I am Kyle's self-indulgence

Did I mention yet that Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean have collaborated on a new film, mixing live action and CG environments? I have? Well, here's an article about it, anyway.

The article actually takes an interesting look at the increasing prevalence of movies that depend almost entirely on computers for their look. After the last Star Wars movie, I was slightly concerned about the quality of what Gaiman and McKean set out to do. However, while George Lucas aspired to simply create realistic-looking environments, Dave McKean points out that he had something else entirely in mind: "It's down to tastes and what the script demands. I prefer to make images that are imagined. If we want something that looks like a forest, I would rather just go out to a forest."

I can sympathize with such an attitude. I don't believe technology should drive an artist to attempt something flashy and complicated just because he can. I believe an artistic vision should drive a work, and that technology should be used in whatever ways will best bring that vision to reality. I have read such comments from McKean from when he began to use computer manipulation in his comics artwork. The way he put it was that before he used computers, he could accomplish 40% of what was in his mind. With computers, he could actually do 80-90% of what he wanted.