Raaaaaage

[soc_puppet]

As someone who's been crusading against the latent gender role stereotypes related to the entertainment industry, I'm a little ashamed to admit how long it's taken me to get interested in the ethnic side of things. While I can't say I'm thankful about the events that prompted my current more enlightened state (save perhaps one or two that are more perephiral to entertainment), I do feel at least an inkling better about myself that I am now more aware and active about it in general. This really pales in comparison, though, to how downright horrible above casting decisions have actually made me feel.

If you haven't thought about it much yourself, or want to see what the "big deal" is, or just want to read more to get that good ol' righteous indignation flowing, I've got a selection of essays to link you to:

I Didn't Dream of Dragons and the follow-up White people, its not all about you, but for this post it is (and wow did I feel the burn there >_O) by deepad
So I Was Born Into the World by ciderpress
Shame by Pam Noles (this one made me cry a couple times)

These posts themselves have a lot more links in them to similar posts (and antithetical posts even), and I spent a lot of last Monday just getting lost in the text and comments before I actually stopped to try and remember why I had the day off ("Oh yeah, it's Martin Luther King Jr Day! ...O rite.").

Then there's things like what the Avatar main casting call apparently actually said ("Caucasian or any other ethnicity"? Really, Hollywood?) and the more recent casting call for extras (ow ow ow, that is not right on so many levels).

Also! Aldkjfsd omigosh this kid is so adorable and he totally auditioned for the part and everything WHY IS HE NOT PLAYING AANG, THIS IS A TRAVESTY.


I think that about sums up my thoughts on things for the moment. Now, I'm off to talk to my roommates and how their reactions to my in-apartment rants on the racist casting of this movie series (and others in the future now (and probably also in the past), I am sure) makes me feel. Once I get up the gumption.

Edit: Added the video of Perris I meant to link, which has him actually acting out some lines and stuff, and also the comment in aang_aint_white where his mom talks about his audition and the results.

Edit 2: It occurs to me. I still don't know how they plan to portray Appa and Momo in this yet. And after the show got an award for how well it treated the animals, I'd hate to see them marginalized, etc. Is that information available anywhere yet?

Edit 3: Now that I think about it, it probably wouldn't be too far-fetched to predict that the directors and such would be willing to make Toph male again. I mean, she was originally designed as a male character, and was only made female during planning sessions with Nickelodeon, but I think that really helps bring balance to the team. Had Toph not been made a girl, I can easily imagine an episode or three with Katara attempting to over-feminize in self-defense. Which, really, just sick and wrong.

Comments

[randomaicoholic.livejournal.com]

The Avatar's movie: Wait, WHAT? O_o;
"Caucasian or any other ethnicity?"
Just...WHAT?
(shakes head)
Yeah, I could relate here, it's just...I'm torn apart between "stupid" and "hypocrite", trying to decide which words would be the most accurate.^^;

Stupid reaction: Uh...It reminds me that I should watch the last episodes of Avatar, one day. XD;

The whole debate on Meta about racism and writing: I would avoid this can of worms.
Honestly, the whole attitude makes me sceptical and suspicious, which annoys me, I should admit it, because I could see which point they're trying to make, but...
I don't care if it makes me a blind privillegiate, I would still think that a writer have no obligations but to write three-dimensionnal characters, and write them as individual, not sterotype/embodiement of their culture(/gender/sexuality/social class...) and I would still believe into universailty in culture.
No matters how cautious some of those essays could be, I'm still annoyed by this marxist logic that people couldn't think by themselves but are always allienated by the society which have raised them.
(shrug)
Not that it's totally false,but the practical consequences that this kind of logic could have is still bothering me.
Oh well...

The Kid: ...O_o;
The whole idea of a movie adaptation of Avatar was weird for me but...but this kid would, indeedly, have been perfect as Aang. X3

[soc_puppet]

Oooo, it just burns me up inside. Like a firebender! I'm leaning more towards "stupid" myself, and holding off on "hypocrite" until such a time as I find out whether Shyamalan is being pressured into picking Caucasian actors.

Yeah, I'm just putting off writing a particularly ethnic character until I've had more time to digest what needs to go into him/her ^^a There's so many layers involved there. I admit that saying I understand is arrogant, but that should hardly prevent me from at least trying.

He is so adorable and would totally have been great and I would have watched him and fangirled and everything ;_;b

[semiramis.livejournal.com]

I'm kind of :/ that they put the extras casting call in the weekend of CNY. I mean, okay, I'm inclined to put that up to ignorance more than anything but still :/

Also: I totally don't believe this "Asian faces are less marketable" crap. If that were true, then why are Asian women so hypersexualized in Western media?

...also, all four of the essays you linked made me cry.







.........also, re: Zuko: "He is extremely handsome and is the type of dangerous boy every girl falls in love with." Really? Zuko? REALLY? lsdfdsfhahahaha orz this does not bode well at all

[semiramis.livejournal.com]

[facepalm] Oh god the description for Katara too orz orz orz

[soc_puppet]

Ouch >_O An excellent point, that. M-moreso because I had to look up what CNY meant here, but still! They are giving it another go on Feb. 7th, at least?

It is totally bull, man :<

They are completely blubber-worthy, it is true T-T But parts of the last one especially made me have to take frequent breaks from reading it to get my composure back to even continue reading it coherently.


More like an extremely fail boy. Remember, they are trying to fit whole seasons into single movies, so they're probably wanting to focus on his occasional cool, manly moments. But still...

[lasersaurus.livejournal.com]

xD that's okay, it took me a moment when I first came across the abreviation, too. Sorry orz

...well, Feb. 7th still falls within the length of the traditional CNY celebration this year, and if anyone's travelling to visit China then they it'd probably be even chances that they wouldn't be back by then. I suppose it's lucky most Chinese-Americans don't celebrate CNY as widely or as heavily as mainlanders and some other Chinese expats :/

[soc_puppet]

I feel better, then.

D'oh >_< Stupid movie people... Yeah, that is a bit of a stroke of luck on our side, but still. *continues to mutter under her breath*

[robowolf.livejournal.com]

"If you're Korean, wear a kimono"?

arrrrgh this moviiiiie

[soc_puppet]

I knoooooow sob sob T-T

There is no way in hell I am putting money towards this movie if I can possibly help it. Just. No way.

[zidane.livejournal.com]

Yeeeeaaah the only way this movie is gonna get money from me is if I buy it from Asian bootleggers.

[soc_puppet]

Seconding that, orz. I mean, I still kinda wanna see it, in a masochistic sort of way, but yeah. Not paying a red cent for it. Not even if it's a "social" thing.

[lightbird777.livejournal.com]

Also! Aldkjfsd omigosh this kid is so adorable and he totally auditioned for the part and everything WHY IS HE NOT PLAYING AANG, THIS IS A TRAVESTY.

Because they want white actors in the lead roles and Asians as extras. That's the rumor anyway. As well as reports that the casting directors proved themselves to be totally ignorant, asking "Koreans to wear their kimonos to the audition". Yeah, whatever.

This show is one of THE greatest animated series ever made in my opinion. I really hope that a live action adaptation does justice to it. If not, I'll just go back and watch the whole series on DVD. :)

[lightbird777.livejournal.com]

And...Lederhosen? Really? Lederhosen? Lederhosen is a German word, and they're worn by Germans, Austrians and Swiss. They're not equated with Belgians. The ignorance just makes me cry.

[soc_puppet]

Yeah, I'd caught that >_< Fail casting director is fail.

Iiiii'm really not too hopeful re: the live action adaptation? I mean, I'm still probably going to at least watch the first one, but, barring unforeseen casting developments, it probably won't be in any sort of legal manner.