The conference starts tomorrow, so even though I’m ready for my sessions most of the day was spent reworking slides and fretting.

After breakfast (with great coffee!) at Joe’s Garage and lunch on a decommissioned tug boat nee cafe, Sarah toured the Te Papa museum as a visitor, and I toured it as part of tech prep to check out the rooms and computer/display compatibilities.  I had the pleasure of meeting Enrico Casarosa of Pixar, who will be presenting the Southern Hemisphere premiere of his short ‘La Luna’ on Tuesday.

Enrico Casarosa checking out the projection of "La Luna" in the theater at Te Papa.

It’s always comforting to walk though the spaces you’ll be presenting in beforehand, especially when it’s as well organized as the AnimFX and Te Papa teams are – everything plugged in and worked perfectly the first time.

In the evening there was a VIP dinner at the Museum Hotel’s Hippopotamus Restaurant. Fantastic food with fascinating people. I got to meet many of the other presenters and hosts.

VIP dinner at Hippopotamus. I wish I could have sat at both tables!

This was one of the astonishing options for dessert at Hippopotamus - a raspberry delight with almond macaroons.