When two massive creative forces combine, readers are rewarded with an action-packed story of friendship, immigration, and empowerment that aims straight for the heart. Claribel A. Ortega, the New York Times bestselling author of Witchlings as well as the award-winning Frizzy, has teamed up with Emmy Award–winning screenwriter and director Oz Rodriguez, best known for writing and directing Vampires Vs. the Bronx, to create a light sci-fi, coming-of-age tale that's very much down-to-earth. Told with honesty and humor, The Girl and the Robot (Disney) is a relatable, contemporary tale destined to become an instant classic for this generation. Coming March 25 to a bookstore near you.

This lighthearted and fun story of an extraterrestrial visitor is also a profound story about family, belonging, immigration, and first-generation families. Can you talk about creating this tonal balance?

Oz: There was this tension in what we were trying to do—on the one hand, the story needed to be light, joyful, full of whimsy and adventure. But it also had to be rooted in something deeper, something resonant. We wanted to talk about family but also the idea of community: how the people we find along the way can become just as critical as the ones we’ve always known. For immigrants, that hits harder and carries deeper meaning.

Everything we cared about was simmering in the sancocho, but the heart of it was Mimi. Everything hinged on seeing the world through her eyes—not a polished, filtered version, but the messy, honest, beautiful chaos she experiences.

Mimi's father has, tragically, been separated from his family due to deportation. How did you so authentically capture the protagonist's heartbreak and confusion over her family circumstances?

Oz: We both come from Dominican backgrounds, so we’ve experienced firsthand the complexities of family, migration, and belonging. We have family members who’ve left their homeland and others who’ve come back because it didn’t work out in New York. One of us is an immigrant who made that journey to this country, so we both carry that weight—the feeling of losing touch with a family member, the distance that becomes more than just geographical. It’s something we understand deeply and have a real connection to.

In many respects, your titular robot is a real throwback to vintage sci-fi stories. Did you garner any inspiration from books or movies from your childhood?

Claribel: Definitely E.T. was a huge source of inspiration, not just because of the obvious “alien comes to earth and gets help from a kid” parallel but also because of the whimsy and bravery of media that dared to let kids be the focal point and the leaders in tough situations. Mimi has so much wisdom and love to give despite her young age and her many years of growing up to do, and kids seeing their capabilities and worth reflected back to them is important.

What role does friendship play in the story?

Claribel: Friendship in the story goes hand in hand with the idea of community, which is really at the heart of the story. Dealing with things like deportation and immigration issues can be so difficult and often lead to shame, and we wanted to make sure we were true to the nuances of how that might impact a child and their relationships. Mimi’s shame and confusion, and sometimes even her anger, surrounding her father’s immigration status keep her isolated—both because she’s busy working to try and get him a lawyer and because she is scared of being judged and ridiculed. We wanted to show the role friends play in keeping a kid like Mimi afloat and how it takes a community of friends and neighbors to create change, to help heal a broken heart, and to fix the problems that feel insurmountable when we’re on our own.

What part of the story impacted you the most as you were writing?

Oz: The prologue. Reading Claribel’s version of that section was like stepping right into Mimi’s shoes, feeling every raw, unfiltered emotion of that moment, including the joy of playing with her dad, José, so vivid and full of life, only to have it all shattered in an instant. Every detail, every heartbeat of that scene, hit like a gut punch.

Fears about deportation are currently widespread. What is your message to potential readers who are experiencing these anxieties firsthand?

Oz: These fears are not unfounded, and they reflect the cruel and unjust systems that so many are forced to endure. But remember, fear thrives on isolation, and the antidote is solidarity. The structures of oppression can seem unshakable, but history shows us they are not. Organize and connect with others. Together, we have the power to challenge even the most oppressive systems. Your voice matters, and your fight is a part of something much larger.

What can you share about your partnership? How would you describe your creative process?

Oz: Claribel is a remarkable author whose imagination seems boundless and whose humor and compassion breathe life into everything she writes. I’ve been drawn to Claribel’s stories about witches, ghosts, and a girl who learns to love her natural curly hair. Collaborating on this project felt like a dream realized. I’m new to middle grade books, but Claribel made it so much smoother, guiding me through it with patience. We worked together over Zooms, FaceTimes, and texts. Living on opposite coasts didn’t slow us down, and neither did my spelling! Our Google Docs became this ever-evolving space where we added, revised, and exchanged ideas. It was all in pursuit of telling the best story we could.