Post-production uncovered: Untold on Avatar: The Last Airbender (Netflix)

Untold Studios produced over 70 highly complex VFX shots for Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender.

The show follows Aang, the young Avatar, as he learns to master the four elements (Water, Earth, Fire, and Air) to restore balance to a world threatened by the terrifying Fire Nation. Along the way, Aang teams up with Water tribe siblings Katara and Sokka, as well as many other unforgettable characters.

Untold’s contribution included water simulation, fire effects, and a fight sequence where characters are seen lifting chunks of the earth and throwing it towards their enemies. You can see the work that went into this in the video below. 

In addition, Untold also created The Tale of Two Lovers animated episode, where audiences are shown the origin of Omashu City and the love story that birthed it. The highly technical animation was captured through a single shot and mixes CGI visuals with watercolour effects, delicately layered over the top. To design and build the watercolour sequence, the team deeply explored the art and design of South and East Asia to authentically tell this story.

The Untold team was led by VFX supervisor James Hattsmith, with over 50 people contributing to the visual effects.

Hattsmith explains, “Working on a show of this nature was really exciting because there was such a broad spectrum of work for us to bring to life. From the high-end photoreal effects peppered throughout the show, to the animated cave sequence, the team were constantly being challenged to create the best possible visuals, working closely with executive producer Jabbar Raisani throughout. It was a total pleasure to work on this from start to finish and the outcome really shows the range of expertise here at Untold Studios.”