The Last Airbender

Rathbone told MTV News earlier this month that, "I think it's one of those things where I pull my hair up, shave the sides, and I definitely need a tan. It's one of those things where, hopefully, the audience will suspend disbelief a little bit."

Yes, because doing all the things above will help you achieve the "Asian look". Don't forget the sticky tape so that you'll achieve the slanty eyes!

Via CARTOON BREW, comic book artist Derek Kirk Kim is protesting as well: [AVATAR is] wholly and inarguably built around Asian (and Inuit) culture. Everything from to the costume designs, to the written language, to the landscapes, to martial arts, to philosophy, to spirituality, to eating utensils! -- It’s all an evocative, but thinly veiled, re-imagining of ancient Asia."

He continues, "Imagine if someone had made a “fantasy” movie in which the entire world was built around African culture. Everyone is wearing ancient African clothes, African hats, eating traditional African food, writing in an African language, living in African homes, all encompassed in an African landscape...but everyone is white. How offensive, insulting, and disrespectful would that be toward Africans and African Americans? How much more offensive would it be if only the heroes were white and all the villians [sic] and background characters were African American?

"My top choices for Aang were all young Asian-American actors. All of them had more talent and experience than Noah Ringer. But, Aibel and the producers had the final word. I am very disappointed with the cast that was chosen. My daughter hates me, now that her only hero (Katara) will not be an actress with a complexion close to our own. Mike and Bryan are also disappointed and feel that all the blood and sweat developing the Asian heroes was for nothing."

SOURCE: http://www.awn.com/news/films/avatar-last-airbender-casting-controversy-continues


Here is the original casting calls for The Last Airbender. I doubt they had any real intentions of casting any Asians for the lead roles. And well, I feel quite sorry for people who are aspiring to be actors, but aren't physically attractive enough :/

AANG: 12-15 years-old, Male, Caucasian or any other ethnicity. We are looking for a young man to play the lead role in a motion picture franchise. He must be athletic and graceful with an ability in Martial Arts (not necessarily extensive experience, but at least an aptitude for it). Kids with experience in gymnastics, dance, or sports could also be good. He is a young adventurer and should seem like the type of young man who will grow up to be heroic.

KATARA: 14-17 years-old, Female, Caucasian or any other ethnicity. She is Sokka’s younger sister. She is a headstrong and determined girl with a real sense of idealism. She believes in herself and feels that she can play on the same team as the boys. She is beautiful, intelligent, passionate, feisty, and has a real sense of adventure.

SOKKA: 16-20 years-old, Male, Caucasian or any other ethnicity. He is Katara's older brother. He is intelligent but awkward, and very funny (although not necessarily intentionally so). He aspires to greatness, but he tends to doubt himself. He is always one to be swayed by a pretty girl.

ZUKO: 16-20 years-old, Male, Caucasian or any other ethnicity. He is a brooding, intense young man who wrestles - not always successfully - with being good. Regaining his honor is a driving impetus for him. He is extremely handsome and is the type of dangerous boy every girl falls in love with. Athletic and/or martial arts experience is a plus.

There is no way I can word my feelings towards this subject better than Derek Kim has done above. I feel uneasy when I watch a film that has been adapted from a story where the characters are Asian but are replaced by Caucasian actors.

To constantly have Asians being denied the chance to play a role which are "designed" for them is just upsetting. There are many Asians out there who could play these roles, but instead, they are offered to Caucasian actors. Maybe its because the producers believe that Asian actors aren't box office draws or because they don't have the experience...but that's just because they're constantly denied any work. The only place where Asian actors can shine is in martial arts films or as the antagonist. And honestly, we're more diverse than that. Not every Asian is awesome at martial arts and we aren't all planning on ruling the world.

The main reason why I dislike whitewashing is that it underlies the notion of white/Caucasians being morally superior, or just superior in general, compared to people who are coloured. Well, that's what I get out of it anyway, not sure about anyone else.

Now, if I can make a tangent...let's talk about Avatar. The storyline of Avatar is similar to many events throughout history, where European colonizers are determined to obtain certain valuables or resources from the land in which indigenous people inhabit. So, it's not surprising that the notion also applies to Avatar. It takes a Caucasian male to save an entire civilisation, an entire nation if you will.

So, I'll just end this with something I found a while ago.

A good read about this topic from Derek Kim's blog: http://derekkirkkim.blogspot.com/2009/01/new-day-in-politics-same-old-racist.html and http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/28/DDMU15ICE4.DTL
Below are just some quotes that I wanted to highlight for myself...so take no notice of this :D

Or even worse, having our hearts broken over and over going after roles that specifically call for Asian Americans like "Avatar, The Last Airbender" only to see them go to white actors.

Back in my Drama days in high school, I used to dream of being white so I could pursue acting.

"The Last Airbender" has the potential to be something like "Star Wars"—something with lasting value that could give new heroes to your average household in America. And to have something for Asian American kids, and ethnic kids in general, to look up to. To let them know heroes can also look like them and speak fluent English like them.

African Americans kids can finally, realistically dream of being president one day. Can't Asian American kids—perhaps my kids—at least dream of being something as relatively insignificant as central characters in some escapist Hollywood movie where everything is stolen from their heritage?




"What frustrates us most is that you had this amazing opportunity - you've got a nation of fans who love this quintessentially Asian story," Kim says. "This could have broken down every barrier in the business, proving you can have an all-Asian cast and score three blockbuster successes. Instead, we just get three more chances to cringe."