Professional Curiosity – Summary

This educational animation, designed for social workers, explores the concept of professional curiosity—a vital skill in safeguarding and reflective practice. Using the metaphor of a gingerbread man, the video creatively guides viewers through a body-themed journey that illustrates how every part of the body contributes to awareness, perception, and judgement in professional contexts.

Key themes include:

• Curiosity as a mindset, driven by novelty, ambiguity, and complexity

• The importance of using all the senses—from sight and smell to emotional ‘gut instinct’

• Recognising and reflecting on bias, emotional cues, and incomplete information

• Playful idioms (e.g. “hair-raising issues,” “kicking yourself,” “butterflies in your tummy”) used to convey serious ideas in a memorable, accessible format

• Encouraging self-awareness, emotional regulation, and reflective supervision as key tools in professional development

The video ends with a call for social workers to never take anything at face value and to actively use their “whole self” in developing deeper understanding and better practice.

Our Approach

This project was commissioned by Cyngor Gwynedd Council as part of their ongoing investment in high-quality training resources for social workers. Our aim was to bring a rich and reflective script to life through animation—without overwhelming it.

We chose a restrained, thoughtful approach to the animation, using a gingerbread figure as a central visual metaphor to explore the many bodily idioms used in the script. Camera movement was kept deliberately minimal, allowing the voiceover and the metaphorical meaning of each visual cue to land with clarity and impact.

All 3D animation was created in Blender, drawing on our experience with 3DS Max to ensure a smooth workflow and stylised yet tactile visual finish. The clean, polished rendering style helps maintain a lightness of tone while engaging viewers with subject matter that is at times challenging.

By keeping the visuals simple and well-paced, we aimed to support the viewer’s reflection and deepen understanding—allowing the script to shine, while adding memorable, accessible imagery that resonates with social work practitioners.

Credits

• Written by: Siobhan Maclean & Wendy Roberts

• Voiced by: Wendy Roberts

• Directed by: Ramon Marett

• Produced by: Dafydd Paul (Cyngor Gwynedd Council)