National Film Vault

FILM NOTES

Walt Disney Feature Animation released Lilo & Stitch in June 2002, a deliberately intimate production set apart from the studio's grander fantasy epics of the preceding decade. Shot in watercolor backgrounds rather than the usual gouache, the film found unexpected commercial and critical success, and its promotional materials circulated widely ahead of the theatrical run.

This cell, titled Stitch Surfing, is drawn from the 2002 promotional trailer attached to The Little Mermaid re-release. The frames capture Stitch, voiced by Chris Sanders, mid-ride on a surfboard, the composition filled with open blue sky and ocean spray. It is a clean, kinetic image that distills the film's Hawaiian setting into a single recognizable moment.