Camp, who co-wrote and directed the Oscar-nominated Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, helms the story of a young girl, Lilo (Maia Kealoha), who yearns for a best friend. Enter Stitch, aka Experiment 626, a destructive alien who lands on Earth when Lilo needs him the most.

My Oscar Book:

Resonating with Audiences

The original movie came out at the perfect time. It didn’t look like anything else Disney had made. It felt grounded, specific and real in a way. It differed from other Disney movies because it didn’t take place in fairy tale kingdom and didn’t feature princesses.

Chris Sanders as Stitch

That was one of the first conversations. I made sure to get that assurance before I even said yes to the project. I was like, “Chris Sanders.” And they said, “Yeah, he’s eager to come back,” so working with him was a dream.

Maia and Sydney Agudong

We had cast Maia first, and then it was all about chemistry, and when we saw them together in the audition, it struck all of us instantly. It seemed like they had been sisters their whole lives, and they were so loving. Sydney is so fiercely protective of her. But they also get on each other’s nerves, and it felt really right.

Hannah Waddington

She’s amazing, so funny. There’s so much recording of Hannah and the Grand Council mask slipping, and her saying stuff that is not appropriate for Disney movie, but so effing funny to hear it in her voice. I’m so sad there’s not red-band trailer where we can include them.

First Time Seeing the Animation?

It immediately became my favorite Disney film and, in some ways, contributed to me thinking, “Maybe filmmaking is a job.” But it blew me away because it didn’t look like other Disney movies.

We’re doing the scene where Stitch dies on the beach, and we’d been working for a while. Even if you’re a really good kid actor, it takes a lot to get there emotionally in a convincing way, especially on a film set where there’s chaos swirling around you, and there’s 100 people watching. And on the first take, Maia nails it and does exactly what you see on screen. That scene where she’s crying and snot blowing, it’s not an editing trick, and it was so moving and out of the blue. I walked up to Maia afterwards, and I said, “That was so good. What were you thinking about?” and she goes, “Oh, I was thinking about how Stitch is going to get to meet mama and papa.” It still gives me chills talking about it, I didn’t give her that, Sara didn’t give her that. That is just an incredibly perceptive and talented kid manifesting this amazing performance from her imagination.

Changing the Ending

I think that people who are dunking on that premise have not actually seen the movie, and they write me stuff that is wrong. They get the beats of the story wrong. But when you see it, it doesn’t feel that way at all, and you see the intent of the actual filmmaking.

Two larger conversations led us towards that ending

We wanted to expand the meaning of ohana, and ground it in traditional Hawaiian values of collectivism, extended family and community. Chris, who’s Hawaiian, made a really important observation about the original early on in our discussions. He didn’t buy that the two orphan sisters would just be left to fend for themselves. He said, “Neighbors, church groups, aunties and uncles, all these people would step in. That’s just the Hawaii I know and grew up in.” That led him to create this character of Tutu, and she ultimately takes Lilo in as hanai, which is this culturally specific term and tradition that is a form of informal adoption. It isn’t about blood or paperwork, but love and responsibility for the greater good and for one’s community. A lot of Hawaiians who’ve seen the film have picked up on that reference to hanai, and they love that. It’s this uniquely Hawaiian answer to the question of who shows up when things fall apart, and that idea of informal adoption. It shows the broader community’s willingness to sacrifice and do whatever it takes for these girls and for their ohana. I think you can’t satisfy everyone with these remakes. You are treading on hallowed ground when you make one of these, because these are films people grew up with, and I’m one of them, and I totally understand it.

But we didn’t want to just restage the beats of the original film, as much as we both loved it. We wanted to tell a story that’s honest about what it means to lose everything and still find a way forward.

People get left behind, like what Nani says, and it’s incumbent upon the community to make sure that they aren’t forgotten.

I wouldn’t do a sequel just because there’s new market demand for it. But I also like the idea of doing an animated spin-off as episodic or limited series.