A prop can change from CG to hand drawing inside the same shot in Disney Animation’s Lilo & Scratch. That test helped convince the filmmakers that the short’s mixed-media approach would work.
VFX supervisor Jeremy Sikorski described the production process in a Nov. 13 interview with Variety. The early sequence paired a hand-drawn Scratch with a CG Stitch holding a blaster. The blaster changes mediums as Scratch eats it.
The crew built a pipeline that let artists working in different mediums contribute to the same frame. A background might be painted in watercolor while Lilo and Stitch appear as 3D sculptures. The result is meant to retain the look of the 2002 film while using Disney Animation’s current CG tools.
Scratch Was Built to Match Stitch’s Chaos
Directors Malcon Pierce and Fawn Veerasunthorn settled on a kitten as Stitch’s opponent. Veerasunthorn told Variety that the first story reel ran about 10 minutes because the team had packed in more escalating jokes than the finished short could hold.
Disney announced the short in June, including its hand-drawn, CG and watercolor approach. The new interview fills in how the team made those elements interact. Lilo & Scratch plays before Hexed in theaters Nov. 25.