"Avatar: The Last Airbender" Co-Creators on Season 3 Finale

From SCI FI Wire:

Avatar To End With Battle

The creators of Nickelodeon's Avatar: The Last Airbender animated fantasy series told SCI FI Wire that the third set of episodes will end with an epic battle that will please the fans.

"The current Avatar story will culminate in an epic battle between Aang and the Fire Lord at the end of book three," co-creator Mike DiMartino said in an interview. "Book three is all mapped out, and much of it is written. We're excited about it, and we know the fans will be, too!"

All 20 episodes of the animated series' first season are available in a DVD box set, and the second volume, subtitled Earth—Volume 1, has just been released on DVD. The new set features commentary from the voice cast and DiMartino and co-creator Bryan Konietzko.

The story follows Aang, a 12-year-old powerful "Avatar," who wants to be a regular kid but is called upon to help fight the vicious Fire Nation. He is joined by Katara, a girl known as a Waterbender, and her stubborn brother, Sokka, as well as a flying lemur and flying bison.

The creators intended Avatar to be both whimsical and edgy. "Bryan and I wanted to create a show that had a lot of heart and integrity, and we wanted to create a show that we would like to watch," DiMartino said. "Like Aang trying to balance the four elements, we try to balance comedy, action, drama and spirituality in every episode so there is something for everyone. Also, there is a message of balance that is pervasive throughout the series: characters trying to balance their lives."

DiMartino said that he and Konietzko love "serious and dramatic stories and believe you can do that without shocking violence." For example, the episode "Lake Laogai" deals with the nefarious Long Feng, who brainwashes Jet and eventually kills him—not the usual stuff of children's shows. Such dark moments are "written and directed in a very tasteful and dramatic way, where it's clear what's going on without having to show gratuitous violence," DiMartino said. "And we are always careful to balance the serious moments with humorous ones."

Purple and Brown Coming To Mobile Phones

From Player X:

Player X and Aardman Animations team up on mobile video

March 19th 2007

Academy Award®-winning company Aardman Animations has appointed Player X as its exclusive distributor for its premium mobile video content in North America.

Player X will launch Aardman classic content such as Wallace & Gromit, Angry Kid and Creature Comforts on two of the US’s major carrier networks with other deals expected to follow.

Player X already exclusively distributes Aardman mobile video across Scandinavia and on O2 UK. Later this month the company will launch a dedicated Aardman channel on the O2 UK deck as part of its ongoing promotions, as well as distribute upcoming original made-for-mobile content such as Purple and Brown and Shaun The Sheep. Aardman’s deals with Player X have all been brokered by Aardman’s global mobile agent, Crucible Media.

“Aardman has a strong portfolio of digital content, many of our films are among the top-rated mobile downloads in the UK and we are looking forward to working with Player X to reach North American audiences,” said Robin Gladman, Digital Content Manager at Aardman.

To underscore the strong relationship between the two companies, Player X is also sponsoring an Aardman short film competition. When the winner is announced later this quarter, Player X will extend full marketing support for the exclusive global rights of the winning entry.

“We already enjoy a very productive and innovative relationship with Aardman and it’s a natural progression to extend this relationship across the Atlantic. Millions of people have seen Aardman content such as Angry Kid online and we’re delighted to be taking this content to mobile,” said Tony Pearce, Player X CEO.

The announcement follows Player X's continuing impact in the emerging mobile video market. In December last year the company launched its mobile TV channel geekTV with UK operator 3 UK, and has recently sold the channel in territories as disparate as India, Chile and Scandinavia.

For more information, please contact monty.munford@playerx.com or +44 (0) 7970 673695 or go to www.playerx.com

Notes to Editors
About Player X

Player X is a mobile media company that specialises in games, video and TV. It develops, publishes and distributes mobile entertainment content through global operators, portals and handset manufacturers.

Player X has direct deals with more than 100 global operators and a potential audience of more than two billion people. The company operates in all five continents across the world and has offices in all the key territories in Europe, Asia and the Americas.