Production The Legend of Korra

1 production

1.1 development
1.2 style
1.3 music

production
development

concept art of korra overlooking republic city, released after announcement of series

the legend of korra co-created , produced bryan konietzko , michael dante dimartino (together referred bryke fans, in reference shipping naming conventions) @ nickelodeon animation studios in burbank, california. illustrate length of production process (about 10 12 months per episode) , overlap of various phases, konietzko wrote in july 2013 team developing storyboards first episode of book 4 while last episodes of book 2 not yet finished.

production of series announced @ annual comic-con in san diego on july 22, 2010. due release in october 2011. tentatively titled avatar: legend of korra @ time, intended twelve-episode mini series set in same fictional universe original show, seventy years later. in 2011, title changed last airbender: legend of korra, , again in march 2012 legend of korra. premiere delayed april 14, 2012. animation work done south korean animation studio studio mir.

according animation director yoo jae-myung, nickelodeon reluctant approve series , suspended production because, unlike in american animated series, protagonist girl. conventional wisdom, according konietzko, had girls watch shows boys, boys won t watch shows girls . creators persuaded channel s executives change mind. konietzko related in test screenings, boys said korra being girl did not matter them: said awesome.

the creators wrote of episodes of first season themselves, omitting filler episodes allow concise story. once series expanded original 12-episode schedule 26 , 52, more writers brought in creators focus on design work. joaquim dos santos , ryu ki-hyun, worked on animation , design of original series, became involved creating legend of korra, storyboarder ian graham. jeremy zuckerman , benjamin wynn, composed soundtrack original series track team, returned score legend of korra.

the second season, book two: spirits, premiered on september 13, 2013 , concluded on november 22, 2013. consists of fourteen episodes. animation work done south korean animation studio studio mir japanese animation studio studio pierrot. studio mir expected solely work on book 2, executive director jae-myung yoo decided studio mir animate boondocks instead because animation process less rigorous. studio pierrot called in fill void , animate book 2. according jae-myung yoo, studio mir later contacted , re-asked animate book 2. yoo feared that, if book 2 failed, studio mir , korean animators have reputations tarnished studio pierrot s failures. consequently, studio mir accepted offer , worked alongside studio pierrot.

the third season, book three: change, aired first 3 episodes on june 27, 2014, after episodes leaked online. takes place 2 weeks after events of book two: spirits. episodes 9 thirteen streamed online, rather being broadcast television program.

book four: balance, final season, produced in parallel previous 2 seasons. crew, @ 1 point, worked on approximately 30 episodes @ same time: post-production season 2, production season 3 , pre-production season 4. production steps, such color correction , retakes, continued until date of series finale, december 19, 2014. season 4 started online distribution few months after third season s finale on october 3, 2014. after nickelodeon cut season s budget amount required 1 episode, dimartino , konietzko decided include clip show, reuses produced animation, episode 8 ( remembrances ) instead of dismissing many of creative staff. studio mir helped companion studio, subunit called studio reve, while working on book 4.

concerning development of much-discussed final scene intended show friends korra , asami becoming romantic couple, bryan konietzko explained @ first , dimartino did not give idea weight, assuming not able approval portraying relationship. during production of finale decided test assumption, approached network , found them supportive limit. decided change final scene korra , asami holding hands facing each other in pose referencing marriage scene few minutes prior.

style

the legend of korra produced traditional animation, frames drawn on paper in south korea animators @ studio mir , scanned digital processing. each episode comprises 15,000 drawings. series makes occasional use of computer-generated imagery complex scenes or objects, noticeably in animations of pro-bending arena or mecha-suits of later seasons.

while legend of korra produced in united states , therefore not work of japanese animation ( anime ) in strict sense, escapist magazine argued series influenced anime otherwise classified such: protagonists (a superpowered heroine, group of talented, supporting friends, near-impervious villain wants reshape world), themes (family, friendship, romance, fear, , death) , quality of voice acting visual style similar of leading anime series such fullmetal alchemist: brotherhood, bleach or trigun. notable difference such series absence of lengthy opening , ending sequences set j-pop songs; save broadcast time, legend of korra s openings , endings last few seconds. series abstains using visual tropes characteristic of anime, use exaggerated facial expressions highlight emotions comic effect.

as in avatar, series adds asian aesthetic presenting text appears in fictional world in traditional chinese characters, without translating it. example, on wanted posters seen in season 4, names of protagonists written 寇柆 (korra), 馬高 (mako) , 愽林 (bolin).

music

the legend of korra set music jeremy zuckerman, wrote music avatar: last airbender benjamin wynn. legend of korra, zuckerman sole composer while wynn lead sound designer; 2 collaborate foley artist aran tanchum , showrunner mike dimartino on soundscape of series. konietzko , dimartino s concept score blend traditional chinese music jazz. on basis, zuckerman composed score combining elements of dixieland, traditional chinese music , western orchestration. performed string sextet , various chinese solo instruments, including dizi (flute), paigu (drums), guqin , mongolian matouqin.

a soundtrack cd, legend of korra: original music book one, published on july 16, 2013. music korra , avatar played in concert @ playfest festival in málaga, spain in september 2014. series s soundtrack nominated best tv soundtrack 2013 goldspirit awards.