Line #19 Creator/IlluminationEntertainment


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6	[[caption-width-right:350:''[[OncePerEpisode (insert Minion shenanigans here)]]'']]
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9	->''"Illumination! ILLUMINATION! EEEEEEEE!"''
10	-->-- Bob the Minion, ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretLifeOfPets''
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12	[[http://illumination.com Illumination]], formerly known as Illumination Entertainment, is an American film production company, founded by Chris Meledandri (formerly head of Creator/BlueSkyStudios) in 2007 and based in Santa Monica, California. They are best known for their inaugural film, the 2010 animated feature ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe1'', which has since become the studio's CashCowFranchise. The Minions, who first appeared in the film, are the studio's mascots and starred in their own [[WesternAnimation/{{Minions}} spin-off prequel film]] that was released in summer 2015.
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14	Illumination has an exclusive financing and distribution partnership with [[Creator/{{Universal}} Universal Pictures]]. In April 2016, it was announced that Universal's parent company and Comcast subsidiary, Creator/NBCUniversal, would purchase rival studio Creator/DreamWorksAnimation for $3.8 billion. The effects of the acquisition to Illumination wasn't made clear, other then bringing the two studios under the same roof and shaking up the release dates of both companies' future films. Illumination is expected to remain a separate brand from [=DreamWorks=] for the time being, making the two sister brands. In contrast, Creator/{{Laika}}, which co-produced its first four films under Universal Pictures' Focus Features label, remains an independent studio unaffiliated with [=NBCUniversal=] or Comcast.
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16	In the same year as the [=DreamWorks=] acquisition, Illumination released ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretLifeOfPets'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Sing}}''.
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18	On January 2018, Creator/{{Nintendo}} had announced that they are collaborating with Universal and Illumination to produce an [[WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie animated feature film]] based on their long-running flagship franchise, ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'', following their deal with constructing the ''Ride/SuperNintendoWorld'' attraction at Universal Studios Japan.
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20	In 2022, Illumination announced the launch of a banner for adult animation known as Moonlight.
21	----
22	!!List of films produced by Illumination Entertainment:
23	[[index]]
24	* ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe1'' (2010)
25	* ''Film/{{Hop}}'' (2011)[[note]]The studio's first [[CreatorsOddball and only]] live-action/CGI hybrid film.[[/note]]
26	* ''WesternAnimation/{{The Lorax\|2012}}'' (2012)[[note]]Film adaptation of Creator/DrSeuss's book, ''Literature/TheLorax''.[[/note]]
27	* ''Ride/DespicableMeMinionMayhem'' (short, 2012)
28	* ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe2'' (2013)
29	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Minions}}'' (2015)
30	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretLifeOfPets'' (2016)
31	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Sing}}'' (2016)
32	* ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe3'' (2017)
33	* ''WesternAnimation/{{The Grinch\|2018}}'' (2018)[[note]]Film adaptation of Dr. Seuss's book, ''Literature/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas''.[[/note]]
34	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretLifeOfPets2'' (2019)
35	* ''WesternAnimation/Sing2'' (2021)
36	* ''WesternAnimation/MinionsTheRiseOfGru'' (2022)
37	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'' (2023)[[note]]Film adaptation of the [[LongRunners long-running]] video game franchise ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'', produced in association with Creator/{{Nintendo}}[[/note]]
38	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Migration}}'' (2023)
39	* ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe4'' (2024)
40	[[/index]]
41	* ''The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2'' (2026)
42	* ''The Secret Life of Pets 3'' (TBD)
43	* ''Big Tree'' (TBD)
44	* ''Sing 3'' (TBD)
45	----
46	!!Tropes associated with Illumination:
47	* BonusContent: Expect 3 mini movies (sometimes one or two), several behind the scenes, how to draw shorts and some other kid featurettes in the home media releases of their movies. They rarely include deleted scenes (mostly one or an extended scene).
48	** Averted with ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'', which only includes a 28 minute behind the scenes documentary, interviews with the cast and their roles in the film, "Peaches" lyrics video and two kids featurettes.
49	* CashCowFranchise: ''Franchise/DespicableMe''. ''WesternAnimation/{{Minions}}'' was the first non-Disney animated film to gross over $1 billion, and it has since been followed by ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe3''. Every single installment of the series have been ''very'' big moneymakers, and, thanks to the relatively small budget, rank as some of the most profitable pictures for parent company Universal. Not for nothing that Illumination made the Minions their mascot.
50	* CreatorsOddball:
51	** The short film, ''[[https://youtu.be/5t5wDEmmxLA Penglai]]'', is a ''massive'' contrast to everything the studio has worked on prior, as it is a 2D animated film (a first from the studio) done in a traditional Chinese style and in contrast to their past films, which consist of lighthearted comedies, it is a dramatic adventure story with little humor. It is also the first short they have done that has no connection to their pre-existing films.
52	** ''Film/{{Hop}}'' is their only film that is a live-action/CGI hybrid, as that film's failure caused them to stay strictly to animation.
53	** ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'', while having comedic moments, is a straightforward adventure film whose comedy is way less gag-based and has much more detailed animation than their other, more mid-budget films.
54	* DuelingMovies: ''WesternAnimation/{{Sing}}'' with Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}}''; both films boast an all-animal cast.
55	* InternationalCoproduction: There are two studios, one is in Santa Monica, California, U.S. and the other in Paris, France. Japanese company Creator/{{Toho}} ([[Franchise/{{Godzilla}} yes,]] [[Anime/YourName that]] [[Anime/MyHeroAcademia Toho]]), Japan's largest film studio, co-produces all of Illumination's films since Hop.
56	* LogoJoke: The studio is famous for its various vanity plates featuring the Minions engaging in some kind of humorous activity.
57	* NoodlePeople: A lot of the characters in the studio's films tend to be pretty skinny.
58	* ProductionPosse: When it comes to the "additional voices", expect at least one of the following actors: Creator/LoriAlan, Creator/CarlosAlazraqui, Creator/CathyCavadini, Creator/TownsendColeman, Creator/{{Jim Cummings\|1952}}, Creator/BillFarmer, Creator/KeithFerguson, Creator/JessHarnell, Creator/DannyMann, Creator/LaraineNewman, Creator/MindySterling, Creator/TaraStrong, and Creator/JimWard. For their Japanese dubs, expect this to happen with Creator/KoichiYamadera and Creator/MamoruMiyano. Music/PharrellWilliams is also a frequent collaborator on the films' soundtracks.
59	* PropRecycling: A common feature of their films, due to their lower budgets than most other companies. Car models in particular get reused regularly between movies.
60	* RunningGag: Expect disco to pop up somewhere in their movies.
61	* WhatCouldHaveBeen: They were originality intended as a family and animation label of Universal Pictures but after the critical and commercial failure of their second and only live action film ''Film/{{Hop}}'', Universal purchased Mac Guff's feature animation branch (Mac Guff Ligne), became Illumination's in-house studio and all of their work was made by them alone.

Context Creator / IlluminationEntertainment