On last weekend I was lucky enough to get tickets (thanks AnneMarie!) to attend the ADAPT 2006 Conference, held here in Montreal. ADAPT stands for Advanced Digital Art Production Techniques, and featured worldwide industry professionals in 2D and 3D digital production who came to talk about their craft, and show us how they work.

Among the speakers were Syd Mead, a living legend of motion picture art direction (some people call him a "conceptual designer", but I don't think the term defines who he is well enough -- I prefer art director) who presented us his career, and through that, bits and pieces of his much inspired psyché.

If the name doesn't ring a bell to you, the man is The Man responsible for the creation of vehicules, scenery and general conceptual universe for movies such as Blade Runner, Tron, Aliens, 2010, Short Circuit, Star Trek and other blockbuster hits -- and still works today at 50-something. He's a true example of industry evolution adaptation, and how you can (and must) always stay in front of TEH FUTURE, conceptually speaking.

Among other great moments, he gave us his views and techniques on creating believable machinery inside believable universes, and the general creative process behind the production of ideas in visual formats.

You can check out Syd's web site by visiting www.sydmead.com . He sells some DVDs on his techniques (I actually got one, and its really great), and books containing samples of his work. A must see, and must have.

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