Balto is a 1995 English-language Animation Adventure film directed by Simon Wells and produced by Steve Hickner under the banner of Amblin Entertainment in collaboration with Amblimation. A half-wolf, half-husky named Balto gets a chance to become a hero when an outbreak of diphtheria threatens the children of Nome, Alaska in the winter of 1925. He leads a dog team on a 600-mile trip across the Alaskan wilderness to get medical supplies. The film is based on a true story which inspired the Iditarod dog sled race. Written by Alan Katz. Balto stars Kevin Bacon, Bridget Fonda, Phil Collins, Bob Hoskins, Jim Cummings, Jack Angel and Steve Winwood. The screenplay is written by Cliff Ruby , Elana Lesser , David Steven Cohen and Roger S. H. Schulman. The music was composed by Academy Award Oscar winner James Horner. Cinematography was done by Jan Richter-Friis and editing by Renee Edwards, Nick Fletcher and Sim Evan-Jones. The movie has a running time of 77 minutes. It was released on 22nd December 1995. Balto was made on a budget of $31 million and at the box office it grossed only $11 million. Distribution rights for the film were acquired by Universal Pictures.