Minions Oversee High‑Tech Equipment for Major Film Production
Chris Meledandri, the founder and chief executive of the animation studio Illumination, was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame earlier this month. He noted that future visitors to Hollywood Boulevard might not recognize the name attached to the plaque.
Since its first film, “Despicable Me,” in 2010, Illumination has earned more than $11 billion at the global box office. The studio’s recent focus has been family‑friendly releases, including the “Mario” series with Nintendo and planned animated projects for Mattel’s Barbie, as well as earlier titles such as “Sing” and “The Secret Lives of Pets.”
The company’s upcoming movie, “Minions & Monsters,” debuted on Sunday at the Annecy Film Festival in France and is scheduled for theatrical release on July 1. The story places the Minions in 1920s Hollywood and follows them as filmmakers in a comedic setting.
Illumination operates as a division of Universal Pictures, with its headquarters in Santa Monica, California, while most animation work is completed in Paris. The studio’s recent productions have budgets that generally stay below $110 million; “Minions & Monsters” was produced for about $85 million, compared with larger budgets for other major franchises. The company has maintained strict financial discipline and does not integrate generative artificial‑intelligence tools into its production pipeline.