2D Animator Wilton Lander revealed a fun behind-the-scenes detail from the production of the 2026 Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender animated movie – while the artist's official role was Animation Production Coordinator, they got a chance to step outside their usual duties to animate one shot near the end of production. The artist showed a WIP shot, highlighting the work on the VFX of Appa's slobber.

Wilton Lander pointed out that the animation on the shot was a collaborative effort: the character animation is the courtesy of Robin Eide, with cleanup handled by Tonia Ciccone and Chloe Lambley. Lander also reflected on the coordinator role itself, describing it as "a link between my team and everyone else working on the movie," a role that involved working daily with a team of around 40 artists.

The animator showcased his works with liquid VFX for other projects. Take a look:

Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender, directed by Lauren Montgomery from a screenplay by Tim Hedrick and Christopher Yost, was released on July 25. The animated film is a sequel to the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender that aired from 2005 to 2008. The film follows the story of Avatar Aang and his allies as they encounter a surviving airbender, Tagah, and set out together in search of an airbending staff to help restore the Air Nomads. In 2024, the TV show received a live-action adaptation from Netflix, featuring stunning VFX and environments.

Also, Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game, featuring the beloved characters from the Avatar franchise, has just been released as well. Check out one of the trailers:

This fantasy universe has inspired a lot of artists to recreate the characters and the mind-blowing effects shown in the combat scenes. For instance, take a look at a recreation of Toph by Thunderroar Studio, an ultra-realistic portrait of Aang by 3D Character Artist Marcel Werder, a fire-bending animation by 3D Animator Josué Júnior, and a tutorial on a water-bending effect in Unity from A Bit Of Game Dev channel on YouTube:

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