It was an absolute joy speaking with Courtney Chen: dancer, actor, and radiant member of the Avatar Troupe!
In this episode co-hosts Albert, Jasmine and Brogie explore her incredible journey from teaching dance to stepping into Pandora itself, how she found her way into James Cameron’s world through Kevin Dorman, and what it’s really like training in full Na’vi mode. From archery and dialect sessions to the rigorous “Na’vi Boot Camp,” Courtney shares the passion and precision behind performance capture and the magic of creating a living, breathing world in Avatar: Fire and Ash 🌿✨
A deep sense of family that defines the Avatar set. Every performer, tech artist, and coordinator looks out for one another, creating the kind of community you can feel onscreen. Courtney opens up about working with the younger cast, the raw honesty of motion capture (“it’s black-box theatre without an audience”), and the spiritual heartbeat of Avatar that continues to unite fans around the world.
And in true Avatar family fashion, the episode ends with one of our favourite stories: how Kevin Dorman and Alicia Vela-Bailey introduced Courtney to her now-husband, Jason Chen — a VFX artist from the original Avatar! When Courtney later told producer Jon Landau, he was so overjoyed he ran around the studio announcing, “Ask Courtney who her boyfriend is!” 💙
It’s a perfect glimpse into the warmth, humour, and genuine connection that make the Avatar community so special — both on and off the screen.
Irayo to a true gem, not only of an artist, but a human being overall 💎
Tune in now to PandoraFest all November long, where we celebrate the people who bring the world of Avatar to life!
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TheWayOfJasmine and @BrogieBear95 , you both absolutely Slayvako’d the heck out of your co-hosting!
And that’s Day 1 of 30 of #AvatarCelebration underway!
Daily livestreams for all of November to get us to December in one piece!!!
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Avatar is a multimedia universe centred on the first peoples of the distant moon of Pandora, a reality-based paracosm created by filmmaker, engineer and eco-activist James Cameron. Taking inspiration from, and ultimately acting as a paean to, our own Earth and its many first peoples, Avatar promotes ‘artivism’ — activism through art — to inspire change in how we treat ourselves, each other, and the planet. It is one of the most successful media properties ever, and comprises films, interactive experiences, books, music, attractions, and more.
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The Avatar Network is a non-profit community-run production of @thequantumyth and not affiliated with Lightstorm, Disney or 20th Century Studios.
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