ripple across a pipeline, and any changes required will need to be kept consistent. (Dunlop, 2014) This made me reflect on past group projects, the smooth ones and the messy ones, and how communication shaped the outcome.

We also explored workplace norms such as adaptability, taking feedback positively, and asking questions early. Hearing how these behaviours support creativity made me see challenges as normal parts of the process rather than personal shortcomings.

Dave finished by reframing career progression as a network rather than a ladder. As someone who works across voiceover, editing, animation and writing, this perspective helped me see my varied skillset as an advantage.

Next Steps

I want to reflect more on the environments I work best in, practise clearer team communication, and review my portfolio with a stronger sense of professional identity.

Refrencess

• Dunlop, R. (ed.) (2014) Production pipeline fundamentals for film and game. 1st edition. Burlington, Massachusetts: Focal Press. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315858272.

• Freepik (2025) fig1. An animator's desk/workspace [AI-generated image from the prompt “An animator's desk/workspace image”]. Available at: https://www.freepik.com/pikaso/explore/S7zCxUb8dV (Accessed: 13 December 2025).

• Freepik (2025) fig2. A simple visual of an animation pipeline. [AI-generated image from the prompt “Team collaboration or pipeline diagram. A simple visual of an animation production pipeline.”]. Available at: https://www.freepik.com/pikaso/explore/Y0vwRWeCwa (Accessed: 13 December 2025).

• Freepik (2025) fig3. A graphic showing non-linear career path. [AI-generated image from the prompt “A hand-drawn mind map, a graphic showing non-linear career paths, or something symbolic like branching lines.”]. Available at: https://www.freepik.com/pikaso/explore/fugcDCDYBw (Accessed: 13 December 2025).

fig1. An animator's desk/workspace. AI-generated image created using Freepik (2025)

fig2. A simple visual of an animation pipeline. AI-generated image created using Freepik (2025)

fig3. A graphic showing non-linear career path. AI-generated image created using Freepik (2025)