Work is Play Studio

My wellness journey started with ZOE. Now I get to work with them ?? I first came across ZOE three years ago, right around the time I became a dad. Overnight, health became something personal. I wanted to be present, energised, and able to show up for my family. ZOE played a big role in helping me find a path. Now at Dawn, we’re kicking off a new project with them alongside Sofya Leonova and Dinesh Dave from Work is Play Studio. Big thanks to Scott Walker and the team for bringing us in ??

What if brands didn’t just speak to their fans—but existed in their world? We partnered with Lineage to explore how brands become cultural icons—not by following trends, but through intention and dedication that cultivate real fan connections. The kind that builds loyalty that actually lasts. We explored the idea of stepping into the worlds of fans—places where their culture lives and breathes—meeting them where they are and blending seamlessly with their passions and communities.

Ordinary people doing extraordinary things—that’s at the heart of Novo's brand. For the art direction, we wanted visuals that felt real—not the usual forced stock photography. With no budget for a custom shoot, we got creative and tapped into DEATH TO STOCK to capture the raw, unfiltered energy of entrepreneurship. The result? A brand that doesn’t just talk to small business owners—it looks like them.

Feeling inspired by a good mate of mine, James Ravenhall's post titled—Where does your creative inspiration come from? There’s something special about having tangible sources of inspiration—something you can flip through, get lost in, and return to over time. An artifact that lives on forever. For a new web project at Work is Play Studio—we're creating an immersive web experience powered by three.js for a client—we’re pulling inspiration from artists who bend light and space: James Turrell, Olafur Eliasson, and other experimental visionaries. To set the tone, I've been gathering a stack of books around the studio (maybe even blowing some dust on a few of them), which is a lovely reminder that some of the best digital ideas start in the analog world. We even sent the entire team on the project a Turrell book! In a time when Pinterest, Behance, and AI-generated mood boards dominate, it’s easy to forget the value of a well-worn (and dusty) book filled with insights that haven’t been curated by the algorithm. Here's the ones in the picture below Casa Wabi Naoshima — Nature, Art, Architecture Olafur Eliasson Experience James Turrell: A Retrospective James Turrell: Infinite Light What’s on your inspiration shelf?

A few weeks ago, I shared a post about my journey leaving Meta to start my own business. I didn’t expect the overwhelming response from people reaching out, curious about how Work is Play Studio got started. It’s been incredibly rewarding to share that story. One thing that’s become crystal clear? More and more people are tired of pouring everything into a company, only to be cut loose when it’s convenient. A lot of you are thinking about starting your own business—and I get it. That’s why I wanted to share a blog post that Sofya Leonova (the other co-founder and our operations powerhouse at Work is Play) wrote: “The #1 reason new creative businesses fail?" I’ll be honest—I never set out to be a business owner. Thankfully, Sofya is the best partner I could ask for. Over the years, we’ve learned a lot, failed a lot, pivoted a lot… and yeah, panicked a lot. But now, we’re seeing those lessons turn into something real. So in that spirit, here’s a link to our latest blog—debunking 6 myths creative founders tell themselves, and what we should be doing instead.

In the design industry, no one gives a ?? about what the Operations Director has to say. Two years ago, I co-founded Work is Play Studio, a digital design studio—with zero background in the industry. Starting a business in a space you don’t know much about has its pros and cons. But more on that another time. Something I noticed quickly? The industry’s celebrated heroes are, naturally, the Creative Directors. ??? They’re the ones getting interviewed on podcasts. ?? Their work is celebrated in articles. ?? Newsletters curate resources just for them. And that’s great—don’t get me wrong. But in my?humble?opinion, the?unsung heroes?of the industry are the Creative Producers, Operations Directors, Project and Program Managers—the ones keeping the creative engines running?smoothly, happily, on time, on budget, and actually launching.?We’re the yin to your yang. So with that, every week, I’ll be sharing the?unsexy, behind-the-scenes lessons that keep creative work running (that no one talks about).?Stay tuned ??

The best ideas don’t come from grinding—they come from play. ???????? Lately, we’ve been talking a lot about ourselves while interviewing candidates. One question keeps coming up: Why the name Work is Play Studio? So here’s the origin story. My first gig out of school was at Wieden + Kennedy in Portland. That office is a marvel. They designed it so work happened in the quads, and play happened everywhere else. Breaks weren’t just encouraged—they were essential. Play basketball, grab a beer (thank you, Heineken!), make something in the production room, strike up a conversation with a stranger in the atrium. People and play mattered most. And the best part? Those moments of play almost always sparked great discussions and even better ideas. I carried that same mindset to AKQA, Apple, and Meta. If you’ve worked with me, you know—I want to get to know you first. And when you stop by my desk, you’ll always find objects and toys meant to break the ice, start a conversation, or just get us thinking differently. I once sat on a panel with the incredible Kevin Carroll, who said the universal language across every culture is a ball. We all know what it signifies: Play. Some throw it. Some kick it. But it always brings people and creativity together. That’s why Work is Play isn’t just a name—it’s how we operate. Creativity thrives when you step away, shift your mindset, and let curiosity take the lead. Some of our best thinking happens while cooking, playing LEGO, or—even recently—falling down a Tamagotchi rabbit hole. It looks different for everyone. And that’s the best part. Play isn’t a distraction from work. It’s where ideas loosen up, connections form, and real solutions emerge. The best creative work doesn’t come from forcing it—it comes from making space for it.

We partnered with the brand team at Hex to rethink what a corporate blog could be. The goal? Make content more discoverable and the experience genuinely enjoyable—taking inspiration from tech publications already pushing the envelope (Figma’s Shortcut, Retool’s Cache, Stripe.dev). This is one of the art directions we loved putting together, drawing from ’90s displays, bitmaps, and sharp grids. ?? Offcuts from Work is Play Studio

We're looking for a Senior Digital Brand Designer! Are you the one?! See below????

?S — because we’ve searched for this Mickey Mouse-style hover cursor way too many times. Huge shoutout to Jamie Brittain for solving the problem with cursor.design. No more digging through old files ?????? Find that resource below ???? https://cursor.design/ #playmode #workisplay #?S