Illumination

Illumination, an observable property and effect of light, may also refer to:

Spirituality and religion

Music

Despicable Me

Despicable Me is a 2010 American 3D computer-animated comedy film from Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment that was released on July 9, 2010 in the United States. It is Illumination Entertainment's first film. The film was animated by the French animation studio Mac Guff, which was later acquired by Illumination Entertainment. It was directed by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud, with story by Sergio Pablos. The film stars the voice of Steve Carell as Felonious Gru, a supervillain who adopts three girls (voiced by Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, and Elsie Fisher) from an orphanage; and the voice of Jason Segel as Vector, a rival of Gru who steals the Great Pyramid of Giza. When Gru learns of Vector's heist, he plans an even greater heist: to shrink and steal the Earth's moon.

The film earned positive reviews from critics, and grossed over $543 million worldwide, against a budget of $69 million. It launched the Despicable Me franchise with a series of films, including the sequel Despicable Me 2 in 2013, and the prequel Minions released in 2015 and featuring Gru's Minions as the main characters. Another sequel, Despicable Me 3, is scheduled for release in 2017.

Despicable Me (franchise)

Despicable Me is a computer-animated comedy film franchise distributed by Universal Pictures and produced by Illumination Entertainment. It consists of three feature films, six short films and additional merchandise. It centers on Gru, a super-villain (who later becomes a dad and superhero); his yellow-coloured Minions; and his three orphan girls, Margo, Edith and Agnes. It began with the 2010 film, Despicable Me, and its 2013 sequel, Despicable Me 2. A prequel featuring Gru's minions, titled Minions, was released in 2015. The franchise also includes a simulator ride attraction Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem at Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood.

Films

Despicable Me (2010)

Despicable Me, the first film in the series, and the first film from Illumination Entertainment, was released on July 9, 2010. It was directed by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud, based on an original story by Sergio Pablos. The film stars Steve Carell as the voice of Gru, Miranda Cosgrove as Margo, Dana Gaier as Edith, Elsie Fisher as Agnes, Jason Segel as Vector, Russell Brand as Dr. Nefario and Julie Andrews as Marlena, Gru's mother. It tells the story of Gru, a super-villain who adopts three girls, Margo, Edith and Agnes, from an orphanage to try and steal a shrink ray from Vector (otherwise known as Victor), his rival, to shrink and steal the Earth's moon. Despicable Me received positive reviews, and grossed over $543 million worldwide, against a budget of $69 million, launching a new franchise.

Jennifer Thomas

Jennifer Rachelle Thomas (born October 15, 1973) is an American fitness model, session wrestler, professional wrestler and former bodybuilder. She is perhaps best known for her tenures in Ohio Valley Wrestling while under a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment and in the World Independent Ladies' Division, where she was the latter promotion's inaugural World Champion.

Early life and career

In high school, Thomas participated in track and field, where she performed both sprinting and the triple jump. Upon graduating, she began weightlifting in 1998 due to becoming overweight, and managed to become Washington's finalist in the Miss Hawaiian Tropic USA competition in 2000. Thomas then began competing in bodybuilding competitions in 2001, winning first and overall in the lightweight division of that year's Vancouver Classic. She would also compete in that year's MuscleMania SuperBody World Championships, where she finished in the top ten. In 2002, Thomas soon moved into fitness and figure competitions and placed third in her first contest, the Greeley, Colorado Aloha Classic. She then placed first in her second competition in the Capital City, Florida Championships and continued to find success in other contests throughout the year. Thomas also began appearing in magazines that same year, including the May issue of Southern Muscle Fitness, the June issue of Oxygen, the August issue of Women's Physique World and the September issue of Flex.

Illumination Entertainment

Illumination Entertainment is an American animation film production company, founded by Chris Meledandri in 2007. It has an exclusive financing and distribution partnership with Universal Studios, it is based in Santa Monica, California. The company is best known for its first animated feature film Despicable Me (released in 2010), its sequel, Despicable Me 2 (2013) and its first $1 billion highest-grossing film and prequel/spin-off to the Despicable Me films, Minions (2015).

History

Meledandri left his post as President of 20th Century Fox Animation in early 2007 where he supervised or executive produced movies including Ice Age, its sequel Ice Age: The Meltdown, Robots, Alvin and the Chipmunks and Horton Hears a Who!. After leaving, he founded Illumination Entertainment. By 2008, a deal was announced positioning Illumination as NBCUniversal’s family entertainment arm that would produce one to two films a year starting in 2010. It is owned by Universal who exclusively distributes the films, but Illumination retains creative control as an independent production company. During the summer 2011, Illumination acquired the animation department of the French animation and visual effects studio Mac Guff, which animated Despicable Me and The Lorax, and formed Illumination Mac Guff.