Dory creator inspired by tiny boy who 'just kept swimming'

When Francis William Azize was born 17 weeks early in January last year, his aunt drew a Finding Nemo mural in his hospital room in a bid to make the sterile environment a little more homely.

Little did the baby's family know their tiny boy's story would one day bring the creator of the iconic children's movie to tears.

While Francis fought for survival during his early months of life, his parents saw a video of a TED talk given by Andrew Stanton, creator of Finding Nemo and Finding Dory. During the speech the Oscar winning director spoke about being born prematurely himself.

"When I was born, I was born premature - I came out much too early and I wasn't fully baked," Stanton said in his speech.

"I was very, very sick and when the doctor took a look at this yellow kid ... he looked straight at my mum and said, 'He's not going to live.'

"I was in the hospital for months. I lived. Whatever I ended up being good at, I would strive to be worthy of the second chance I was given."

Francis' mum, from Rhode Island in the US,  said watching Mr Stanton's speech gave her hope for baby Francis, who weighed just 455 grams when he was born. He was given just a 15 per cent chance of survival.

"It was inspiring to hear how thankful he was to his parents for giving him a chance. It confirmed it was the right choice to give Francis a chance," Mrs Azize told US ABC News.

"They say it's a rollercoaster and it definitely is. Some days it derails, but he received a lot of prayers and a lot of love from everyone and he is thriving."

By chance, Francis' uncle Charles Kinnane happened to be seated next to Mr Stanton during a plane trip while his nephew was still battling in hospital. 

"I said, 'Mr Stanton, I don't want to bother you, but my sister and brother-in-law have a son that's in the NICU and your TED Talk really inspired us,'" Mr Kinnane told ABC.

"I showed him some photos [of Francis] and he couldn't have been nicer. After seeing some photos he said, 'Us premmies need to stick together.'"

Mr Stanton then handed Mr Kinnane a note for his nephew. It read: "To Francis William, Just Keep Swimming - Andrew Stanton."

The exchange, and Francis' brave battle, prompted the family to compile a video clip about the now one-year-old's progress since birth.

"'Just keep swimming' and that's what Francis did," Mrs Azize says in the video.

"He just kept swimming throughout the NICU and he continues to 'just keep swimming' and thriving. We wanted to give him a chance."

The emotional clip has been viewed more than 14 million times since the family uploaded it to Facebook last month. Not only that, but Mr Stanton himself has watched it and Tweeted that his was "profoundly moved" by the clip.

Mrs Azize said her family had been surprised by the popularity of their video.

"It's a little overwhelming, but not in a bad way," she told ABC.

"We've received so many other stories from people who have premature children. Some are still in the NICU and have appreciation for life after watching it.

"I think ultimately that's been the greatest thing about sharing the video is this appreciation on life."