Tell us a bit about yourself.

I'm 29 years old (b. 1974), studied physics and journalism in Aachen, Edinburgh and Hamburg, spent a few years as managing director of one of those tiny internet companies, specialising in educational websites.

From the moment I got my first computer, a Commodore C=16 in 1985, I found creating graphics to be the most interesting thing to do with it. It became a real passion once I'd bought an Amiga 500 in 1989. Inspired by the early Pixar shorts 3D was the way for me to go, using Reflections and later on Imagine. After the inevitable switch to a PC, I "experimented" with the first releases of 3D Studio. This period would prove to be very influential in my choice of 3D software later on.

I have to admit though that, despite all my enthusiasm at the time, I never really got past the "logos and fly-bys phase".

During my time at university I was very unproductive with respect to 3D graphics, concentrating more on "real" video and student TV. In 2001, though, I decided to rekindle that old love for CGI and, in my spare time, started to produce my first animated short film, "Kicker". This whole experience was basically a dream come true.

Apart form 3D and animation I love snowboarding, all aspects of film(making), computer games, science and history.

What were you doing in Edinburgh? Was it part of your journalism course?

No, I continued to study physics there, which I had begun in Aachen two year before. But it was in Edinburgh where I decided I wanted to shift my career into another direction, starting with an internship at The Herald newspaper.

Those internships were required to enrol for journalism - in addition to continuing physics - in Hamburg. Also, I did lots of video filming and looking back, I would say that this fantastic year abroad gave me the courage to always try and pursue my dreams, which I eventually did when I rediscovered computer animation and film making.

When did you see LightWave for the first time?

That was in the early summer of 2001 after my decision to get back into 3D. I was checking out reviews and tutorials in magazines to find out what software I should buy. That's where I read about LightWave, and I immediately decided against using it, because I didn't like the interface in the screenshot.

When did you first start using it?

Not very long afterwards. In the end I had to decide between LightWave and another software package. I based my decision not on features but on workflow and how comfortable I would feel with the software in general. LightWave emerged as the winner.

My last experience with 3D software had been 3D Studio in the early 1990s. It had screens for modelling and screens for animating and there were no icons. Sounds familiar, eh? With LightWave I felt like I could continue where I left off ten years before and still take advantage of the enormous advances 3D software had made in the meantime.

What do you like about the package?

First of all I like the overall workflow. Except for some interface issues, it just feels right to me. Most of the features are readily accessible, even more so with the text-based interface. Then there's the LightWave community without whose help I probably couldn't have finished "Kicker". I am also very content with the quality of the renderer.