Westchester filmmakers present new IMAX movie Backyard Wilderness on Thursday at the Maritime

The local filmmakers behind the new IMAX movie “Backyard Wilderness” will reveal secrets of how the gorgeous film was made – working with wild ducks, raccoons, mice and other creatures – at a special evening screening on Thurs., May 24 at The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk.

Filmmakers Andy Young and Susan Todd of Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., will show outtakes and behind-the-scenes footage following the special screening of “Backyard Wilderness” at 6 p.m.

“Everyone who sees ‘Backyard Wilderness’ comes out of the theater asking, ‘How did they get those incredible shots?!’” said Aquarium spokesman Dave Sigworth. “If you’ve seen ‘Backyard Wilderness,’ here’s your chance to find out. If you haven’t seen it yet, come see it on May 24 because you too are going to wonder how they made it.”

The May 24 screening, and the “making of” presentation, is free to Maritime Aquarium members, who can reserve their tickets now at www.maritimeaquarium.org.

Beginning May 7, tickets will go on sale to the public: $11.50 adults, $10.50 seniors (65+), and $9 for children (3-12).

“Backyard Wilderness” is a gorgeous movie that Young and Todd filmed literally in their backyard in Croton-on-Hudson. The story of “Backyard Wilderness” follows a young girl and her modern family, who are blind to the real-life spectacle around them; who instead are absorbed by an array of electronic devices in their busy lives. When the girl gradually discovers the intricate secrets that nature has hidden so close to her front door, audiences experience the joy she finds in her interactions with this new world.

Young and Todd are Academy Award-nominated, Emmy-Award-winning filmmakers whose Archipelago Films is based in Ossining, N.Y. Additionally, they formed a non-profit company, Arise Media, to make innovative media about the most urgent social and environmental challenges facing our planet, and to inspire an appreciation for our own interconnected role in nature.

Learn more about “Backyard Wilderness,” view a trailer, and reserve your tickets for the May 24 event featuring Andy Young and Susan Todd at www.maritimeaquarium.org.