Back-to-back company open days! A couple days ago I went to the Google offices in Dublin, and now I'm headed to Kilkenny to see Cartoon Saloon's offices. Cartoon Saloon is the animation company behind "Secret of the Kells" and "Song of the Sea", both of which were nominated for Best Animated Feature. The first film has an incredibly unique animation style, as it is based on illuminated manuscripts that Ireland is famous for. I'll be honest, I watched it without knowing anything of Irish history and was completely lost. I watched it again after living in Ireland and doing some research (okay, I wrote an entire paper on it and the way the film represented the intersection of paganism and Christianity)...and my mind was blown. So, do yourself a favor and at least read the wikipedia article on the Book of Kells first before watching the film.
So, it's my first time in Kilkenny and holy moly, is there any city that more perfectly represents the essence of an Irish town? It has a quaint main square and tidy, twisty streets, and tiny shops in old buildings. There's a river, a castle, and one of the two climbable round towers in Ireland. Seriously, I am in love.
The open day was packed; we were in a theatre for the first part and even then there wasn't enough room. But it was cool to see the company founders and listen to them talk. I admit I came here to see what sort of skills I'd need to get into animation. It's not something I'm seriously considering, but it's something that's closely related to my film background (which is all in live action). During the tour of the headquarters the employees were happy to show off demos of what they were doing; they were well-prepared to talk about different projects and show us test footage. I got to see some Adobe After Effects gurus at work and cried a little on the inside.
Some attendees were interviewed that day. The rest of us went and explored the town. We were given coupons to go see the highlights of Kilkenny. I thought it was awesome that the partnered with local companies to get a huge amount of vouchers. Clearly they have good ties with the community; I'm sure Cartoon Saloon is one of the pride and joys of the town. There was even a room with booths to discuss the practical side of moving to Kilkenny and finding a place to live. All in all, it was extremely well organized, especially considering that they had far more people attend than they ever expected.
After the tour was over, I mostly just explored Kilkenny Castle's spacious grounds; they've turned the demesne into a huge park and it was relaxing to just lay on the grass in the sunshine. I'll be coming back for sure.
