Pre-watch thoughts: Big Hero 6 and Interstellar

So recently Big Hero 6 and Interstellar came out, and I've been hearing pretty good things about them!

 

(I see you there Hans. Wonder how many Easter eggs they've stuffed in this time...)

As of so far I've been trying to avoid spoilers and it's mostly been working. I say MOSTLY as people on Facebook and Twitter have exploded in feels all over my feeds haha. 
Sounds like something heartbreaking will happen in BH6 though, so I may have to steel myself for that.

Saw this BH6 character study on Facebook as well. Really love the differences that you can observe just from a person's movements.

Interstellar looks like it's gonna be a visual feast. *A* A friend kept ranting/raving about the actual science behind it though haha. Of course you can't expect everything to be scientifically accurate, but I read some articles online about how there was a TON of precise calculation for the visuals.
Check out these articles if interested! Here, here, and here.

Double Negative’s CG mapping of a black hole’s accretion disk. Image: digital-tutors blog

SO! It's not just "oooh pretty", it's actually an extremely accurate representation of a black hole. Okok, knowing this, I'm definitely gonna keep an eye out when those scenes come on. >u<b

Random tidbit! Both features are pulling out some pretty impressive numbers tech-wise.
Apparently BH6 was rendered on a 55,000-core supercomputer, and Interstellar came close to 800 terabytes of data. I just thought that was kinda cool hehe. #themoreyouknow
 
Looking super forward to watching these!

...hopefully soon. 8'D

TEA! I love tea.

I think for tea lovers, Vancouver is pretty awesome. There are no shortage of places to go for a tea fix!
Afternoon tea is especially great. Though it can get quite pricy if you go too often...
Recently had a home tea meet up at a friend's place!

 Mmm look at that spread...
The laptop at the end? It's actually a video Skype to our friend in Japan who couldn't be there in person. Our birthday toast to her :D

Close-up on some of the treats:

MY FRIENDS ARE SUCH TALENTED PEOPLE. In case you're wondering, it was all as delicious as it looked. Which is to say, so very very delicious.

Actually I think that day was the most tea I've tried in one sitting. One of the girls created a menu with about ten custom blends of tea that she fiddled with extensively. Amazing! The teas were lovely~

I made cheese scones (extra cheese yesss) and Oreo rice crispy squares!

 Good food, great company, what more to ask for?

By virtue of not being in an outside establishment, we took our time leisurely sipping tea...and maybe fangirling about certain series ahem.  /coughcough

Awesome Crunchy Potatoes...China Style!

While in Beijing, naturally you eat as the locals do.

There's a stereotype that Northern Chinese people prefer wheat-based foods (ex. noodles, dumplings) as their staples, while Southern Chinese prefer rice-based staples. #themoreyouknow

In my classes, there were even text book example phrases like: 

"北方人喜欢饺子和面条. 但是南方人觉得米饭比面条好吃." / "Northern people like dumplings and noodles, but Southern people think rice is tastier than noodles."

Hmm is there truth in this stereotype? Possibly! But as with all stereotypes, completely subjective and take it how you will. :D

Remember, as a Canadian, I wrestle with bears and eat maple syrup with everything. EVERYTHING. Mmm sugary maple goodness.

These are actually quite good btw. 9/10, would buy again

...you know the great part about above is that people really believed it. The maple syrup part I mean. Bear wrestling is part of every healthy childhood eh?

Haha note to self: write a post regarding how international stereotypes are taken in China. It's a hilarious subject and once you get past some of the ridiculous stuff, it's really fascinating. That will probably be a long post...

Anyway while not all of China's cuisine clicked with me, one I particularly liked was a potato dish called "土豆丝" / tu dou si, literally translated as potato shreds/slivers. There are many variations of the dish, but it's most commonly seasoned with vinegar and chili oil.

The thing I liked the most about it was also the weirdest. The crunchyness! The ingredients are stir fried very quickly, so that the potato retains a crunch while still being completely cooked through. 

Coming from a Western perspective, this is a bit odd considering almost every potato dish I can think of is soft and/or fluffy. 

Love both styles of potatoes though. Don't make me choose plzkthnx.

My homemade version. Could use work on aesthetics, but it tasted good.

I tried whipping some up when I suddenly had a craving for the crunchy stuff, and it was not a complete failure whoo~ 

Here are some recipes if you want to have a go at it!

http://www.tastehongkong.com/recipes/hot-and-sour-potato-shreds/

http://www.seasaltwithfood.com/2010/04/potato-slivers-with-vinegar-cu-liu-tu.html

X-Men: Days of Future Past

I finally watched it!

Really great work. I loved X-Men: First Class, so I was really anticipating this...did not disappoint! Especially that kitchen scene with Quicksilver. Wow.

Super props to Rising Sun Pictures for this amazing scene. You can read more about it here!

Spatial Design Study: Vitra Fire Station

Objective: Create a visually appealing presentation on Vitra Fire Station by Zaha Hadid. 

Tools used: Photoshop, Illustrator, Cinema 4D

Brief: Worked with a group to create physical and 3D models of the Vitra Fire Station. The point was to allow audience a clear idea of the structure and space.

Short Production: Descending

A short film with rotoscopic elements.

Tools: Premiere, After Effects, Flash

Film: Animation, Sound Design, Short Film

Rough animation with some matte painting overlays.

Tools: Maya, Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, After Effects

 

Remixed a clip of Inception. Combined layers of music, foley, ambience, and other parts composed by other class teams.
 Tools: Pro Tools, Final Cut Pro