During this important historical period when YouTube and social media platforms continue to significantly impact society and culture, there is a natural interest in the stories and personal journeys of popular influencers and personalities that help drive content. Check out this panoramic view of the career and personal life of the professional YouTuber known as The Amagi.
Origins of The Amagi
This pseudonym and the name of a popular YouTube channel belongs to 20-year-old Ethan Schulteis, a known YouTube content creator. Schulteis took the name “Amagi” from the lead character of an animated story he created at the age of 12.
A Humble Beginning
Like many young people who came of age in the early 2000s, Schulteis developed an in-depth interest in animated shows such as the Nickelodeon series “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” The show provided Schulteis with a considerable amount of inspiration, leading him to develop his own animated series, “The Amagi.” He then pitched this show to Nickelodeon.
After the popular children’s network failed to respond, Schulteis committed himself to taking online animation courses and launching a show of this own. The young man dedicated himself to making the show for nearly a year before he was ready to share it with others. He then created a YouTube channel to showcase his animation. Although it was a step forward, it wasn’t very successful with viewers. Initially, Schulteis greatly limited access to the original animation because he considered it “extremely bad.”
Renewed Success
After “The Amagi” failed to find critical success, Schulteis proceeded to seek out an appropriate YouTube niche for a few years. Eventually, his work attracted the attention of Cartoon Frederator, a prominent YouTube network. With the support of Cartoon Frederator, he created additional animations in a myriad of content formats, including a top-10 video series.
Continuing to experiment with these formats, Schulteis elected to return to his initial obsession in 2019. To attract viewers, he decided to post a video that thoroughly explored the history of lava bending in the Avatar animated series. Much to his surprise, the video reached viral status and helped Schulteis uncover his true niche.
Feeding the Anime Obsession
If you are not familiar with anime or the Japanese manga graphic novels they often adapt, you may be surprised at the exceptional size of their fanbases. According to Netflix, more than 100 million viewers log on to watch anime series and movies each year. With a finale that drew in more than 6 million viewers, the anime-inspired “Avatar: The Last Airbender” ranks as one of the most successful animated series. Such numbers prove Schulties wasn’t the only person with a passion for anime and anime-inspired animation.
Starting in 2019, Schulteis began to capitalize on this passion and post numerous videos related to the Avatar: TLA series. These videos often delved into the inner workings and personality traits of the show’s primary characters. In a relatively short time, The Amagi channel established itself as a go-to resource for fans seeking to further stoke their interests. Within a year, it had amassed more than 100,000 subscribers.
A Broader Appeal
As the creator of The Amagi, Schulteis soon realized the need for this content to have broader appeal. To address this issue, Schulteis started creating similar videos concerning characters in popular manga and anime series such as “One Piece,” “Dragonball,” and “Hero Academia.” A considerable number of these content pieces now focus on the anime giant “Naruto.”
By appealing to a broader fanbase, the channel eventually gained a subscriber base of more than 1 million by the end of 2021.
Future Endeavors
Recently, Schulteis has embarked on creating a new YouTube channel dedicated to analyzing prevalent characters in fantasy-based live-action shows. This new channel, The Amagi 2, touches on characters from shows such as “The Witcher,” “Cobra Kai,” and “The Boys.”
View The Amagi channel on YouTube and find out what all the fun is about!
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar:_The_Last_Airbender_(franchise)
