Illumination (company)

Last updated

Illumination
FormerlyIllumination Entertainment (2007–2017)
Company type Division
Industry
  • Animation
  • Motion pictures
  • Television specials
FoundedJanuary 17, 2007;17 years ago (2007-01-17)
Founder Chris Meledandri
Headquarters2230 Broadway, ,
U.S.
Key people
Number of employees
100 (2016) [3]
Parent Universal Pictures
Divisions
  • Illumination Labs [4]
  • Moonlight
Subsidiaries Illumination Studios Paris
Website Official website

Illumination, formerly known as Illumination Entertainment, is an American animation studio founded by Chris Meledandri on January 17, 2007, after leaving 20th Century Fox Animation and is a division of Universal Pictures, [5] [6] [7] a division of Comcast through its wholly owned subsidiary NBCUniversal; Meledandri produces the films, while Universal finances and distributes them. [6] The studio is best known for creating the Despicable Me , The Secret Life of Pets , and Sing franchises, as well as the adaptations of Dr. Seuss' books The Lorax and How the Grinch Stole Christmas! ; and Nintendo video games, starting with The Super Mario Bros. Movie . [8] The Minions, characters from the Despicable Me series, are the mascots of the studio.

Contents

Illumination has produced 15 feature films, with an average gross of $711 million per film. Three of the studio's films— The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023), Minions (2015) and Despicable Me 3 (2017)—are among the 50 highest-grossing films of all time, and eight of their films are also among the 50 highest-grossing animated films. Its first film, Despicable Me , was released on July 9, 2010, and its latest film, Despicable Me 4 , was released on July 3, 2024; their upcoming slate of films includes an untitled follow-up film to The Super Mario Bros. Movie on April 3, 2026, and Minions 3 on June 30, 2027.

History

Logo used from 2010 to 2017; this logo is still used on trailers and promotional material. Illumination Entertainment.svg
Logo used from 2010 to 2017; this logo is still used on trailers and promotional material.

Meledandri left as President of 20th Century Fox Animation and Blue Sky Studios in early 2007. While at those companies he supervised or executive-produced movies including Ice Age , Robots , Ice Age: The Meltdown , and Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! . After leaving, he founded Illumination Entertainment and a deal was announced positioning Illumination Entertainment as Universal's family entertainment arm, that would produce one to two films a year starting in 2010. [9] As part of the deal, Illumination retains creative control and Universal Pictures exclusively distributes the films. [10]

After the closure of Walter Lantz Productions in March 1972 and prior to the release of Despicable Me, Universal distributed a few animated films from 1986 to 2009 that were produced by outside studios, including An American Tail , The Land Before Time , Jetsons: The Movie , the Amblimation films, ( An American Tail: Fievel Goes West , We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story , and Balto ), The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie , The Tale of Despereaux , and 9 (under its Focus Features subsidiary) while their in-house animation studio produced Curious George in 2006.

In 2011, Illumination acquired the animation department of the French animation and visual effects studio Mac Guff, which animated Despicable Me and Dr. Seuss' The Lorax , and formed Illumination Mac Guff (later Illumination Studios Paris). [11] [12] [13]

On August 22, 2016, NBCUniversal acquired competing studio DreamWorks Animation, which fueled speculation that Meledandri was to oversee both studios. [14] [15] [16] While he had been approached by NBCUniversal to oversee both studios, he turned down the offer and later explained "I love the process of making films and working with artists. I don't think I'm particularly great at managing companies". [17]

On September 23, 2022, Illumination announced its hiring of former Netflix head of adult animation Mike Moon as senior creative advisor, and a new label led by Moon known as Moonlight, which will aim to "produce animated films that push beyond the family genre". [18] [19]

Process

In a similar fashion to Sony Pictures Animation and Warner Bros. Pictures Animation, Illumination does not produce its films in-house where it is based in Santa Monica, but rather outsources the animation production of its films to other studios. Most of its films are animated by Illumination Studios Paris, [3] a subsidiary formed through the purchase of Mac Guff (which animated the first Despicable Me). [20] [21] So far, the only Illumination film not to be animated by Illumination Studios Paris or Mac Guff was Hop, which was animated by Rhythm & Hues Studios. [22]

Not unlike Pixar, in its early days Illumination depended on a core group of directors and writers to create its films. The directors of Despicable Me, Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud, also directed or co-directed Dr. Seuss' The Lorax , Despicable Me 2 , Minions , The Secret Life of Pets , and Despicable Me 3 . Screenwriters Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio (who had written Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! for Meledandri at Fox) wrote or co-wrote Despicable Me, Hop, Dr. Seuss' The Lorax, Despicable Me 2, The Secret Life of Pets, and Despicable Me 3, while screenwriter Brian Lynch wrote or co-wrote Hop, Minions, and The Secret Life of Pets.

Illumination's films generally have a budget between $60–80 million. Meledandri prefers to keep Illumination adhering to a low-cost model, recognising that "strict cost controls and hit animated films are not mutually exclusive". In an industry where film expenses often exceed $100 million, Illumination's first two releases were completed with significantly lower budgets, considering Despicable Me's $69 million budget and Hop 's $63 million budget. One way the company sustains a lean financial model is by employing cost-conscious animation techniques that lower the expenses and render times of its computer graphics. [23] To date, The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Despicable Me 4 are the studio's most expensive films, both with a $100 million budget. [24] [25]

Filmography

Release timeline
2010 Despicable Me
2011 Hop
2012 The Lorax
2013 Despicable Me 2
2014
2015 Minions
2016 The Secret Life of Pets
Sing
2017 Despicable Me 3
2018 The Grinch
2019 The Secret Life of Pets 2
2020
2021 Sing 2
2022 Minions: The Rise of Gru
2023 The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Migration
2024 Despicable Me 4
2025
2026 The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2
2027 Minions 3

The studio's first film, Despicable Me , directed by Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin, was released on July 9, 2010, and was a commercial success, earning $56 million on its opening weekend, and going on to ticket sales of $251 million domestically and $543 million worldwide. [26] [27] Illumination's second film was the live-action/CGI hybrid Hop. Directed by Tim Hill and released on April 1, 2011, the film had a $37 million opening, ending up with $108 million domestically and $183 million worldwide. [28] Hop was followed by an adaptation of Dr. Seuss' The Lorax (also directed by Renaud), which debuted on March 2, 2012, earning $70 million on its opening weekend, and with eventual totals of $214 million in the US market and $348 million worldwide. The studio's first sequel, Despicable Me 2 , again directed by Renaud and Coffin, opened in the United States on July 3, 2013, to a domestic five-day opening weekend of $142 million (and $82 million over the regular three-day frame), making it, at the time of its release, the biggest animated film to open on that frame. [29] The film would go on to earn $368 million domestically and $970 million worldwide, [30] [31] becoming the second highest-grossing 2013 animated film and breaking a record as the most profitable Universal Pictures film in its 100-year history. [32] A spin-off of the Despicable Me franchise, titled Minions , directed by Coffin and newcomer Kyle Balda, was released on July 10, 2015 [33] to a domestic opening weekend of $115 million. [34] The film would go on to gross $336 million domestically and $823 million overseas, amounting to a worldwide total of $1.159 billion, making it the highest-grossing animated film of 2015 and, at the time of its release, the second highest-grossing animated film of all time, behind Walt Disney Animation Studios' Frozen (2013). [35] [36]

The Secret Life of Pets was released on July 8, 2016. [37] Directed by Renaud and Yarrow Cheney, the film would earn $104 million in its opening weekend, going on to gross $368 million domestically, and $875 million worldwide. Sing , a comedy written and directed by Garth Jennings, was released on December 21, 2016. [38] It was the first movie for the studio to have a Christmas release. The film would earn $56 million in its first 5 days, grossing $270 million stateside and $634 million worldwide. It also holds the record for the highest-grossing film not to ever be at No. 1 in its run. Despicable Me 3 , which reunited Coffin and Balda as directors, was released on June 30, 2017, to a $75 million domestic opening weekend. [39] The film would then go on to gross $264 million domestically and $1.034 billion worldwide, making it the second film from the studio to cross the $1 billion mark, as well as highest-grossing animated film of 2017. At the time of its release, it also set a record for the highest theatre count ever with 4,536 theatres in its second week. [40] The film that followed was an adaptation of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! , simply titled The Grinch, which was released on November 9, 2018, with Scott Mosier and Cheney as directors and featuring a screenplay by Michael LeSieur and Tommy Swerdlow. [38] The film opened to $67 million in its first domestic weekend [41] and went on to earn $271 million stateside and $513 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing Christmas film of all time. [42] The Secret Life of Pets 2 , again directed by Renaud, was released on June 7, 2019, to a domestic opening weekend of $47 million, [43] going on to gross $159 million stateside and $446 million worldwide, making less than half of its predecessor. [44]

It was followed by Sing 2 , again directed by Jennings, which was released on December 22, 2021. Despite opening to a modest $41 million over a five-day weekend (and $23 million over the normal three-day frame), [45] the film would eventually become the highest-grossing animated film of 2021, as well as the highest-grossing animated film released during the COVID-19 pandemic, earning $163 million stateside and $408 million worldwide. [46] Minions: The Rise of Gru , directed by Balda, was released on July 1, 2022, after a delay of two years caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. [47] [48] [49] The film earned $125 million stateside over the four-day July 4 weekend, a new record over said timeframe. [50] The film would go on to overtake Sing 2 as the highest-grossing animated film during the pandemic, with $369 million domestically and $939 million worldwide. [51] [52]

The Super Mario Bros. Movie , an animated film based on the Mario video game franchise as a collaboration with Nintendo directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, was released on April 5, 2023. [53] [17] [54] [55] The film debuted to a $146.4 million domestic opening weekend, holding several box office records including the highest opening weekend for a video game adaptation as well as the highest opening weekend for Illumination. [56] [57] The film would go on to gross $574.9 million domestically and $1.36 billion worldwide, becoming the third Illumination film to cross the $1 billion mark, as well as the second highest-grossing film of 2023. [58] [59] Migration , an original film directed by Benjamin Renner, was released on December 22, 2023. [60] [61] It was followed by Despicable Me 4 , directed by Renaud, on July 3, 2024. [60]

On May 19, 2011, Illumination announced that it would be working with Universal Pictures to create Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, a 3-D ride at Universal Parks & Resorts in Orlando, Hollywood, and Osaka. [62] The ride officially opened on July 2, 2012, in Orlando, in Hollywood on April 12, 2014, and in Osaka on April 21, 2017. In April 2019, it was announced they would collaborate again on the creation of The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash!, a dark ride attraction at Universal Studios Hollywood. [63] [64] While its opening was scheduled for March 27, 2020, it was delayed until further notice due to the outbreak of COVID-19 in California. [65] It eventually opened on April 8, 2021. [66]

Future projects include a sequel to The Super Mario Bros. Movie on April 3, 2026 and Minions 3 on June 30, 2027. [67] [68] [69] [70] Other films the studio has in development include Big Tree, a film based on an illustrated novel by Brian Selznick from an idea by Meledandri and Steven Spielberg, [71] The Secret Life of Pets 3, [72] Sing 3 , [73] and an original animated film with frequent collaborator and musician Pharrell Williams that will be "made from scratch." [17] Additionally, Illumination is in negotiations with toy company Mattel to produce an animated film based on the Barbie series of fashion dolls. [74] [75] [76]

In addition, two web short series are in development by Pierre Coffin: A Minions spin-off titled Who's Who, and an original series titled Bones Story. The shorts will be released on TikTok and subsequently on YouTube. [73]

Franchises

TitleFilmsShortsRelease dates
Despicable Me 6182010–present
The Secret Life of Pets 232016–present
Sing 5

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Renaud</span> American filmmaker (born 1966)

Chris Renaud is an American filmmaker, designer, storyboard artist, and voice actor. He is best known for his work at Illumination, including directing the company's animated films such as the first, second, and fourth films in the Despicable Me franchise (2010–present), the first two of which he co-directed with Pierre Coffin, The Lorax (2012), The Secret Life of Pets (2016) and its sequel The Secret Life of Pets 2 (2019). He also voiced the Minions in the first two films in the Despicable Me franchise and Norman in The Secret Life of Pets franchise, the former which he co-created with Coffin. Renaud received nominations for two Academy Awards for the Ice Age short film No Time for Nuts (2006) and Despicable Me 2 (2013).

<i>Despicable Me</i> (film) 2010 Illumination film

Despicable Me is a 2010 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. The first feature film from Illumination, it was directed by Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin and produced by Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy, and John Cohen, from a screenplay by Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio based on a story by Sergio Pablos. Despicable Me stars the voices of Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Russell Brand, Kristen Wiig, Miranda Cosgrove, Will Arnett, Danny McBride, Jack McBrayer, and Julie Andrews. The film follows Felonious Gru, a longtime supervillain who adopts three orphan girls to use as pawns in a villainous scheme but reluctantly develops an emotional attachment to them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Meledandri</span> American film producer (born 1959)

Christopher Meledandri is an American film producer and founder and CEO of Illumination. He previously served as President of 20th Century Fox Animation, and has worked as the producer for the film series of Ice Age, Despicable Me, The Secret Life of Pets and Sing. In 2021, he joined Nintendo's board of directors after working with the video game company on The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Meledandri also collaborates with Illumination's corporate sibling DreamWorks Animation.

<i>The Lorax</i> (film) 2012 Illumination film

The Lorax is a 2012 American animated musical fantasy comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. The film is the second screen adaptation of Dr. Seuss' 1971 children's book The Lorax following the 1972 animated television special. Directed by Chris Renaud, co-directed by Kyle Balda, produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy and written by the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio, it stars the voices of Danny DeVito, Ed Helms, Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Rob Riggle, Jenny Slate and Betty White.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pierre Coffin</span> French animator and voice actor

Pierre-Louis Padang Coffin is a French animator, director, producer, writer, and voice actor. He is best known for co-directing the first four installments in the Despicable Me franchise and being the primary voice of the Minions, which won him the Kids Family Award at the 10th Seiyu Awards. He also received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for Despicable Me 2.

<i>Despicable Me 2</i> 2013 Illumination film

Despicable Me 2 is a 2013 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. It is the sequel to Despicable Me (2010) and the second installment in the Despicable Me franchise. The film was directed by Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin, produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and written by the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It stars the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Benjamin Bratt, Miranda Cosgrove, Russell Brand, and Ken Jeong. The film follows retired supervillain Gru as he is recruited by secret agent Lucy Wilde to investigate the theft of a powerful mutagen by El Macho, a supervillain who seeks to achieve world domination.

<i>Despicable Me</i> Illumination media franchise

Despicable Me is an American media franchise created by Sergio Pablos, Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It centers on a former supervillain turned secret agent named Gru, his adoptive daughters, Margo, Edith, and Agnes, and his yellow-colored Minions. The franchise is produced by Illumination and distributed by its parent company Universal Pictures.

Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio are American screenwriters, collaborating on the screenplays for animated films including the Despicable Me franchise, Horton Hears a Who, The Lorax and The Secret Life of Pets. The duo also served as the co-creators of the 2021 Apple TV+ musical comedy series Schmigadoon!, with Paul also serving as the series songwriter and executive producer.

<i>Minions</i> (film) 2015 Illumination film

Minions is a 2015 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. The film is a prequel to Despicable Me (2010) and the third installment overall in the Despicable Me franchise. Directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda, produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and written by Brian Lynch, Minions stars the voices of Coffin as the titular beings, Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Allison Janney, Steve Coogan, Jennifer Saunders, and Geoffrey Rush as the narrator. In the film, the Minions search for their replaceable evil master after, one-by-one, accidentally killing all their past leaders throughout history.

<i>Despicable Me 3</i> 2017 Illumination film

Despicable Me 3 is a 2017 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination, and distributed by Universal. It is the sequel to Despicable Me 2 (2013), the third main installment, and the fourth overall installment in the Despicable Me franchise. The film was directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda, co-directed by production and character designer Eric Guillon, and produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, from a screenplay by the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It stars the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Trey Parker, Coffin, Miranda Cosgrove, Steve Coogan, Jenny Slate, Dana Gaier, Nev Scharrel, and Julie Andrews. In the film, Gru teams up with his long-lost twin brother Dru to stop Balthazar Bratt, a former child actor of the 1980s, from destroying Hollywood after his show was canceled years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Illumination Studios Paris</span> French animation company

Illumination Studios Paris is a French animated feature production company owned by Illumination, a division of Universal Pictures. Based in Paris, France, the company was created in 2011 as part of Universal's purchase deal of the animation arm of French animation and VFX company Mac Guff. It is responsible for the animation on Illumination's feature-length animated films and associated short films, most notably the Despicable Me franchise.

<i>The Secret Life of Pets</i> 2016 Illumination film

The Secret Life of Pets is a 2016 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. It was directed by Chris Renaud, co-directed by Yarrow Cheney, and produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, from a screenplay written by Brian Lynch and the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. The film stars the voices of Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Jenny Slate, Kevin Hart, Ellie Kemper, Lake Bell, Dana Carvey, Hannibal Buress, Bobby Moynihan, Steve Coogan, and Albert Brooks. The film's plot follows the relationship between a spoiled terrier named Max and a giant, unruly dog named Duke. It also follows what other pets do when their owners are gone for the day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kyle Balda</span> American animator and film director

Kyle Balda is an American animator and film director, best known for co-directing the Illumination films The Lorax (2012), with Chris Renaud; Minions (2015) and Despicable Me 3 (2017), with Pierre Coffin; and Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022), with Brad Ableson and Jonathan del Val. He previously worked as an animator for Industrial Light & Magic before moving to Pixar where he worked on three of their films.

<i>The Grinch</i> (film) 2018 animated film by Scott Mosier and Yarrow Cheney

The Grinch, also known as Dr. Seuss' The Grinch, is a 2018 American animated Christmas comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination, and distributed by Universal. The third screen adaptation of Dr. Seuss' 1957 book How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, following the 1966 television special and the 2000 live-action feature-length film, it is Illumination's second Dr. Seuss film adaptation, after The Lorax in 2012. The plot follows the Grinch, who plans to stop Whoville's Christmas celebration by stealing all the town's decorations and gifts, with his pet dog Max.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janet Healy</span> American film producer

Janet Healy is a film producer whose films include Illumination's Despicable Me animated series and other animated films by the studio.

<i>Minions: The Rise of Gru</i> 2022 animated film directed by Kyle Balda

Minions: The Rise of Gru, also known as Minions 2, is a 2022 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination, and distributed by Universal. It is the sequel to Minions (2015), a prequel to Despicable Me (2010), and the fifth entry overall in the Despicable Me franchise. The film was directed by Kyle Balda, co-directed by Brad Ableson and Jonathan del Val, and produced by Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy and Chris Renaud, from a screenplay written by Matthew Fogel, and a story by Fogel and Brian Lynch. It features Steve Carell reprising his role as Gru and Pierre Coffin as the Minions, along with Russell Brand, Will Arnett, Steve Coogan, and Julie Andrews reprising their respective roles as Dr. Nefario, Mr. Perkins, Silas Ramsbottom, and Gru's mother Marlena. New cast members include Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, and Alan Arkin. In the film, an eleven-year-old Gru plans to become a supervillain with the help of his Minions, which leads to a showdown with a malevolent team, the Vicious 6.

<i>The Super Mario Bros. Movie</i> 2023 American animated film

The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a 2023 American animated adventure comedy film based on Nintendo's Mario video game franchise. Produced by Universal Pictures, Illumination, and Nintendo, and distributed by Universal, it was directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic and written by Matthew Fogel. The ensemble voice cast includes Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen, and Fred Armisen. The film features an origin story for the brothers Mario and Luigi, Italian-American plumbers who are separated after being transported to another world and become entangled in a battle between the Mushroom Kingdom, led by Princess Peach, and the Koopas, led by Bowser.

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