Back in the day…

Sifu Kisu, the consultant of all things traditional Chinese martial arts on Avatar and Korra is on Tumblr too! As you can see here, and in his blog posts, the man likes SWORDS! And he knows how to use them.

It was the summer of 2002, once Mike and I had entered development on Avatar with Nickelodeon, that I found Sifu Kisu while researching teachers of Northern Shaolin kung fu in the LA area. I became his student, to learn more about kung fu for myself as an artist and animator, and to vet him as a potential consultant. Rather than merely copying moves from movies, Mike and I wanted to tap into the martial arts for the show on a deeper level, so we knew we would need an expert. Sifu Kisu proved to be able to use his vast knowledge and experience in the traditional arts in a creative way. He consulted on an early pencil test, then the pilot, and the rest is history...