ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS, a global phenomenon to generations of fans, becomes a live action/CGI motion picture event with a contemporary comic sensibility.  Songwriter Dave Seville transforms singing chipmunks Alvin, Simon and Theodore into pop sensations -- while the out-of-control trio lays waste to Dave’s home, wreaks havoc on his career, and turns Dave’s once-orderly life upside-down.

The film stars Jason Lee (“My Name is Earl”) as Dave Seville, David Cross (“Arrested Development”), rising star Cameron Richardson, and as the voices of Alvin, Simon and Theodore, Justin Long (“Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story,” “Live Free or Die Hard”), Matthew Gray Gubler (“Criminal Minds,” “R.V.”) and actor-pop sensation Jesse McCartney. “Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties” helmer Tim Hill directs from a screenplay by “The Simpsons” veteran Jon Vitti and Will McRobb & Chris Viscardi (“The Tale of Despereaux”). The producers are Ross Bagdasarian, Jr., son of Alvin and the Chipmunks creator Ross Bagdasarian, and Janice Karman.

Alvin and the Chipmunks have been wreaking havoc for Dave Seville – and delighting audiences around the world – for nearly 50 years, in various incarnations.  From the moment they sprung into being, the creative brainchild of singer/songwriter Ross Bagdasarian, Sr., the ‘Munks’ catchy sound has been a pop culture mainstay, for both young and old.

According to producer Ross Bagdasarian, Jr., a big-studio ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS feature film has been a longtime goal. “[Producer] Janice [Karman] and I had been thinking about making a movie with the Chipmunks for over ten years, and one of the things really important to us was to make a film that could be enjoyed by the three 2 generations of Chipmunks fans. He explains: “Whatever we do with The Chipmunks, we always try to keep it fresh. And we thought it would be fun to put the Chipmunks into a live-action world and then reinvent the look of the characters to make them believable in that environment.”

"We wanted to make sure the Chipmunks retained the essence of the characters that people grew up with,” adds Karman. “So you could look at Alvin and even though he’s three-dimensional now in CGI, the spirit of the original creation is still there.”  Under the watchful eyes of the two producers, the “inner-‘Munk” of these beloved figures –Alvin’s mischievous but well-intentioned nature, Simon’s brainy intellect and Theodore’s adorable charm – all remain intact.

Karman elaborates: “Ross and I never treated The Chipmunks as a cartoon. They had real emotions. While Alvin was brash, it was important that he was also vulnerable.  Simon is the oldest and because The Chipmunks don’t have parents, Simon is the adult who looks after the baby, Theodore, and tries to temper the rash Alvin.”

As director Tim Hill points out, the ‘Munks have undergone some important stylistic and attitudinal upgrades for their big-screen debut. “These aren’t your father’s Chipmunks,” Hill laughs. “They have a contemporary edge and attitude, and they look and move a lot differently than previous versions of the characters. They’re feisty and funny, they sing and they dance. They’re pop superstars…with fur.”

Moreover, the filmmakers up the emotional stakes for Alvin, Simon, Theodore and Dave. “We wanted to tell a heartwarming story about the coming together of a new family,” explains Hill. “Dave, despite his doubts about himself and his new charges, comes to love Alvin, Simon and Theodore.”