Bryan Konietzko

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Bryan Konietzko
Bryan Konietzko by Gage Skidmore 2.jpg
Konietzko at the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con
Born
Bryan Joseph Konietzko

(1976-06-01) June 1, 1976 (age 49)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Alma mater Rhode Island School of Design (BFA)
Occupation(s)Animator, producer, writer, director
Years active1999–present
Known forCo-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra
TitleCo-Chief Creative Officer, Avatar Studios
SpouseElisabeth Louisa Wahlander (m. 2010)

Bryan Joseph Konietzko (born June 1, 1975) is an American animator, writer, producer and director. He is best known, together with Michael Dante DiMartino, as the co-creator and executive producer of the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra .

Contents

Career

Konietzko has worked as a character designer at Film Roman for Family Guy and as assistant director for Mission Hill and King of the Hill . He was hired as a storyboard artist and art director for the Nickelodeon animated series Invader Zim in 2000. When Invader Zim concluded in 2002, Konietzko and his friend, Michael Dante DiMartino, were recruited by Eric Coleman to pitch their own series to Nickelodeon, which resulted in the creation of Avatar: The Last Airbender . [1]

Between 2002 and 2014, Konietzko, together with DiMartino, were mainly occupied with writing and producing the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender and its sequel The Legend of Korra for Nickelodeon. Konietzko's and DiMartino's long-standing creative partnership is collectively referred to as "Bryke" by fans, in reference to "shipping" naming conventions. [2]

As of 2015, Konietzko was working on writing and illustrating a sci-fi graphic novel series, Threadworlds, that is to be published by First Second Books, but there is no release date. [3]

In September 2018, Netflix announced that Konietzko and DiMartino would serve as executive producers and showrunners for the live-action series based on Avatar: The Last Airbender, which released in 2024. [4] On August 12, 2020, Konietzko and DiMartino revealed on social media that they had both departed the show, due to creative differences with the Netflix team. [5]

In February 2021, ViacomCBS announced the formation of Avatar Studios, a division of Nickelodeon centered on developing newer animated series and movies set in the same universe as Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, with both DiMartino and Konietzko helming the studio as co-chief creative officers reporting to Nickelodeon Animation Studio president, Ramsey Ann Naito. [6] The first project of the studio is the animated film The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender . The film was expected to release on October 10, 2025, then was delayed to January 30, 2026, and then was delayed again to its current release date of October 9, 2026. [7] [8] [9]

Personal life

Konietzko was born in 1976 in a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. [1] Konietzko graduated from Roswell High School in Roswell, Georgia, a suburb north of Atlanta. In 1994, he went back to Ohio and did his foundation year at the Art Academy of Cincinnati. He transferred to the Rhode Island School of Design where he met his friend and future collaborator, Michael Dante DiMartino. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Illustration in 1998. [10] [11] He joined DiMartino in Los Angeles, California, where the latter helped the former get his foot in the door of the TV animation industry. [1] He lived in Waterbury, Vermont in 2023. [12] Konietzko is married to professional dancer Elisabeth "Lisa" Wahlander (born 1981). Wahlander is a former employee of his, whom he met during the production of Avatar: The Last Airbender, where she worked as a martial arts coordinator and videographer. [13] [14]

Konietzko is also active in photography and has a band, Ginormous, [15] with which he has released several albums. These include Our Ancestors' Intense Love Affair and At Night, Under Artificial Light. In 2017, he founded a heavy metal band named Eonothem. [12]

Filmography

YearTitleCreator/ShowrunnerDirectorWriterExecutive ProducerActorArt DirectorNotes
1999–2000 Family Guy NoNoNoNoNoNo8 episodes, character designer
2002 Invader Zim NoNoNoNoNoYes1 episode
2005–2008 Avatar: The Last Airbender YesYesYesYesYesYes
2010 The Last Airbender NoNoNoYesNoNo
2012–2014 The Legend of Korra YesYesYesYesYesYes
2013Republic City HustleYesNoYesYesNoNoTV mini series
2021 Dota: Dragon's Blood NoNoNoNoNoNo1 episode, television story by

References

  1. 1 2 3 Rise Up Animation (2021-09-08). The Art of Pitching with Bryan Konietzko . Retrieved 2025-10-03 via YouTube.
  2. Hoffman, Mike (8 January 2015). "Four Ways The Legend of Korra Respected Its Younger Viewers". The Escapist . Archived from the original on 12 January 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  3. Towers, Andrea (6 July 2015). "Avatar: The Last Airbender and Korra creator previews new graphic novel Threadworlds -- exclusive". EW.com . Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2015.
  4. Hipes, Patrick (18 September 2018). "'Avatar: The Last Airbender' Live-Action Series in Works at Netflix". Deadline . Archived from the original on 12 December 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  5. "Bryan Konietzko on Instagram: "Well, friends... There you have it. Big sigh. 💔⬇️💔 I'm sure many of you will understandably want to know more and will ask me questions in the comments, here and on subsequent posts and live-streams and in-person encounters and everywhere else ad infinitum. I wish I could explain things in greater detail, but the above statement is really all I can say about the matter so I won't be answering any of those. I encourage you to head over to my partner Michael DiMartino's account to get his take on our departure too: @mike_dante_d Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of the Avatar: The Last Airbender fans, and I'm sorry our involvement in the live-action project did not work out. Time to get on with my life. Onward and upward. 💙 Love, Bryan #avatarthelastairbender #cocreators #michaeldimatino #bryankonietzko #bryke #atla #liveactionseries #netflix"". Archived from the original on 2020-08-13. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  6. Zorrilla, Mónica Marie (February 24, 2021). "Nickelodeon Launches Avatar Studios, Will Expand World of 'Avatar: The Last Airbender,' 'The Legend of Korra'". Variety . Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  7. D'Alessandro, Anthony (2022-11-10). "Paramount Sets Dates For New 'SpongeBob' & 'Aang Avatar' Animated Movies". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-03-14.
  8. Rubin, Rebecca (2024-04-18). "'Aang: The Last Airbender' Delayed to 2026, 'Transformers One' Moves Back a Week". Variety. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  9. Tangcay, Jazz (2025-05-16). "'The Legend Of Aang: The Last Airbender' Pushed to October 2026 and 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem' Sequel Delayed to September 2027". Variety. Retrieved 2025-10-03.
  10. Konietzko, Bryan. "About" Archived 2017-07-25 at the Wayback Machine , bryankonietzko.com. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  11. "Nickelodeon Establishes Avatar Studios, Brand-New Content Division Devoted to Expanding the World of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra". Paramount Global. February 21, 2021. Archived from the original on January 11, 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  12. 1 2 "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-10-03.
  13. Vidani, Peter. "bryan konietzko". bryan konietzko. Archived from the original on 2018-12-30. Retrieved 2025-10-03.
  14. "Lisa Wahlander | Hammer Museum". hammer.ucla.edu. 2016-11-27. Retrieved 2025-10-03.
  15. "Ginormous :: Music". Archived from the original on 2017-06-19. Retrieved 2009-09-05.