Nine-year-old Milo (Seth Green) finds out just how much he needs his mom (Joan Cusack) when she's nabbed by Martians who plan to steal her mom-ness for their own young.
Produced by the team behind "Monster House" and "The Polar Express," "Mars Needs Moms" showcases Milo's quest to save his mom--a wild and funny adventure in Disney Digital 3D and IMAX 3D that involves stowing away on a spaceship, navigating an elaborate, multilevel planet and taking on the alien nation and their Supervisor (Mindy Sterling).
With the help of a tech-savvy, gadget-happy, '80s-speaking underground Earthman named Gribble (Dan Fogler) and a rebel Martian girl called Ki (Elisabeth Harnois), Milo just might find his way back to his mom--in more ways than one.
"It's an adventure film with a lighter side," says director Simon Wells ("The Time Machine," "The Prince of Egypt"). "Even though the movie is about this thrilling mission to save mum from a bunch of Martians, it's littered with funny characters," says Wells. "Dan Fogler as Gribble is consistently hilarious and ad-libbed much of his role. And even more serious characters like Supervisor were taken over the top by brilliant actors like Mindy Sterling. The whole cast really made a fun film funnier."
The screenplay is by Wells and Wendy Wells based on the book by Berkeley Breathed.
The film is produced by Academy Award-winning director Robert Zemeckis ("Forrest Gump"), who says audiences have a lot to love about "Mars Needs Moms." "They have a lot to look forward to--fun, adventure, comedy, laughs, great performances, spectacular 3D--just an unbelievably wonderful digital movie."

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Cartoonist Berkeley Breathed Finds Inspiration at Home
Famed cartoonist Berkeley Breathed was moved to write the book that inspired the film after an eventful dinner at home. "One night my son Milo threw his broccoli into the air and stormed from the table--a scene depicted with more civility in the movie," says Breathed. "Upon leaving, he said something about his mother too vile to repeat here--which would only result in expensive therapy later if he ever remembered. From out of nowhere came my next line: 'You might think differently about your mom if she were kidnapped by Martians.' I spun on my heels and wrote the book that night. The rest is Disney history."
ImageMovers Digital and the Disney team embraced the project, tapping Simon Wells to direct and co-write the script with wife Wendy Wells. The writing partners have been married for 23 years, and daughters Meredith and Teagan are featured as Hatchlings in the movie. The film follows in the footsteps of ImageMovers Digital's roster of well-received family fare, "The Polar Express" and "Monster
House," bringing the story to the big screen in 3D via performance capture. The technique digitally captures the performances of the actors with computerized cameras in a full 360 degrees, allowing filmmakers to transport audiences to Mars--and back--creating elaborate out-of-this-world settings and characters while capitalizing on the expert performances of the cast.
The director says the action and adventure and humor will explode on the big screen--thanks in no small part to the fact that it'll be presented in 3D and shown on IMAX screens. But Wells says it's the heart of the film that first attracted them. "This film has an amazing center to it which is the mother's love for the child and the child's realization about that love," says Wells. "And that really spoke to me. It spoke to my wife and writing partner, Wendy. And we built the whole thing around that central moment, which was the whole reason why Berkeley wrote the original book in the first place."
Producer Jack Rapke says the idea of aliens coming to Earth in search of our mothering expertise is a rich one. "The women who are running Mars are very totalitarian and very OCD--not maternal at all," says Rapke. "They know that in the solar system, there is a planet called Earth, with a species of humans whose moms seem to be able to control offspring. So they need one every 25 years or so and they send their Martian raiders down to Earth to get one--who, this time, just happens to be Milo's mom."
Filmmakers decided to expand the reach of the book when it hit the big screen. "We wanted to age the characters up slightly," says Wells. "And we realized we were going to spend much longer on Mars. So you travel around an alien world, meet new beings and see the different aspects of that world."
Filmmakers found that they were tapping the imaginations of millions of people who have wondered for generations if there is life on Mars. In the 1880s telescopes revealed strange markings on Mars, which convinced masses of people that Mars had canals built by an alien race. Today, NASA is constructing a six-wheel-drive rover called MSL (Mars Science Lab) that will be the largest, fastest, most intelligent rover ever deployed to Mars. Two Martian rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, currently roam the Martian surface, and the rover depicted in "Mars Needs Moms" is actually modeled after them.
But our rovers wouldn't detect the Martians showcased in the film--they're hidden safely underground and controlled by a strict leader. "Our Martian society is Orwellian in a way," says producer Steve Starkey. "All the color has been taken out of it, it's very strict, it's very rigid. But there's a few renegades lying below the surface."
Wells, who's the great grandson of sci-fi author H.G. Wells, says the film capitalizes on the audience's natural curiosity about outer space and thirst for action. "You're shot at and chased and you discover things. You get to experience environments that you would never in your normal lives get to see. You get to travel on a huge heroic journey in pursuit of the noblest cause of all, which is to save your mum because you love her."

DIVERSE CAST BRINGS EARTHLINGS AND ALIENS TO THE BIG SCREEN
Producer Robert Zemeckis credits the cast for infusing so much humor into the film. "The situations are funny and the scenes are hilarious--the whole absurd reality of the movie just lends itself to fantastic humor. But our cast in this movie is probably one of the best improv casts that has been put together in recent years. They can take a scene and add to it in a wonderful way."  Read more

LEARNING THE LANGUAGE: Red Planet Setting Calls for Unique Language
The Martians on Mars needed to have a unique language all their own. To create it, teach it and coach it, the filmmakers turned to improvisational actor Stephen Kearin. Kearin had come in to audition for the part of Wingnut (which ultimately went to actor Kevin Cahoon), but certainly did not walk away empty-handed.Read more

CREATING CHARACTER: Filmmakers Call on Doug Chiang to Find the Right Look
The art of performance capture provides unlimited possibilities to filmmakers, and production designer Doug Chiang knows exactly how to navigate it all. An Academy Award-winning artist, production designer and author, Chiang began his career as a stop motion animator on the "Pee Wee's Playhouse" TV series. That lead to prominent creative positions at Industrial Light and Magic and Lucas LTD. Chiang later served as production designer on the Zemeckis-directed films "The Polar Express," "Beowulf" and "Disney's A Christmas Carol." Chiang and his team of artists at ImageMovers Digital began their work on "Mars Needs Moms" well before the cameras started to roll.  Read more

CONSTRUCTING REAL SETS TO MATCH DIGITAL SETS
Working closely with Chiang to provide physical sets for the world he has created is Supervising Art Director Norm Newberry and Art Director Mike Stassi. Veterans of the performance-capture world who have worked with ImageMovers Digital on many of its previous films, Newberry and Stassi's main responsibilities were to translate the conceptual artwork from the creative team at IMD and turn those into construction documents and, ultimately, completed sets. These set pieces, however, need to meet not only dimensional requirements, but had the unique challenge of needing to be transparent enough for the performance-capture technology to "see through them" while still physical enough to provide guidance for the actors.Read more

TAKING IT TO THE BIG SCREEN
Considering the hostile conditions on the surface of the planet, the world in "Mars Needs Moms" is created underground. This fantastic vision of the Red Planet consists of four levels. Martian Central, where the Martian civilization lives day-to-day, is located justbelow the surface. Next is the more industrial underground. This is the support level for the city above; it's interwoven with heavy pipes and machinery.Read more

MAKING MARS:  Filmmakers Render the Red Planet
Taking inspiration from Berkeley Breathed's illustrations, the creative team began building an elaborate, multi-layered fantasy world that would house the eclectic characters of "Mars Needs Moms."
The creative team did their homework, studying the weather, atmosphere, temperature, gravity and moons of Mars. The knowledge allowed filmmakers to create a believable world that both made sense and delved deep into the imagination. Read more

CAPTURING PERFORMANCE:  Disney Teams Up with ImageMovers Digital for Tech-Savvy Film
With films like "The Polar Express," "Monster House" and "Disney's A Christmas Carol" under their belts, producers Robert Zemeckis, Jack Rapke and Steve Starkey are pioneers in performance-capture filmmaking. And this time they've capitalized on the latest advancements in both performance capture and 3D, creating a visually mind-blowing experience for audiences. Read more

ACTION!
Unlike live-action films that require the crew to travel from location to location and from set to set, the entire shooting schedule on a performance-capture film takes place on one stage or "Volume." Actors wore black bodysuits with special markings that allowed filmmakers to capture their movements.Read more

ANOTHER DIMENSION
Zemeckis says there's an important aspect of the art form that makes these films special. "One of the great bonuses of doing a movie in performance capture is that it's in 3D all the time. We have to make our movie in 3D just to do it. We now design the movie to be presented in 3D, too. And when you're doing a 3D movie that's completely virtual like 'Mars Needs Moms,' the 3D can be more spectacular than you can do in any other form. We spend a lot of time and energy designing our movies for the 3D experience for the audience."Read more

MARS NEEDS MUSIC: John Powell Creates Out-of-This-World Score
Composer John Powell was called on to create the score for "Mars Needs Moms." He came to the project with films like "Face/Off," "The Bourne Identity," "Shrek" and "How to Train Your Dragon" in his repertoire, and both Powell and director Simon Wells count "Prince of Egypt" among their credits. "I have been a fan of his work ever since," says Wells, "loving the complex blend of orchestral and electronic elements that he weaves into many of his scores."Read more

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
SIMON WELLS (Directed by/Screenplay by) has a background in both animated and live-action films. Wells directed the 2002 feature film "The Time Machine," which marked his live-action directorial debut. His animation credits include co-directing DreamWorks' award-winning animated epic "The Prince of Egypt" and directing the Universal animated feature "Balto."
Hailing from England, Wells began his professional career directing commercials, working with famed animator Richard Williams. He later served as a supervising animator on the innovative comedy "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," which seamlessly blended animation and live action.
In addition to his directing work, Wells has done storyboard and design work in live action ("Back to the Future Part II" and "Part III"), traditional, CG and stop-frame animation ("Ants," "Chicken Run," "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron," "Shrek II," "Kung Fu Panda"), and motion capture ("Polar Express").
Wells resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Wendy, and daughters Meredith and Teagan.

After studying graphic design at De Montfort University in England, WENDY WELLS (Screenplay by) produced conferences and trade shows, as well as animated commercials in London. Following that, Wells made costumes for several West End shows, including "Return to Forbidden Planet" and "Miss Saigon." After moving to Los Angeles in 1995, she joined DreamWorks in special projects and worked on several films including "The Prince of Egypt" and "Shrek."
Wells' writing career began in 2003 when she and husband Simon Wells teamed up to develop scripts. "Mars Needs Moms" is the couple's first produced screenplay.
Wells, her husband Simon and daughters Meredith and Teagan currently reside in Los Angeles.

BERKELEY BREATHED (Based on the book by) became published when he was hired part-time by the Austin American-Statesman to draw editorial cartoons for the paper. This job was short-lived; he was fired shortly after one of his cartoons caused outrage. His first regularly published strip was "The Academia Waltz," which appeared in the Daily Texan in 1978, while he was a student at the University of Texas. The strip attracted the notice of the editors of the Washington Post, who recruited him to do a nationally syndicated strip. On December 8, 1980, "Bloom County" made its debut and featured some of the characters from "Academia Waltz," including former fratboy Steve Dallas and the paraplegic, Vietnam-war veteran Cutter John. In the beginning, the strip's style was so close to that of another popular strip, "Doonesbury," that Doonesbury's creator Garry Trudeau wrote to Breathed several times to point out their similarities. Breathed has acknowledged that he borrowed liberally from "Doonesbury" in his early career. In the "Outland" collection, One Last Little Peek, Breathed even put an early "Bloom County" side-by-side with the "Doonesbury" strip from which it obviously took its idea.
"Bloom County" earned Breathed the Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning in 1987. The strip eventually appeared in over 1,200 newspapers around the world until Berkeley retired the daily strip in 1989, stating that he wanted to terminate the strip while it was still popular. He replaced this strip with the surreal Sunday-only cartoon "Outland" in 1989, which recycled some of the "Bloom County" characters, including Opus the Penguin and Bill the Cat. He ended "Outland" in 1995. Eight years later, Breathed began producing the comic strip "Opus," a Sunday-only strip featuring Opus the Penguin, who was one
of the central characters in "Bloom County." On October 6, 2008, Breathed announced plans to discontinue all work on comic strips with the final "Opus" strip to run on November 2, 2008.
In addition to his syndicated cartoon work, which has produced 11 best-selling cartoon collections, he has also produced five children's books, two of which, A Wish for Wings That Work and Edwurd Fudwupper Fibbed Big, were made into animated films. Since 1992, he has designed a greeting card and gift ensemble collection for American Greetings, featuring the "Bloom County" characters Opus, Bill the Cat, and Milquetoast the Cockroach. Breathed's writing has also been featured in numerous publications, including Life, Boating, and Travel and Leisure, and he produced the cartoon art in the film "Secondhand Lions," which featured a strip called "Walter and Jasmine."
Breathed cameos as himself in the short film "Tim Warner: A Life in the Clouds," a fictional tale about an unhappy cartoonist and his unfunny strip, "The Silver Lining."
Breathed, his wife and two children live in Santa Barbara, in Southern California.

ROBERT ZEMECKIS (Produced by) won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe and a Director's Guild of America Award for Best Director for the hugely successful "Forrest Gump." Zemeckis re-teamed with Hanks on the contemporary drama "Cast Away," the filming of which was split into two sections, bookending production on "What Lies Beneath." Zemeckis and Hanks served as producers on "Cast Away," along with Steve Starkey and Jack Rapke.
Earlier in his career, Zemeckis co-wrote (with Bob Gale) and directed "Back to the Future," which was the top-grossing release of 1985, and for which Zemeckis shared Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for Best Original Screenplay. He then went on to helm "Back to the Future Part II" and "Back to the Future Part III," completing one of the most successful film franchises ever.
In addition, he directed and produced "Contact," and the macabre comedy hit "Death Becomes Her. He also wrote and directed the box-office smash "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," cleverly blending live action and animation; he directed the romantic-adventure hit "Romancing the Stone,"and directed the comedies "Used Cars" and "I Wanna Hold Your Hand."
Zemeckis also produced "House on Haunted Hill" and executive produced such films as "The Frighteners," "The Public Eye" and "Trespass," which he also co-wrote with Bob Gale. He and Gale previously wrote "1941," which began Zemeckis' association with Steven Spielberg.
For the small screen, Zemeckis has directed several projects, including the Showtime feature-length documentary "The 20th Century: The Pursuit of Happiness," which explored the effects of drugs and alcohol on 20th century society. His additional television credits include episodes of Spielberg's "Amazing Stories" and HBO's "Tales from the Crypt."
In 1998, Zemeckis, Steve Starkey and Jack Rapke partnered to form the film and television production company ImageMovers.
"What Lies Beneath" was the first film to be released under the ImageMovers banner, followed by "Cast Away," which opened to critical and audience acclaim in fall of 2000, and "Matchstick Men."
In March 2001, the USC School of Cinema-Television celebrated the opening of the Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts. This state-of-the-art center is the country's first and only fully digital training center, and it houses the latest in non-linear production and post-production equipment, as well as stages, a 50-seat screening room, and USC student-run television station, Trojan Vision.
In 2004, Zemeckis produced and directed the motion-capture film "The Polar Express," starring Tom Hanks. Most recently, he brought to the big screen the true life story of "The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio" starring Julianne Moore and Woody Harrelson. In addition, he served as executive producer on both "Monster House" and the Queen Latifah comedy "Last Holiday."
Zemeckis produced and directed his second motion-capture film, "Beowulf," which was also produced by Rapke and Starkey.
In November of 2009, Zemeckis released his most advanced motion-capture film to date, "Disney's A Christmas Carol," based on the celebrated and beloved classic story by Charles Dickens. Rapke and Starkey also produced the film.

THE ART OF ANIMATION

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