AVATAR Sokka & Suki Panel – Steel City Con April 2024

my favorite character on the show was Opa was probably Momo really I know I us a cat and he reminded me of my cat yeah yeah yeah I used to just like sit on my parents bed like holding the headboard like pretending that I was flying ala please welcome Ria Zang and Ian Oley the Avatar panel right this way you could do better than that head on down there you go a little bit more than that there you go so there's microphones right next to you they should be already on awesome hello we good hello yes sir great so just some standard questions right off the bat before you know just some general stuff how did you both become involved in acting that's just a very well I grew up doing theater uh back home in Poland and China a little bit I just always loved it I would do plays every summer and I ended up studying acting for University when I moved to LA and somehow it all happen after that I got a manager and uh yeah here we are great um yeah I um I did I grew up in College Station Texas which is like a very small town it's like a like a University Town um and I was doing martial arts and from martial Arts I ended up having a talent scout find me and like want me to audition for classes and stuff so I did class for like a year um moved to LA when I was 14 years old I did my whole High School career there um and yeah just did the thing and then you know we got one audition that ended up being this really this is both your first audition no I was going to say that that would have endless auditions one audition that ended up being becoming the show oh nice yes how familiar were you with the Avatar franchise before you got involved well I actually didn't uh know about the show growing up because I didn't grow up here um well weirdly I saw the movie in China the the movie was Premier in which we don't talk about what movie I don't know what what is he talking about uh no but when I got the audition it was obviously like code names you know um but I figured well my reps figured out that it was Avatar that's when I started watching it and I remember just like kept watching it even though I wasn't sure if I was going to get the part because it was so good and um later I found out and honestly I think it helped that I didn't know how big of a deal it was because I feel like I would have been a lot more nervous during my auditions and callbacks and chem reads with Ian uh so yeah yeah later fan I would say yeah I mean I grew up on the animated show I grew up here I grew up in Texas so in in the United States so um yeah just grew up in and loved uh watching the show it's actually one of the shows that ended up getting me into martial arts which is kind of Full Circle cuz martial arts has ended up how I got into acting so um yeah I watched it growing up and then I watched it again during covid when Netflix had put the animated series on uh during the pandemic and I was just fell in love with it again it was like oh my god wow like this is so adult this is has so many themes and layers um and I remember hearing about like the casting um for the show like they were going to make a live action version of the show and being like wow I wonder who they're going to get for that that's really interesting um in like Co so now we're here yeah what was the audition process like I mean was it um like any other audition you get the sides for it it was dummy size I think Suki was like the daughter of an Roc officer like very like Warrior Co but like modern day the fake sides for it yeah the fake sides for it um and so I sent a self tape in and then I had a call back with the team um like director producer everyone was there and then the chemistry read with Ian and after that was the call that I got it so pretty fast for me I feel like it's a little more elaborate for yeah it was pretty it was it was pretty extensive for us I mean we it was it was really interesting cuz um our whole casting process was done through Zoom um because of the pandemic uh which is really odd I mean I've never had that happen before so um yeah I mean it was all fake sides I was auditioning for the role of Sam not Saka um what do you remember your name I don't remember the name oh man uh yeah like something with an S yeah yeah cuz goo was Carrie instead of uh qara obv obiously so it really interesting um but yeah I was I was going through it was the secret tunnel scene though it was like a rewrite of the secret tunnel scene from the show and it was like glowing snails on the walls and stuff it was like a very action adventury type thing but I had no idea that I was auditioning for Avatar the whole time um it was like a because they cast like the main four first um there ended up being like some leaks afterwards about like what the code name was like the industry like learned more about like what the code name for our show was Avatar um so I think you you you knew that it was Avatar wasar but yeah we we did not or I didn't and so it was really crazy when they gave us the call like oh wow would that would have changed anything the way made you more nervous knowing that you were going into something like this yeah absolutely absolutely I would have been freaking out but especially cuz I know the show very well I'm very glad that like Sam ended up like the audition sides for Sam or Saka was got to be my original performance you know I wasn't trying to be a caricature of of Saka in Al live person which I think really helped with the creation of our show because that ended up being the goal was to keep the same spirit and soul of each one of our characters but when you're making it into a liveaction show mhm you're bringing all of this real life Stakes to it you're watching a real person go through genocide go through um losing their mom and dad um so you're getting to bring human elements without losing like the spirit of what makes the show yeah the show that fans love so do you think that the previous success that the franchise had posed any issues to the way that you handled your characters was there much pressure on that being though it was so successful such a great franchise definitely I mean absolutely I mean I was a fan of it so the first reaction was like oh my God like I'm soaka this is awesome and then I was like oh my God oh my God like I'm soaka what the heck like how am I going to do that um but I think it added a lot more reverence to the process so much so all of us really wanted to make the show as good as humanly possible because of a of a movie that doesn't exist uh beforehand did not end up doing that um so we all like I mean we took it really seriously there was a lot of it it's it's a we're I'm very proud of the product that we ended up with but there was a lot of blood and sweat and tears and hard decisions and conversations that were uh is what made the show what it is now um because of how amazing the animated series is yeah no I I agree I feel like there was obviously pressure but also because like you already going into something with such a loving fandom that just loves these characters loves the story that it was also like a little sense of comfort like I felt like the team did such a wonderful job of creating s Suki with the costumes or hair and makeup that I was like okay like we're good like they already love Suki I think if I just don't mess it up she should still well they should still like her so uh it's like yes the pressure was obviously there but it definitely helps that everyone was so such a big fan of it before as well and just wanted to create the series and bring on even more fans um that maybe didn't know the show before like like me yeah great uh if you could hold the microphones a little closer that would be awesome so it was not renewed for two seasons but for three which is pretty unusual just it got a double Wham what do you think made it so unbelievably successful sorry question what what do you think made the show so successful I mean being renewed for two and three seasons yeah what elements do you think uh caused it to be such a big show well I feel like hopefully we did it justice and that's why people liked it um I mean visually too just everything that they tried to match as much as possible to the original every every element that was so lovable with the original hopefully that's what made it so huge and I think it's been such a long time coming of people just participating and wanting to see these characters come to life um yeah it's been so wonderful just all the love from all the fans the OG fans the new fans yeah go yeah yeah I think um like a big reason that our show like we set out with the goal of of kind of what I touched on earlier which is like having the spirit of the animated show and creating something new um inside of that and adding that new layer of it being human and real um and obviously the support from the an the people that loveed the animated show was huge but also introducing it to so many other people that may have not seen the animated show like growing up um I think a big part of that was the Artistry that you know the reverence was that was created yeah like all of us were so passionate about performances the anim the uh the visual effects on our show were done by Jabar an who did the Game of Thrones dragon and like he's he's an amazing artist so everyone really just tried to go to the nines on on making the show what it was and we're just really happy that it was received enough so that we could get to go back and do our fun little job of doing season two and three that's awesome so uh how many comiccons have you done before and what's it like to meet so many new fans yeah this is my first one yes I've also no I'm loving it I mean it's so nice to like just meet people in person and hear about you guys' thoughts on the show on Suki and I've like never been to a comic comp before either like any kind of convention just growing up in China so like wow like I didn't know how it was like I've only seen like I don't know this is how they do it here um no it's been it's been wonderful I'm loving it we have a couple more lined up later on so this is like kicking off the the convention run I guess nice yeah that's awesome this is my second one whenever too I just did uh Toronto which was really fun um but yeah uh it's it's really cool to meet the fans on like a personal level um and open up that space to like have conversations and ask questions and just be there and yeah get to connect with people on the on being a fan together it's like the payoff for all your hard work too so it's really nice to connect so we're going to get some questions from the audience now when we're done here you're going to be going back to your tables to sign we will so keep that in mind if you didn't have time to ask a question or you'll say you but please go back to their table and uh let's get some questions from the audience we we can hear you but make sure everyone else can hear you thank you oh wow hi um so you guys both have very different experiences watching the show as you guys just said um whenever you first watched the animated show who were like your favorite character characters and did that change whenever you got to watch your version like was there I don't know just interpretations that you liked differently that's a great question thank you um when I was a kid my favorite uh my favorite character on the show was Opa I was probably Momo really I don't know what a cat and you reminded me of my cat yeah yeah yeah I used to just like sit on my parents bed like holding the headboard like pretending that I was flying opa um and that's a really good question because our show um I felt like the Animated Series Xiao was like a very like pointed character but in our show kin Ley young plays Xiao um and he's so incredible as an actor like he just was he was one of the like showstoppers for me on our show I was a big fan of him yeah dang I feel like J also really popped for me because in the animat you were you I feel like I wasn't like oh I love him like you know he was a bad guy and I feel like he brought so many layers to it that made him like so Terri but also on set like that scene in the Koshi Island like I was scared of him like to talk to him afterwards too I was just like wow you are terrifying in a very good way he's doing his job very well um but I thought well Ian does a good job wouldn't we agree um I'll take that thank you Dallas is awesome too I feel like it's awesome seeing well I actually didn't watched everything at the same time as when the show came out and I loved kind of the arc they have for Zuko and seeing a lot of those flashbacks of him oh my gosh my heart like episode with the mask it's called Mass six it was awesome yeah so he's he's killing it thank you next question right down the middle yeah hi um is there any episodes or specific scenes for the next books you'd like to really see included specific scenes I'm excited for boiling Rock stuff I feel like the fight stuff is going to be amazing or the coming aula um the whole Trio fight with Suki I feel like that'll be sick and saving apaa aa's lost days maybe just I I'm hoping for that be its own episode yeah that yeah I'm I'm really really really excited for my space sword if I get it very excited for that um that's my that's my number one so yeah another question um am I am I stand up or no yeah go ahead stand uh first of all Hello nice to meet you nice and close talk nice and closely oh yeah sorry um so my question you might have already answered it before but still um what was your experience kind of being able to get into the character's costumes and makeup and like character and everything and how did you feel portraying those characters with the other actors and all like all that stuff yeah yeah um I mean a the the costumes were such a big part of our show and making us really feel and honestly like making ourselves believe in all of the prep work that we had done for our characters beforehand um I would say for me when I got the the wolf tale though that was really the moment where I was like oh wow like this is uh this is happening and it's in having the wolf tail with all of the warrior armor on first was really like oh wow like this is they created Saka and that's who I am playing right now it's crazy no I agree I feel like costume wise like the physicality of what it is to be like a warrior like it was so helpful just having so many details with the the costume like it was like five different garments and like like a leather thing and like the weight of it like all of that added to it but I feel like stunt training is where I really feel like I honed in on like what it was like for her to you know like be training at a really young age and I've had some martial arts background with like jiujitsu and um boxing and stuff but I feel like you know doing the actual sequences and then how to use the fans like it really like built Suki for me and then you know the other scenes were added on what about the Kyoshi Warrior makeup oh oh yeah yes the makeup I mean I was in that chair like 2 3 hours every morning and it was like my transformation time it I mean they did all the job I think just having such a fierce look that would terrify her enemies with like yeah that was that was really helpful I think that all added to creating her kind of Yeah question down front yes first off uh welcome to Pittsburgh thank you so much yes um congratulations on this being your first convention that's awesome and your second one so thank you for being here um I have a quick question in regards to so I followed both of you on social media Facebook Instagram all that um i' heard that you were a huge prankster on set and i i l that do you my question to you is do you think uh when the casting or I'm sorry when the announcement was made for it being renewed for the next two seasons which again Hallelujah like thank you like thank you for Netflix producers um the I forget his name the the actor for the fire lord ozai Daniel yes do you think him doing that to you all of you was maybe a little bit of payback for maybe your shenanigans yeah yeah I mean I'll tell you a little I'll I'll I'll keep you in on a little secret about that call so they they um they brought us into the call and they were like hey by the way we have something to talk to you guys about about press with you Dallas Gordon goo Daniel deim and Paul and I was like the show had been out for like 3 weeks at that point and I was like if this is not the call for season 2 that would be really crazy um and so I they they brought us under the call and me and Gordon are like mostly laughing and smiling the whole time cuz we're like bro okay like when Daniel starts talking about it about like not getting the new seasons I didn't buy it for 1 second but the Netflix editors took different parts of the call afterwards where we were getting very emotional about getting another season and they were like I like Albert had thanked us for all of the hard work that we did to make it possible to get another season of our show and I almost start crying and they put that portion of the crying part right before they're like you didn't get another season so then it looks like I'm like about to like freak out um so I didn't buy it for one second cuz I maybe because I am a prankster I like KN I I pretty much knew what was going on um but I'm very thankful that they I I I appreciate the effort you know real knows real on the prankster side so I I was I was glad they did it did it that way yeah yeah of course okay and another question down front can you hear me okay someone actually stole my question it was a great question um but um I just kind of want both of your feelings on this show has been such an impact on so many people I mean I got the chance to talk to you guys to say how much it's meant to me and just um how does it feel like meeting everybody and seeing the impact it's had on everybody including you guys too like what's it feel like to be part of something that's been such a huge part of everybody growing up and impacted so many lives no I mean it's been awesome and I feel like like to to hold so much like pressure but also responsibility with with coming to Bringing these characters to life who have meant so much to so many people is really really cool and you feel really proud of like when they like the validation that people are giving you would like okay Suki was my favorite and you did a best job with it and I think it's been just so awesome like seeing fans all over the world too like messaging me from Poland and China just like how much these characters mean to them and how special it is to see it come to life and how I think Suki specifically she's just such a badass and I just love how like girls around the world can be like yeah I can be a badass fighting warrior but also a sweet vulnerable girl at the same time yeah and I think that's been a part that's really rewarding I think as an actor um I mean you just want to inspire people with the work that you do and I and I feel like we've we've done something a little special here and and it's just it's just really sweet and yeah yeah yeah I mean it's like what the heck what the heck this is crazy um yeah I mean all you can do is like praise God like thank you um for being a part of a show that you know they built so much groundwork for us as the animated show and and to have creatives and people with the same vision and mindset to be creative and try to create um off of that animated show um just really thankful to for to be a part of something that uh has so much history before us and now be able to step into that world and be embraced by it you know yeah great any more questions one down front with your characters what is that one thing that you relate to the most in their characteristics good question um I would say hello hello hello oh we're back bang hey we're just switching it up um I would say for me probably uh Saka hides a lot of his vulnerabilities with humor and I think that in my normal everyday life that's a thing that's very common with people is um hiding their their vulnerabilities with humor and sometimes you got to laugh through it to to get to it emotionally yeah you go um for me I feel like a big part of it like what I wanted to bring to Suki was that vulnerability and kind of connection she finds with with Saka and I think like it goes back to her OG line of you know I'm a warrior but I'm a girl too I I think a lot of times women are you know have to put up a tough looking face and and I think like emphasizing the fact that she I relate to the fact that she's also like a young girl who's see meeting a boy for the first time and she feels this responsibility to take care of her people and protect her tribe but at the same time she H she wants to inventure out into the world and like go off on her own kind of experiences and I think that's something that I felt like you know growing up in China like deciding whether I want to pursue acting and come here and I think yeah that's the part of the conflict she's dealing with that I felt like I vibed with and I think we have one final question right here you're headed back to your table to sign so please head over to their table let's take our last question so this question first part is for Ian how do you feel being being like the studly guy on the Avatar show cuz you got like several several women including your lovely co-star um coming after you plus you were hitting on a fire nation girl I mean how's it feel being like that how does it feel and what and what would Suki say about his adventures after your you know meeting what a what a uh Bob shell of a question um especially on this panel um I think that I mean I'm very grateful I uh am an actor and love to act and I'm not a writer on the show so um have I'm having fun with my character I think I wouldn't uh you know Saka is very smart he's a smart guy he's a smart engineer um but emotionally not the most available I would say so I hope that he he uh finds some some commitment and uh emotional availability in his future with suuki good answer great answer thank you guys for coming out and doing this Ian SL is thank you guys Avatar give it [Applause] up thank you hey there this is Nolan North and you are watching phandom Spotlight good for you very proud of you now go watch more oh and have fun and follow your fandom I like that I like it a lot [Music]

Channel: Fandom Spotlite

Views: 13,488

Keywords: avatar the last airbender, avatar on netflix, sokka avatar the last airbender, suki avatar live action, sokka and suki, netflix avatar the last airbender, ian ousley, maria zhang suki, ian ousley sokka, ian ousley avatar the last airbender, maria zhang avatar, maria zhang and ian ousley, steel city con 2024, steel city con april 2024, steel city comic con, fandom spotlite, fandom spotlite panel

Id: 0sRLv-7v3SE

Length: 26min 18sec (1578 seconds)

Published: Fri Apr 19 2024