Chester

I spent Saturday in the city of Chester, in the north-west part of England. Chester is a nice quiet place with some very picturesque scenery, especially along the River Dee which cuts across the city. The city centre is not very big, and unless you’re doing some shopping, most of the city centre can be covered in an afternoon. There’s a city wall which was built in Roman times, an impressive cathedral, a museum... and even a Roman amphitheatre which is currently being excavated by archaeologists. Apparently, it was discovered by accident when the city started building a highway which was to cut across that particular site! Needless to say, the proposed highway has now been diverted. And of course, Chester also offers a nice, peaceful riverside walk along the River Dee, almost perfect for a quiet Saturday afternoon.

My Digital Art - Part 4

I went for a talk yesterday by a company called Double Negative. They did the special effects for such movies as Pitch Black and Batman Begins. During the talk, they showed showreels from job applicants and gave some advice on what's good, what's bad, etc. Some of the showreels they screened were absolutely amazing! They looked as if they were done by Industrial Light & Magic or Pixar, not some fresh graduates – which on the one hand is quite discouraging, but on the other hand very helpful. At least now I know the standard I need to bring my own showreel up to, which means I will have to spend even more time on it. Sigh.