STACK #133 Nov 2016

DVD & BD

FEATURE

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Wind back the clock to the 1960s and the world becomes a much more mellow – and yellow – place. The invasion has come; not from outer space, but from our very own backyard. The MINIONS are here.

F ollowing the unprecedented success of the first two Despicable Me films, Illumination Entertainment weren’t slowing down with their third instalment. Minions is the eighth highest-earning animated film at the international box office, and the 10th highest overall, beating out Despicable Me 2 at number 26. Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri explains that it was the Minions themselves running the production of this origin story – not the company: "We didn't set out to give the Minions their own movie, the Minions demanded it.” The character designs were a large part of had the privilege of working – could not stop themselves from animating these characters,” Meledandri says. And so began their gradual world domination. Meledandri emphasises the importance of incorporating character as well as cuteness into his creations. "There are unquestionably many areas where our team has developed expertise, and they're all important, but we do have to pick one focal point that we're all serving. In my mind, that's in the development of characters that are relatable, dimensional and frequently flawed." It is this attention to detail that has ensured the Minions' global popularity. “What appeals to everyone – no matter what country they live in or their age – is that the Minions are the appeal of the film. “After Despicable Me 2 was finished, we found that our team – which is made up of hundreds of the most talented individuals with whom I have ever

helpful in this case," he laughs. However, it was the dialogue that was the tricky part. “Our three leads don't speak English, and still [co-director] Pierre [Coffin] is wonderful at conveying what they're trying to say. “As much as the Minions want a villain to lead them, they want a family to be a part of," Lynch adds. "In this movie, they don't have that yet and are trying to figure out that that's what they really want." While Lynch appreciated the film's focus on the Minions’ origins, for Coffin it was all about the creatures supporting the film themselves. "We pushed the boundaries on this movie to make it not about sidekicks," he says. "It's

subversive, childlike, sincere, expressive and invincible," notes co-producer Janet Healy. "They're also ageless and without a specific language. People

are eager to see them in their own movie, and we're very excited to give them a prequel to the Despicable Me movies that features the Minions and the story of where they come from." Meledandri also cites their popularity as one of the core reasons for diving back into their history. “People have so many questions about who the Minions are and where they came from, that we realised it would be a lot of fun to answer those." Consequently, writer Brian Lynch dove headfirst into all things Minion to deliver as authentic an experience as possible for fans of the yellow critters. "Having Minion voices in your head can be scary, but it was really

not about funny secondary characters. We were all-in because we had a good story, good characters and felt that there was a challenge to give people something very special."

• Minions is out on Nov 5

NOVEMBER 2015

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