So I've been debating about which scripting language to be proficient at. I'm pretty good with csh and Python, so my choice is do I go deeper into Python or learn Perl. I know studios use both. Is one used more than the other? I will admit I am prejudiced towards Python because I am experienced with it and really like it because it's so easy. The more I learn about C++ the more I like Python:)
Python is a very new language and it is quickly being very popular. Thing is some companies have been around for many years and so has perl so it is a backbone to many pipelines. Don't need to rewrite stuff if it ain't broken, but it may need to be fixed or changed to expand for new features. Also people who have been in the industry for a long time are not always interested in learning new things because what they already know Perl inside and out and it works fine for them. You will have to work with many people that may only want to write stuff in perl.
Pretty much knowing both is very important. It pretty much depends the company and who the TD's are since they decide which scripting language is used more.
Another one to learn is Tcl. Nuke and Slim(Prman/RAT shader creation tool) both use Tcl as their scripting language.