Interview: Avatar's Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino - IGN (original) (raw)

With the premiere of Avatar's third season just a few weeks away (September 21, 8:30 pm on Nickelodeon), there's still a lot of work in store for the show's creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino. They have several storylines to wrap up, a live-action movie in the works and the future of the world of Avatar to consider. Needless to say, these two are keeping themselves busy. Despite their hectic schedule, they took the time to chat with IGN about Avatar: The Last Airbender, discussing their influences, their fans and what to expect for the Avatar universe.

Bryan Konietzko (L) and Michael Dante DiMartino (R)

IGN: With the great animation, various storylines and characters in the series, there's a lot to digest, making for some great story telling. What were your influences when coming up with this series?

BRYAN:

Mike and I were really interested in other epic "Legends & Lore" properties, like Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, but we knew that we wanted to take a different approach to that type of genre. Our love for Japanese Anime, Hong Kong action & Kung Fu cinema, yoga, and Eastern philosophies led us to the initial inspiration for Avatar.

MIKE: Bryan and I love the films of Hayao Miyazaki. The stories and emotional depth of Spirited Away, and Princess Mononoke were big inspirations for us when we began creating Avatar. Also, the character design and animation of Fooly Cooly from studio Gainex was influential as well.

IGN: Each character is incredibly unique and compelling -- Aang has huge talents and is incredibly kind, but is also naive, where Prince Zuko is rather brash. How did you conceive these characters and their backgrounds? Were they influenced from other characters, fictional or otherwise, or are they something that you had floating around beforehand?

MIKE:

One of the inspirations for Aang was the trickster hero, common to many world mythologies. We wanted Aang to solve problems and defeat enemies with his wits as well as his powerful abilities.

BRYAN: For Zuko, we wanted to avoid the usual moustache twisting two-dimensional villain. It is much more interesting for us to create an antagonist whose motivations are the pain of abuse and falling from grace. It makes the bad things he does resonate emotionally, since they come from a place people can empathize with, rather than having some "super villain" who just cooks up evil plots all of the time.

IGN: The voice casting is really inspired, with top-tier talent appearing in your show. Actors like Jason Issacs, Mako, Clancy Brown, Phil LaMarr and Mark Hamill all bring such fantastic life to these characters. Are they people that you pursued, or did they just click with their respective characters during the auditions?

MIKE: We've been honored to work with such a great group of actors. From the main cast on down, all the actors have infused their characters with a lot of emotional depth. When I was first writing dialogue for the character of Zhao, I was inspired by Jason Isaacs' chilling performance as the villain in The Patriot. So when the time came to cast the character, I asked our casting director, Maryanne Dacey, if she could find someone like Jason Isaacs. A few days later, she got the real deal instead.

IGN: During the Avatar panel at this year's San Diego Comic Convention, you mentioned that the late Mako helped out quite a bit with shaping who Uncle Iroh was, adding great depth to an already likeable character. Would you mind expanding on that?

MIKE:

Bryan and I had seen Mako in a couple films and we offered him the role without even hearing an audition. The first time he recorded, we knew he was perfect. He was really funny and brought a lot of warmth to the character. But he can also sound very wise and serious when he needs to. We're honored that he was a part of "Avatar."

IGN: How did you determine the different styles of martial arts used by the different benders?

BRYAN:

We knew we wanted the "magic" in our show to be different than the typical wand-wielding spell-casting fare. For us, it had to be natural and physical, with a source and rules and limitations - and most importantly it had to be a skill rather than just a power, something that a practitioner had to learn and strive for. We wanted the elemental "bending" to be based on authentic Chinese traditional martial arts, believing this would lend a beauty and resonance to the animation and the fictitious disciplines. Once we had that idea, I started looking for a Kung Fu teacher/Martial Arts consultant. My search led me to Sifu Kisu and I began training with him right away. He has been a valuable part of the project ever since.

MIKE: After we discussed the concept of the show with Sifu Kisu, he suggested that each of the different Nations could have a different style of Kung Fu. So the circular movements of Ba Gua became Airbending; the fluid movements of Tai Chi became Waterbending; the powerful Hung Gar style was perfect for Earthbending; and the fast, aggressive style of Northern Shaolin was the inspiration for Firebending.

IGN: With this show being animated but not anime, were you surprised to see all of the fans of Japanese animation becoming fans of the show? Do you feel that U.S. animation gets the respect it deserves when compared to anime?

MIKE:

Since a lot of Avatar's inspiration comes from anime and Asian culture, we hoped that anime fans would like it. But, when you're creating something, you never know what the response will be. Bryan and I wanted to create a show with a lot of heart - something we would want to watch, and thankfully, a lot of other people want to watch it too.

BRYAN: I'll just say that America - us included - has a long way to go to catch up with the animated work being done in a handful of countries, namely Japan.

IGN: I've seen the entire first season and bits and pieces from the second, so forgive me if this has already been answered, but while watching the series, there's been one question that's really been occurring to me time and again: What does the arrow on Aang's head mean?

MIKE: All Airbenders get tattoos on their head, arms, and legs once they master Airbending. The arrows run along the chi paths in the body. Aang was the youngest Airbender to ever master Airbending so he received his tattoos at a very early age. The Airbenders were inspired by the arrows on the heads of the air bison, the original Airbenders.

IGN: You have an incredibly devoted following, which we discovered in San Diego, as there were literally hundreds of people dressed up as characters from Avatar, showing their support to the show. Was the show's overwhelming success a pleasant surprise, or was it something you anticipated?

MIKE:

We thought people would like the show, but we never anticipated how much they would like the show and that they'd want to dress up like the characters. And not just the main characters, either. Some of the fans dressed up as characters that only show up in one episode for a few minutes. That's some dedication. We appreciate all the fan support and enthusiasm.

IGN: What can we expect for Avatar's third season? Will this season be the final installment to the Avatar world?

MIKE:

This particular, three season arc will end in an exciting way that wraps up the story of Aang and Zuko. However, Bryan and I have other ideas to expand the Avatar universe, so hopefully the world will live on for a long time.

IGN: What can you say to older audiences to help draw them into the show?

MIKE:

I'd encourage them to watch a few episodes and check it out. We've discovered that once people see the show they are totally hooked. If you're into Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, or any of those expansive worlds that draw on mythology and epic storytelling, then you'll probably like Avatar too.

IGN: Thanks a lot for your time guys! Good luck on Book 3: Fire.

MIKE:

Thanks for the interview! And let everyone know that the Complete Book 2 box set is coming out on September 11 and season 3 premieres on Nickelodeon on September 21 at 8:30 pm!