In Lilo & Stitch, a Hawaiian child named Lilo Pelekai (Daveigh Chase) is being raised by her elder sister Nani (Tia Carrere) after losing both of their parents. Their lives are completely changed when Lilo adopts a “dog” she names Stitch (Chris Sanders). The dog is really an alien dubbed Experiment 626, who was genetically modified to cause devastating damage. The Intergalactic Federation is after Stitch, and at first, he uses Lilo to evade capture, but as their relationship deepens, they come to understand the meaning of “ohana,” or extended family in Hawaiian culture. Stitch decides to change his destructive intentions in order to preserve his newly acquired family.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

Walt Disney Feature Animation created the animated movie Lilo & Stitch, which was released in 2002, the 42nd animated picture from Disney. Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois wrote and created Lilo & Stitch, which was also produced by Clark Spencer. Over $270 million was made by the movie globally, according to Box Office Mojo. The movie’s cumulative theatrical and financial success made it one of Disney Animation’s few notable accomplishments during their post-Renaissance period in the 2000s. It also spawned a film franchise that has produced other films and television shows, including Lilo & Stitch: The Series, Stitch!, Stitch & Ai, and Stitch! The Movie.

How Lilo & Stitch Used Different Art Techniques

     Walt Disney Pictures

What people anticipated from Disney at the time was totally different from Lilo & Stitch. The majority of Disney’s early-2000s animated movies were CGI-heavy, and the company was going through a very strange time when their animation and illustration were becoming a somewhat disappointing experience.

Disney was making animated movies like Dinosaur, with its crude and already outdated computer animation, The Emperor’s New Groove, which boasts cartoon visuals that seem cheap, and Chicken Little, which used all-3D CGI for the first time, causing awkward visual details. This is not to suggest that these are not good films; they just lacked a certain something.

Lilo & Stitch, however, provided us with something truly original. Using their intricate hand-drawn animation and lovely watercolor backdrops in the vivid hues of Hawaii, the animators created something beautiful. These watercolor techniques hadn’t been used at the studio since 1941’s Dumbo, around 60 years prior, and they were perfect for telling Stitch’s story.

Why Lilo & Stitch Was So Successful

A small part of the popularity of Lilo & Stitch was due to the adorable aliens; a larger part was due to the creative marketing effort. The overall success of the film, however, was largely due to the directors’ ability to create the movie as they saw fit while working within the constraints of the Disney system. Lilo & Stitch, unlike many high-profile Disney films from the past, was made in the now-famous Florida facility known as Hollywood Studios (at the time, MGM Studios), which is part of Walt Disney World.

In an interview with Vulture, Chris Sanders, the film’s director, said, “Florida was magic, because no one knew what was going on in Florida.” Associate Director Lisa Poole added, “Being in Florida, you were away from the mothership. If you needed support from L.A., you had to holler a little louder. But that gave us freedom. There were definitely some things we did differently. And when L.A. found out, they didn’t like that we were doing it differently — but they couldn’t argue with the results.” This secretive gamble paid off and Lilo & Stitch was released to acclaim, receiving 27 award nominations, including an Oscar nomination, and 11 award wins.

Lilo & Stitch: The Live-Action Reboot

It’s no news that Disney has been remaking a number of its animated classics into live-action movies as part of a current live-action remake trend. Live-action versions of the beloved animated movies The Jungle Book, Beauty and the Beast, Dumbo, Aladdin, The Lion King, Lady and the Tramp, Mulan, and Pinocchio have all been produced. Disney seems to be considering live-action remakes of a lot more movies.

So, it comes as no surprise that Disney revealed the existence of a brand-new live-action Lilo & Stitch movie. As of 2022, Variety reports that Dean Fleischer Camp has taken over directing the picture. Chris Sanders, who was Lilo & Stitch’s creator, director, and voice of Stitch in the original movie, will reprise his voice role in the upcoming film. The remainder of the cast for the live-action movie has not yet been revealed. The release of the Lilo & Stitch live-action movie is tentatively scheduled for release on May 10, 2024, but that could always change as the film is still in pre-production.