| Bryan Konietzko | Hey, everybody. This is Bryan Konietzko, I co-create-tated this series. |
|---|---|
| Michael Dante DiMartino | And this is Mike DiMartino. |
| Joaquim Dos Santos | This is Joaquim Dos Santos, uh, co-executive producer. |
| Ian Graham | And uh, Ian Graham, director. |
| Mike | Welcome, Ian. [Ian chuckles.] |
| Bryan | So, I've known Ian a very long time, been working together on and off for many years. We met here at Nickelodeon in 2000, I think it was, on uh, Invader Zim; we were both storyboard artists. It was a-it was a very fun and uh, painful time. [Joaquim and Ian laugh.] Probably took a year off our lives, [Ian laughs intermittently.] and uh, but a-a-a, when people weren't uh, plotting each other's uh, murders, we were becoming friends and uh, and so a-a bond has been formed for surviving the experience. So, yeah, so we worked together on that, and then um, Ian was a storyboard artist on the entirety of Avatar, right? The whole thing? |
| Ian | Yeah, yeah. The whole first series. |
| Bryan | And then uh, helped out on Book One of Korra as a, like a storyboard supervisor, I believe was your... |
| Ian | [Interjects.] Yeah. |
| Bryan | ... title, right? And uh, and then uh, a director now on Books Two uh, Books Two, Three, and Four. |
| Mike | Wow, you're really, you've been along-around a long time, Ian. |
| Ian | I am [Mike chuckles intermittently.] fully entrenched in the Avatar universe. |
| Bryan | Not only that; Joaquim and Ian, though they didn't know each other I believe, uh, went to the same high school. [Ian and Joaquim affirm.] Along with uh, Sylvia, our uh, color stylist. Who-did you-did you know Sylvia? Were you guys there at the same time? 'Cause you're closer in age, I believe. |
| Ian | Uh, yeah, I think we did, but I don't know if we crossed paths, it was a pretty big school. So... [Bryan affirms.] |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] But you-did she look-did she bring her yearbook in one year, or one uh, [Mike chuckles.] season, last season or something like that? |
| Ian | Yeah, I think-I think so. She-she looked really familiar in it, but it's like, I mean, it's been a little while. [Ian and Joaquim laugh.] |
| Bryan | [Laughs.] So, yeah, so you-this was uh, you-you-you and Colin split up all the episodes for Book Two, um, and this one is one of my favorites of the season. Just... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] And this what you did the presentation at uh, Comic-Con with... |
| Bryan | [Interjects.] We did. That was... |
| Joaquim | [In the background.] New York Comic-Con. |
| Bryan | ... and that was my favorite presentation we've ever done. [Emphasizes the "pres" in "presentation".] I usually say "presentation", but [Mike laughs.] you've-you've influenced me to say [Emphasizes the "pre" in "presentation".] "presentation". |
| Joaquim | [Laughs.] I'm sorry. |
| Bryan | No, it's fine. [Mike chuckles.] |
| Joaquim | I apologize. |
| Bryan | I look up to you, you know, right? |
| Joaquim | [Pronounces "presentation" with an accent.] "Presentation". |
| Bryan | And uh, yeah. So, how-how was it directing this episode, Ian? |
| Ian | Oh, I-this-this is hands down one of my favorites; I mean, it's so rare to get an opportunity to do an episode like this that's surreal, and fantasy, and still grounded in the Avatar universe. I mean, I-I felt very lucky to be a part of it, and I absolutely love it, and the colors; I mean, this is probably one of my favorites of all time. |
| Bryan | Cool. Yeah, this, especially this back half of Book Two is the most colorful thing I've ever been [Laughs.] involved in as an art director. I-Nickelodeon was really worried, some of the higher ups, when we first started Avatar, when they saw my like kinda illustration concepts of what the show would look like, they were like, "you know, our shows are colorful, [Joaquim and Ian chuckle.] and this is just," um, what was the word? "Drab" [Laughs.] I think was the word they used, [Ian chuckles.] "drab". And uh... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] And this was for the original series? |
| Bryan | Yeah, yeah. |
| Joaquim | Wow. |
| Bryan | And uh, just 'cause everything wasn't, you know, a hundred percent saturated. [Joaquim affirms.] Um, anyways, this-so, I was kinda known for that, but, you know, I did-I did tend to paint or desaturate stuff, but anyways; back half of Book Two with all the Spirit World stuff, and uh, just ended up really colorful. |
| Mike | Yeah, this was-Studio Mir did uh, you know, the-the flashback Wan episodes, and then uh, we got them to come back for the end of Book Two, so starting with this episode, S-Studio Mir was back in the mix, uh, and it was great to have them back. [Bryan affirms.] |
| Joaquim | [Refers to the tracking shot of when Korra struggles in the flow of a river's current, the background spinning behind her to reflect the fact that the river steadily streams and spirals around through an underground cavern.] I'm-and we cheered when we saw that scene, 'cause I remember [Mike affirms.] we were really worried about, you know, them handling all the water, and the-the dynamics of that shot, and it came back so awesome. [Bryan affirms.] We were like high fiving when we were watching the take ones. |
| Bryan | It's amazing. |
| Mike | And... |
| Bryan | [Interjects.] They-they blew us away with this episode. |
| Mike | And Jinora in particular, I remember s-looks really great in this episode. |
| Bryan | Yeah. [Refers to the insect-like dark spirit that jerkily brandishes its spiky legs at Korra, one set at a time.] I love the timing on this creepy thing. So, these-these creepy spirits were designed by uh, Fred Stewart, one-our uh, one of our background painters, and uh, normally... |
| Mike | [Interjects; refers to the dark spirit, resembling two disembodied hands clasped together, crawling up a tree behind Korra.] This, yeah, this hand thing... [Bryan and Ian laugh.] |
| Joaquim | [Interjects; laughs.] Like, dude. |
| Mike | ... is hands down, no pun intended, [Joaquim and Ian laugh.] the scariest thing I've ever seen. |
| Joaquim | Hands down. |
| Bryan | You know, unfortunately, you don't get to see it, [Mike affirms.] it has a mouth in the hand... |
| Mike | [In the background.] Yeah, it's, [Refers to when the shot panned around 360-degrees, showcasing the dark spirits in the gloomy forest before returning to its original position where Korra and the dark spirit hand were.] oh, there it is again. |
| Bryan | ... kinda like the old uh, S-Santa Cruz l-skate company thing, [Joaquim gives an affirming murmur.] right? Had that hand. And um, yeah, I follow Fred's blog and he has some freaky drawings on there; sweetest, nicest, most gentle guy, but man, he's got some twisted uh, [Bryan and Joaquim laugh.] drawings coming out of his head. So, we were like, "we need something really scary. Well, let's use Fred's nightmares". [Refers to Furry-Foot flying through the air toward Jinora, towering over the young airbender when she runs over to hug him.] So, love this thing, that Furry-Foot comes back but he's-he's all giant in the Spirit World, but it made me think that uh, Bum-Ju should've been giant when we saw him [Ian chuckles.] in the Spirit World. |
| Joaquim | Oh! |
| Mike | Yeah, figured they can just regulate their size when they... [Bryan and Ian laugh.] |
| Joaquim | [Interjects; laughs.] That's the size they're when... |
| Mike | ... that's-depending what mood-mood they're in, you know. [Bryan affirms.] They're spirits. |
| Bryan | Well, there's some sort of uh, cosmic event that's givin' 'em some extra mojo. [Refers to Furry-Foot fluttering up and over Jinora, hovering behind her until she jumps on his back, the both of them then flying off into the distance.] Man, the animation is j-ah, it's just so good in this one. |
| Mike | [Brief pause; refers to when Jinora spots Wan Shi Tong's Spirit Library, upside-down and suspended in the air from being wrapped in a plethora of vines.] Yeah, this uh, episode also, we get to revisit some-some classic Avatar people and locations. We go back to, [Bryan affirms.] coming back to the library, here, in a-in a moment. |
| Bryan | And this was uh, written by Tim, right? |
| Mike | Yep. |
| Bryan | Tim Hedrick, and uh, who was, um, like Josh, our other writer, you know, veteran of Avatar as well, and uh, so they were b-they were all very familiar with the-the Avatar myth, and... |
| Mike | [Interjects.] Yeah, I always like, I mean, we-in Book One, we did, but, you know, whenever we could like tie into the old mythology and characters, it was always cool if it organically kinda worked in, and it seemed like, "oh, we're going to the Spirit World. Can go to the library, Wan Shi Tong, you know, buried the library". With... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] And that was one that got a huge cheer at Comic-Con, when-when that image came up, [Mike affirms.] it was like the room blew up. [Mike chuckles.] It was really cool. |
| Bryan | So, the um, yeah, in Book One, it was more we were-we were definitely tying it into, you know, the old characters, but they were-we were seeing them as adults, and it was all basically in Republic City, which was a new location that didn't exist during Avatar, so, um, you know, here, we're really going to the, you know, some of the locations. [Refers to Uncle Iroh finding and greeting Korra.] And there's Iroh, one of a-one of the favorite characters from Avatar. Was nice to have him back. And Tim, man; Tim writes Uncle Iroh so well, [Refers to when Iroh helps Korra to realize the benefits of maintaining a positive outlook.] and this is an episode I never get tired of it 'cause every time... Iroh's so good at imparting wisdom without seeming preachy, or self-righteous, or uh, you know, just being a pedantic like know-it-all. He's just, like, he's so friendly and wise, and the-the stuff he says, [Laughs.] I'm like, "man, [Mike affirms intermittently.] that's great advice. [Bryan and Joaquim chuckle.] You know, I should-I should really listen to that". [Refers to when Korra's appearance, reflecting her fear and insecurity at being alone in the Spirit World and surrounded by its frightening denizens, changes to herself at four-years old.] And little, cute Korra came out great, and uh, voiced by Dee Bradley Baker's uh, daughter, Cora, as we've mentioned in the past. |
| Joaquim | [Refers to Korra attending a tea party with Iroh, the latter's spirit friends sitting around a table.] So, this is like a good example of a scene, Ian, that I think like to a viewer can come off as like, "oh, it's kinda simple," you know, there's not a ton going on, they're-they're having tea, but I remember this thing being kind of a nightmare, like keeping track of where everybody was at the table, and then hooking up their locations, and... |
| Ian | [Interjects.] Yeah, the, I mean, it was a bit difficult, but I mean, it-it wasn't too bad. I mean, is it-to me, the-the best part of the-the Avatar universe on-on our side, on the production side, is we work as such a good team, and we communicate really well, so even when we have sticky situations, we're all-we're all there for each other to kinda help each other out and make it work right, and-and this is a perfect example of where we all worked together really hard, and-and it all came together really well. So... |
| Bryan | [Interjects.] Yeah, it's uh, we-in some of the early commentaries with the writers, we've talked about, uh, not to take anything away from each person's contribution, but, you know, we have a very collaborative process, and it-it goes, everything goes through lots of stages, and where, you know, a lotta different people kinda take their pass, and help augment it and course correct it, and-and uh, yeah, this-it's, not to take from Ian as a director, he's a fantastic director and he has a lotta influence on the shows, but, you know, Ian and... and all the board artists, and the su-supervisors, and Joaquim, and Mike and I, every-everybody is like kinda combing through everything, over and over and over again, so it becomes this big primordial ooze. |
| Joaquim | Right. One of-one of the things that uh, I remember telling the board guys when they were first starting, uh, was, "hey, we're all gonna get our stuff revised at some point. Even, you know, if I board something directly, it's gonna get revise, and that's only a good thing 'cause it makes it better along the process," so, we're all s-uh, you're right. The-everybody's sorta DNA is on every scene in-in some way. |
| Bryan | If you just think of it like drafts, you know? It's-it's like uh, a script. Every time Mike and I write something together, or-or he and the writers write something, it-it gets better at every draft, and-and there's nothing wrong with that, that's just kinda the process. It's why I'm always wary of releasing like [Laughs.] animatics or uh, scripts, and stuff; the network always wants to like use 'em as extras, and stuff, and I'm like, [In a furtive tone.] "I don't want, it's-it's not fully cooked!" [Joaquim and Ian chuckle.] |
| Mike | [Laughs.] Uh... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects; refers to Jinora convincing Wan Shi Tong to let her use his library by bringing up her association with the Avatar.] Did you work on the original one of this, Ian? Were you on this episode? |
| Bryan | This was Gian... |
| Ian | [In the background.] Yeah. |
| Bryan | ... Gian-Gian-wasn't it Giancarlo's? |
| Ian | Yeah. |
| Bryan | He directed-yeah. And you were on... |
| Ian | [Interjects.] He directed it, but I was a board artist [Bryan affirms.] on it. It-it's funny, too, 'cause there's this weird thing that happens, like when-especially since this episode was bringing Iroh back, and there's this element to when you work in animation, with these characters, these kinda characters for such a long time, they almost become part of your memory, like remembering family members, and things. And so, [Bryan affirms.] this episode was really special like that because not only were we going to places that were familiar in the past, but we were also bringing in characters that were very familiar, so there's a-there was a personal nostalgia here for me, anyway, that I really enjoyed. |
| Mike | Yeah, I remember we-we loved the-the-the design and the voice of the little Korra character so much from the first episode, but we were like, "how, you know, how are we ever gonna see her again without doing some flashback that probably doesn't need to happen?" but when we were talking about these episodes in the Spirit World, it just-and trying to come up with a, you know, a kind of a standalone story for Korra in the Spirit World, um, something she'd have to overcome, and everything, we kinda hit upon this idea of-of uh, Korra, basically like Korra's inner child coming out because she is in this place that's scary and unfamiliar, and she's still spiritually immature, so to speak, [Ian chuckles.] that um, that-that it kind of manifests in her younger self. And it was perfect, we could use her younger version, and she's super charming and cute. |
| Bryan | [Refers to when Korra has a tantrum at the party, angrily telling Iroh she doesn't want to be in the Spirit World anymore.] And real, she feels like a real kid, [Joaquim and Mike affirm.] not like a schmaltzy, animation kid. [Ian chuckles.] |
| Joaquim | Right, right, right, right. [Ian laughs.] Like, yeah, speaking adult-adult words through a kid voice. |
| Bryan | [Refers to Iroh telling Korra that her emotions beget her reality, in this case her fear and frustration causing the nearby spirits to turn dark, while the bright sky swiftly clouds over.] Speak it, speak it, brother Iroh. [Ian laughs.] They're good. |
| Mike | Yeah, that-that's some-that's a serious nugget of wisdom. [Bryan laughs.] It... |
| Bryan | [Interjects.] There's so many! |
| Mike | ... applies in the physical world as well, [Ian chuckles.] that your emotions can become your reality. |
| Joaquim | [Refers to the radish lotus spirit behind Korra, Iroh, and their Pai Sho board.] Dude, he freaks me out, back there; the big... |
| Bryan | Yeah, [Laughs; refers to the radish lotus spirit's gloomy expression.] he's-he's-is freaked out, [Joaquim affirms.] his expression. |
| Joaquim | His eyes are so sunken in. |
| Bryan | He's like a radish macaque thing. [Refers to Korra, her back to the camera, kneeling on top of her stool, with the soles of her bare feet being visible.] Her little feet, there. [Joaquim affirms.] Her little kid pose, very cute. She really reminds me of uh, our friend's daughter, Nova, in the-in this episode. She's... cute four-year old, five-year old. |
| Joaquim | [Refers to when Korra takes the baby dragon bird spirit she befriended to the top of Hai-Riyo Peak.] Climbing up mountains. |
| Bryan | Yep. [Bryan and Ian laugh.] Independent. [Brief pause.] So, another funny little thing just happened; the episode where we met Wan Shi Tong and went to the spirit library, um, on Avatar, the production number was 210, it was season two, episode ten. And this episode is 210 of Korra. |
| Mike | Whoa. |
| Bryan | We're like, "whoa!" [Ian laughs.] |
| Joaquim | Just blew my mind. |
| Bryan | Yeah. [Refers to the fledgling dragon bird spirit standing by Iroh's teapot.] I love that little... |
| Mike | [Interjects.] Yeah, he's super cute, too. |
| Bryan | ... dragon bird guy. [Imitates the dragon bird's cry as it hops onto Iroh's proffered hand.] |
| A brief pause in commentary until Korra, after confidently declaring she will take the baby dragon bird spirit back to its home, asks Iroh where she should go in a now faltering tone. | |
| Bryan | [Laughs.] I love that line. [Imitates Korra.] "Uh, where do I go?". [Refers to when Korra, after only taking a few steps forward away from Iroh, turns around to find him a significant distance away.] So, it was really fun to play with the um... inconsistent, ever changing uh, spatial relationships in the Spirit World. Um, you see it throughout this season, um, where... [Refers to the symbol in the book Jinora is reading.] oh, real quick, the little image she saw in the book was the uh, that kinda circle, ancient design we used for the Book Two trailer, that was [Ian gives an affirming murmur.] spinning around. Um, yeah, so, you know, when-when little Korra goes to climb that mountain, all of a sudden, she'll turn around and Iroh's, you know, half a mile behind her or she's suddenly halfway up the mount-you know, it was real-really fun to play with that, like nothing is con-there's no constant in the uh... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] Yeah, there's insane... |
| Bryan | ... Spirit World. |
| Joaquim | ... sorta psychological trickery. |
| Bryan | [Refers to the stylized illustration of the Tree of Time inside the next book Jinora reads.] So, we get a little flash of the uh, the Wan stylized artwork again, and uh... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects; refers to the shot moving and tracking around the stylized Tree of Time, the foreground, tree and background elements of the landscape moving at different rates.] And this, I-I remember this sequence 'cause I had boarded this little-this little book sequence, here; and it was something that I think we were excited 'cause we were u-working with this new storyboard program, and we were able to move around the layers and do all sorts of cool stuff, and then we gave it to Matt to really-Matt Gadbois, our After Effects artist, and he really put some beautiful, sort of subtle movements on there to m-to make it all... |
| Bryan | [Interjects.] Yeah, it came out great. |
| Joaquim | ... feel real. |
| Bryan | [Refers to the camera panning along one of the spirit library's aisles, Jinora and her multiple stack of books being in the foreground, while Wan Shi Tong and Unalaq stand in the background.] That's a cool uh, little parallax, you know, perspective shift, the kinda stuff that uh, when we brought Matt on as the After Effects artist in Book One of Korra, we-we were trying to get at the-those cool like 2D-3D uh, shifts, neat camera work. And uh, the artists at Mir have a really great compositing team, and uh, a lotta times they-they've just been adding it [Joaquim gives an affirming murmur.] even when we don't plan for it, and it's been really cool. That was one of my favorite ones. |
| Joaquim | And it's nice when it's nice and subtle; it's not over the top, [Bryan affirms.] it's not, you know, slamming you in the face with, like, "look, a big 3D move!" |
| Bryan | [Refers to Furry-Foot turning into a dark spirit, its coloration becoming more vivid, while the patterns on its face and body become more angular and jagged.] So, Furry-Foot, um, you know, they were supposed to be these dragonfly bunny spirits, and uh, so even when they're cute, I made their faces not like little just eyes and nose patterns, but they were loosely in-in-when I was looking at macro photography of dragonflies', uh, faces, you know, closeup shots of what their heads and faces look like, I was kinda basing some of the patterns on that. So, when Furry-Foot went dark, we uh, I we-I went closer to that, he's more insect-like, creepy; he's like the Fly. [Joaquim chuckles; refers to when Korra responds to Iroh's question if she still thinks the baby dragon bird spirit is scary with a delighted "no".] I love her read, right here. She's like, "no". [Ian chuckles.] |
| Joaquim | [Refers to the baby dragon bird spirit cooing as Korra rubs under its chin.] That's the cutest thing, ever. |
| Mike | I know. |
| Bryan | [Imitates Korra.] "No". [Ian chuckles.] Love it. [Refers to when Iroh tells Korra that after his work was done in the physical world, he left his body behind to live in the Spirit World.] So, it j-we-we sh-might wanna point out that um, you know, Iroh, uh, he-he passed away, he passed on, his physical-his physical life on uh, in Korra's world ended, um, but the Spirit World is not just like some catch-all after-world for humans. Um, you know, we've seen like with the Painted Lady, and uh, maybe a few other things we've shown, there are some, you know, hu-some spirits who started as humans, and uh, I think they-with the idea, and back me up or correct me, Mike, is that very special people who are just already imbued with a lot of spiritual energy, or-and/or developed it and cultivated it throughout their lives and developed a strong connection to the Spirit World, sort of able to transfer their-their personality into the Spirit World and kind of embody some energy, there. But I like the idea, kinda like the-the Painted Lady, you know, she was much, much more kinda ghost-like, and-and uh, she had been around a lot-in the Spirit World a lot longer than-than Iroh-than Iroh has at this point, but I like the idea that, you know, if you check in another hundred, five hundred, thousand years, he's-he's not just gonna stay kind of in a little time, you know, like a little frozen in time in this kinda afterlife, he's kinda becoming more and more of a spirit and-and evolving away from the human. |
| Joaquim | So, there is still is like an evolution in the-in the Spirit World? |
| Bryan | Yeah, I think, you know, he's-the-the further awa-he-away he is from the memory of his corporeal self, you know, he's becoming more and more just of-an-an essence, you know? And-and retain some qualities of his personality, but uh, that's how I picture it, this... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] Is it possible that that creepy turnip guy back there was like a human, once? [Mike, Ian and Joaquim laugh.] |
| Bryan | He might have been a-he might have been a monkey that ate a turnip... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] There you go. [Mike chuckles.] |
| Bryan | ... and fell through the portal, [Mike and Ian laugh.] uh, in a really gusty, uh, blast of wind, and uh, next thing he knew... |
| Joaquim | [In the background.] Boom. |
| Bryan | ... he was just a giant radish head [Joaquim chuckles.] with really blue eyes. |
| Mike | [Refers to when the shot panned around 360-degrees, tracking along with the dragon bird spirits as they fly through the air and transform into their fully grown form, before returning to its original position where Korra whips her head back to look at her friend in wonderment, returned to her eighteen-year old self.] So, there, I really like, like, the transformation like when Korra becomes the little girl at first, and then again when she goes back to her normal self, we do this like 360-degree, spin-around type shot so you see her uh, in one version at the beginning of the pan, and then you spin around, and then you see her other version; turned out pretty cool. |
| Bryan | [Refers to the three canine-like guardian spirits that Korra befriended and spiritually balanced as she traversed Hai-Riyo Peak.] So, the uh, the mountain guardians um, were based on, uh, you had some photos, right, Mike? From when you were in Thailand? |
| Mike | The-yeah. There were these, there's a lotta cool stuff in Thailand of these, I don't know quite what creatures they're supposed to be, or monkey gods, or something? I don't know, [Bryan affirms intermittently.] but they're like guardians of temples, and stuff, and they're really cool. |
| Bryan | So, we based 'em on that, but we also based them on uh, uh, pit bulls, which uh, as we all know, get a bad rap, but uh, are also very cute, [Mike chuckles.] sweet, and um, Lisa Yang, uh, who works in our design department, I-I asked her for reference of her uh, some photos of her pit bull so I could get some anatomy reference for when they turned all nice. And uh, they came out looking kinda like her, except the opposite color. |
| Mike | [Refers to Unalaq holding Jinora hostage in weaving streams of glowing purple water, her spirit slowly turning the same color as Unalaq threatens to completely destroy the airbender unless Korra opens the Northern portal.] I think this is the first time, too, we show like Unalaq's dark like spirit transformation abilities. So, he could-he could turn spirits light like we saw in the beginning, but we also see there's a dark version of that. |
| Bryan | Yeah, and he... it's kinda, you know, everything has a flip side, and, you know, Raa-Una-you know, Unalaq uh, I'm sorry, Raava and Vaatu, you know, yin and yang, sorta... positive and negative polarity of everything, and uh, so if something could be used to heal, it can also be used to sorta poison. And this is also reminiscent of the light battle that Aang and uh, Ozai had, where they-someone's kind of spirit is being poisoned by negative energy. [Refers to Korra opening the Northern portal.] So, this is pretty crazy... sequence, I remember. |
| Joaquim | We also, I remember, going for hours with you, Ian, discussing what side the portals were on, [Bryan laughs.] where they were in orientation to the tree; [Refers to the Tree of Time standing in between the two portals, the hollow in which Vaatu is visible facing away from both of them.] it turns out the tree was facing sort of neutral to both portals, but for the longest time, we were continually making revisions, I remember, to the board. |
| Ian | Yeah. It's... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] And you were like, "this tree's [Bryan and Mike laugh.] making me crazy!" |
| Ian | [Laughs; refers to the shot tracking along with Korra as she shifts through the landscape from the Southern portal to Vaatu's prison in the Tree of Time in only a few seconds.] Well, it's because the-the spatial relationships in this world can bend, [Bryan affirms.] it makes it even a little harder to track. [Mike chuckles.] |
| Bryan | Or it gives us a bit of an excuse when we're inconsistent. [Joaquim affirms.] |
| Ian | Exactly. [Laughs.] |
| Bryan | [Refers to the beam of light emanating from the Southern portal being a pale blue, while a beam of faint red light erupts from the Northern portal when Korra opens it.] So, what we did was, because, you know, the storyboards are generally in black and white, but I knew I was gonna have the portals be different colors, um, it was-it was hard to keep track of, but what we did was we, I think, pretty much throughout all these Book Two episodes, the Southern portal's always on screen left, and the Northern portal's always on screen right. [Brief pause.] But there aren't, like, signs, [Laughs.] you know? |
| Joaquim | No. [Ian laughs.] |
| Bryan | There's no-it-it-this location pretty much looks the same in every direction. So... |
| Joaquim | [Interjects.] Yeah. And I can remember being in a couple meetings, and, Bryan, you turning to us and saying like, "that's the Southern one," and us going like, [Bryan laughs; in an unsure tone.] "yeah? [Mike and Ian laugh.] If it needs to be." |
| Bryan | It became a "Who's on First?" thing... |
| Joaquim | [In the background; laughs.] Yeah. |
| Bryan | ... for a while. |
| A brief pause in commentary until, as the purple energy from Unalaq's spiritbending is about to completely envelop Korra, the fully grown dragon bird spirit swoops in from above. | |
| Joaquim | I'd say this sequence in particular is like a good example... |
| In the background, Ian and Bryan snicker as the dragon bird spirit swats away Unalaq with its tail, sending him through the air at great speed. | |
| Joaquim | ... of-of-each of-yeah, s-he just got totally slapped away. |
| Ian | I love that smack. |
| Joaquim | But it's a-it's a good example of there's so many hands that were involved. Uh, I mean, I can see specifically scenes that Ryu had done, scenes that you had done, Ian, scenes that I had done, and scenes that Lauren had done, all just in this sequence, right here. And scenes that were done by-by Mir, I believe. [Bryan affirms.] |
| Ian | Well, one of my telltale shots, I was joking around with Joaquim, and Lauren, and Ryu, was-is that if there's some foliage in the foreground, [Bryan chuckles.] you know I've been there. [Joaquim and Ian laugh.] |
| Bryan | Oh man. It was because on Zim, Steve said, "hey, uh, you know, it's always good to have something in the foreground [Ian chuckles.] with depth," and man, Ian was just like, [In an excited tone.] "really? I can do that?" and years later, he's still doing it. |
| Ian | Oh, I guess I would. |
| Bryan | So, I like to tease him about it. |
| Joaquim | It's very effective. [Ian chuckles.] It's a-it's a good trick [Bryan affirms.] for-especially for 2D animation. |
| Mike | [Refers to Tenzin desperately asking Korra what happened to Jinora after she didn't wake up, tears welling up in Korra's eyes as she stares back at him, at a loss for words.] This part was always very sad, [Bryan and Joaquim affirm.] and very devastating. |
| Bryan | Great job, Ian! |
| Mike | Uh... |
| Ian | Thank you. |
| Bryan | [Interjects.] Awesome, awesome episode. |
| Mike | Thanks, Ian. |
| Bryan | Great job, Tim. I love-and Studio Mir; just such a beautiful, you know, example of what TV animation can be. [In a hushed tone.] Though it comes at a s-very, [Mike and Ian laugh.] very difficult price to pay. [Ian chuckles.] |
| Joaquim | [Laughs.] It does. |
| Bryan | Not just monetary, either. Blood, sweat, and tears. |