<![CDATA[Digital transformation and the emergence of Society 5.0 have reshaped film and media production, widening the gap between vocational film education and industry practices in Indonesia. While this gap is often framed as a skills mismatch, this study approaches film production education as a cultural practice that shapes students’ creative identities and production cultures. This study examines how Design Thinking and Project-Based Learning (PBL) are enacted within film production education in Indonesian Vocational High Schools (SMKs) and how these pedagogical practices influence collaboration, meaning-making, and creative work cultures. Using a qualitative collective case study design, data were collected through in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and participatory observations across three SMKs in West Java. The findings demonstrate that, beyond developing technical skills, Design Thinking and PBL transform the classroom into a site of cultural production in which students negotiate roles, hierarchies, and creative decisions throughout the filmmaking process. These practices foster collaborative learning and contribute to the formation of emerging filmmaker identities shaped by the interaction between industry practices and local cultural values. The findings further indicate that vocational film education functions not merely as technical training but as a social and cultural environment in which students develop creative identities, collaborative practices, and understandings of professional production cultures. This study therefore positions vocational film education as a critical site of cultural production within contemporary Indonesian media industries. These findings contribute to vocational pedagogy and cultural production theory by demonstrating how collaborative film production connects creative learning, cultural meaning-making, and professional practice, while also informing creative-industry workforce development.]]>
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