The Morning Watch: Reference Acting In Animation, 'The Little Mermaid' Storyboard Comparison & More

The Morning Watch is a recurring feature that highlights a handful of noteworthy videos from around the web. They could be video essays, fanmade productions, featurettes, short films, hilarious sketches, or just anything that has to do with our favorite movies and TV shows.

In this edition, learn what it takes to be a reference actor for animated movies and TV shows like Avatar: The Last Airbender. Plus, see how storyboards for The Little Mermaid compare to the final animated movie from 1989. And finally, watch as Lana Condor and Noah Centineo react to the trailer for To All the Boys: Always and Forever, the end of the romantic comedy franchise.

First up, Insider reveals how master martial artist and fight choreographer Sifu Kisu worked with director Giancarlo Volpe to create the fight sequences from Avatar: The Last Airbender. Kisu recorded himself doing various martial arts moves to be used as reference to make it easier for storyboard artists and animators to draw characters in action accurately.

Next up, see how the iconic animated musical sequence "Under the Sea" was planned with storyboards for Disney's classic The Little Mermaid. You'll see that while Sebastian's character design translates almost directly from the storyboards, but Ariel isn't quite as detailed when it comes to her facial expressions and appearance in the final cut of the film.

Finally, with the first trailer for To All the Boys: Always and Forever out there, franchise stars Lana Condor and Noah Centineo reacted to the tease for the final chapter of their love story on Netflix. They provided a little insight behind the scenes of the making of the movie and the various scenes that are showcased throughout the trailer, including that cool South Korean cafe that looks a detailed pencil sketch inside.