Mac Guff (also known as Mac Guff Ligne) is a French

visual effects Visual effects (sometimes abbreviated VFX) is the process by which imagery is created or manipulated outside the context of a live-action shot in filmmaking and video production. The integration of live-action footage and other live-action foota ...

company based in both Los Angeles, United States and Paris, France, where it is headquartered. Mac Guff specializes in the creation of

computer graphics Computer graphics deals with generating images with the aid of computers. Today, computer graphics is a core technology in digital photography, film, video games, cell phone and computer displays, and many specialized applications. A great de ...

for commercials, music videos and feature films. 270 graphic designers, VFX supervisors and producers, computer engineers, and administrators are usually working on 100+ million files (for ''

Despicable Me ''Despicable Me'' is a computer-animated media franchise centering on Gru, a reformed super-villain (who later becomes a father, husband, and secret agent), and his yellow-colored Minions. It is produced by Illumination and distributed by ...

''). In mid-2011, the company was split in two, and the animation department had been acquired by

Illumination Entertainment Illumination (formerly known as Illumination Entertainment) is an American computer animation studio, founded by Chris Meledandri in 2007. Illumination is owned by Meledandri and the Illumination brand is co-owned by Universal Pictures, a divisi ...

(

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

). The new company was named Illumination Mac Guff (now known as

Illumination Studios Paris Illumination Studios Paris (formerly known as Illumination Mac Guff) 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 Univ ...

) and has capital worth 3.2 million euro.

Company name

The company name Mac Guff was inspired by the term

MacGuffin In fiction, a MacGuffin (sometimes McGuffin) is an object, device, or event that is necessary to the plot and the motivation of the characters, but insignificant, unimportant, or irrelevant in itself. The term was originated by Angus MacPhail for ...

. The director and producer

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

popularized both the term "MacGuffin" and the technique.

Animated productions

*''La Vie des bêtes'' (1988, design.

Philippe Starck Philippe Starck (; born 18 January 1949) is a French industrial architect and designer known for his wide range of designs, including interior design, architecture, household objects, furniture, boats and other vehicles. Life Starck was born on ...

) *"

Love Don't Let Me Go "Love Don't Let Me Go" is a song performed by French DJ and producer David Guetta, featuring vocals from singer and long-time collaborator Chris Willis. The track was released as the second single from his debut studio album, '' Just a Little M ...

" (2002,

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for

David Guetta Pierre David Guetta ( , ; born 7 November 1967) is a French DJ and music producer. He has over 10 million album and 65 million single sales globally, with more than 10 billion streams. In 2011, 2020 and 2021, Guetta was voted the number one D ...

dir. Olivier Boscovitch) *'' Pat & Stan'' (2003–2006,

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

dir. Pierre Coffin) *'' Azur & Asmar: The Princes' Quest'' (2006,

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

dir. Michel Ocelot) *''

Dragon Hunters Dragon Hunters ( French: ''Chasseurs de dragons'') is an animated fantasy comedy television series created by Arthur Qwak and produced by the French company Futurikon and Tooncan. It follows the adventures of two hunters for hire through a medie ...

'' (2008, feature film dir. Arthur Qwak and Guillaume Ivernel) *''

'' (2010, feature film dir.

Pierre Coffin Pierre-Louis Padang Coffin (born 16 March 1967) is a French animator, voice actor, director, producer, and writer best known for co-directing four films in the ''Despicable Me'' franchise and being the voice of the Minions, which won him the Ki ...

and

Chris Renaud Chris Renaud (born December 1966) is an American film producer, director, illustrator, designer, animator, and voice actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for the 2006 animated short ''No Time for Nuts'', which featured the character Scrat ...

) * ''Home Makeover'', ''Orientation Day'', and ''Banana'' (2010, short films) *''

Hop A hop is a type of jump. Hop or hops may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hop'' (film), a 2011 film * Hop! Channel, an Israeli TV channel * ''House of Payne'', or ''HOP'', an American sitcom * Lindy Hop, a swing dance of the 1920s and ...

'' (2011, feature film dir. Tim Hill, Illumination opening logo variant only) *''

A Monster in Paris ''A Monster in Paris'' (french: Un monstre à Paris) is a 2011 French 3D computer-animated musical comedy science fantasy adventure film directed by Bibo Bergeron, and based on a story he wrote. It was produced by Luc Besson, written by Berge ...

'' (2011, feature film dir.

Bibo Bergeron Eric "Bibo" Bergeron (born July 14, 1965) is a French animator and film director. His work includes ''The Road to El Dorado'' (2000), ''Shark Tale'' (2004) and ''A Monster in Paris'' (2011). Bergeron has served as animator on films like '' Aster ...

) *''

Kirikou and the Men and Women ''Kirikou and the Men and Women'' (french: Kirikou et les Hommes et les Femmes) is a 2012 computer-animated children's film written and directed by Michel Ocelot. The second sequel to Ocelot's 1998 film ''Kirikou and the Sorceress'', following '' ...

'' (2012, feature film dir.

Michel Ocelot Michel Ocelot (born 27 October 1943) is a French Screenwriter, writer, Production designer, designer, storyboard artist and Film director, director of animation, animated films and television programs (formerly also animator, background artist, n ...

) *''

Life, Animated ''Life, Animated'' is a 2016 American documentary by director Roger Ross Williams. It is co-produced by Williams with Julie Goldman, Carolyn Hepburn and Christopher Clements. ''Life, Animated'' is based on journalist Ron Suskind's 2014 book ''Li ...

'' (2016, feature film dir.

Roger Ross Williams Roger Ross Williams (born September 16, 1962) is an American director, producer and writer and the first African American director to win an Academy Award (Oscar), with his short film ''Music by Prudence''; this film won the Academy Award for Bes ...

, animated sequences only) *''

Dilili in Paris ''Dilili in Paris'' (french: Dilili à Paris) is a 2018 French, German, and Belgian computer-animated period adventure film written and directed by Michel Ocelot, with pre-production by Studio O and animation production by Mac Guff, about a K ...

'' (2018, feature film dir.

) *''

SamSam ''SamSam'' is an animated television series based on a character created by Serge Bloch and directed by Tanguy de Kermel in association with Bayard Presse. His son inspired him to base the program's eponymous character on him. The series has g ...

'' (2020, feature film dir. Tanguy de Kermel) *''

Around the World in 80 Days ''Around the World in Eighty Days'' (french: link=no, Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is an adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in French in 1872. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employe ...

'' (2021, feature film dir. Samuel Tourneux)

Features

* 1995: ''

La Haine ''La Haine'' (, ; released in the United States as ''Hate'') is a 1995 French crime drama film written, co-edited, and directed by Mathieu Kassovitz. Starring Vincent Cassel, Hubert Koundé and Saïd Taghmaoui, the film chronicles a day and nig ...

'' * 1997: ''

Dobermann The Dobermann (; ), or Doberman Pinscher in the United States and Canada, is a medium-large breed of domestic dog that was originally developed around 1890 by Louis Dobermann, a tax collector from Germany.Contact Contact may refer to: Interaction Physical interaction * Contact (geology), a common geological feature * Contact lens or contact, a lens placed on the eye * Contact sport, a sport in which players make contact with other players or objects * ...

'' * 1998: ''

Quasimodo d'El Paris ''Quasimodo d'El Paris'' is a 1999 French film that is a comedic adaptation of the 1831 novel ''The Hunchback of Notre Dame'' (''Notre-Dame de Paris'') by Victor Hugo. Plot The location is the town of El Paris. When ten-year-old boy Quasimodo show ...

'' * 1998: '' The Visitors II: The Corridors of Time'' * 1999: ''

Train de vie ''Train of Life'' (in French ''Train de vie''; in Romanian ''Trenul vieţii'') is a 1998 tragicomedy film by France, Belgium, Netherlands, Israel and Romania made in the French language. It tells the story of an eastern European Jewish village's pl ...

'' * 2000: ''Cours toujours'' * 2000: ''Scènes de crimes'' * 2001: '' Vidocq'' * 2001: ''

Safe Conduct Safe conduct, safe passage, or letters of transit, is the situation in time of international conflict or war where one state, a party to such conflict, issues to a person (usually an enemy state's subject) a pass or document to allow the enemy ...

'' * 2001: ''G@mer'' * 2001: ''Snowboarder'' * 2001: ''Le Petit Poucet'' * 2002: ''Monsieur Batignole'' * 2002: ''

Irréversible ''Irréversible'' () is a 2002 French experimental psychological thriller film written and directed by Gaspar Noé. Starring Monica Bellucci, Vincent Cassel and Albert Dupontel, the plot depicts the events of a tragic night in Paris as two men a ...

'' * 2002: ''

Brocéliande Brocéliande, earlier known as Brécheliant and Brécilien, is a legendary enchanted forest that had a reputation in the medieval European imagination as a place of magic and mystery. Brocéliande is featured in several medieval texts, mostly r ...

'' * 2002: '' Filles perdues, cheveux gras'' * 2002: ''

Ginostra ''Ginostra'' is 2002 crime fiction film written and directed by Manuel Pradal, starring Harvey Keitel (Matt Benson), Andie MacDowell (Jessie). The story is about an FBI officer (Harvey Keitel) investigating the murder of a would-be informant, atte ...

'' * 2002: ''Quelqu'un de bien'' * 2003: '' Love Me If You Dare'' * 2003: ''

Blueberry Blueberries are a widely distributed and widespread group of perennial flowering plants with blue or purple berries. They are classified in the section ''Cyanococcus'' within the genus ''Vaccinium''. ''Vaccinium'' also includes cranberries, bi ...

'' * 2003: '' A Species Odyssey'' (TV) * 2004: ''L'Américain'' * 2004: '' L'Équipier'' * 2004: ''Agents secrets'' * 2004: ''

Arsène Lupin Arsène Lupin (French pronunciation: ʁsɛn lypɛ̃ is a fictional gentleman thief and master of disguise created in 1905 by French writer Maurice Leblanc. The character was first introduced in a series of short stories serialized in the magazi ...

'' * 2005: ''

La Boîte noire ''The Black Box'' (french: La Boîte noire) is a 2005 French mystery film directed by Richard Berry (actor), Richard Berry, written by Berry and Éric Assous, adapted from a novella by Tonino Benacquista, and starring José Garcia (actor), José ...

'' * 2005: ''Ma vie en l'air'' * 2005: '' Danny the Dog'' * 2005: ''

Joyeux Noël :''Joyeux Noel means Merry Christmas in French. For other uses, see Christmas (disambiguation) and Merry Christmas (disambiguation)'' ''Joyeux Noël'' ''('Merry Christmas')'' is a 2005 war drama film based on the Christmas truce of December ...

'' * 2005: ''

Homo sapiens Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

'' (TV) * 2006: ''

Bandidas ''Bandidas'' is a 2006 Western action comedy film starring Salma Hayek and Penélope Cruz directed by Norwegian directors Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg and produced and written by Luc Besson. It tells the tale of two very different women in ...

'' * 2006: '' Azur et Asmar'' * 2006: ''

Tell No One ''Tell No One'' (french: Ne le dis à personne) is a 2006 French thriller film directed by Guillaume Canet and based on the 2001 novel of the same name by Harlan Coben. Written by Canet and Philippe Lefebvre and starring François Cluzet, th ...

'' * 2007: ''Truands'' * 2007: ''La Tête de maman'' * 2007: ''3 Amis'' * 2007: ''L'Invité'' * 2007: ''

99 francs ''99 Francs'' is a 2000 novel by French writer Frédéric Beigbeder. The book was released in France on August 2000 through Grasset & Fasquelle and has since been re-released under the titles ''€ 14.99'' and ''€ 5.90''. Shortly after the book ...

'' * 2007: ''

Les Femmes de l'ombre ''Female Agents'' (french: Les Femmes de l'ombre) is a 2008 French historical drama film directed by Jean-Paul Salomé and starring Sophie Marceau, Julie Depardieu, Marie Gillain, Déborah François, and Moritz Bleibtreu. Written by Salomé and L ...

'' * 2008: ''

'' * 2008: '' Un conte de Noël'' * 2008: ''

The First Day of the Rest of Your Life ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' * 2008: ''Comme les autres'' * 2008: ''Mes stars et moi'' * 2008: ''

Transporter 3 ''Transporter 3'' (French: ''Le Transporteur 3'') is a 2008 English-language French action-thriller film. It is the third and final installment in the original trilogy of the '' Transporter'' franchise. Both Jason Statham and François Berléand re ...

'' * 2008: ''

Largo Winch ''Largo Winch'' is a Belgian comic book series by Philippe Francq and Jean Van Hamme, published by Dupuis. It started as a series of novels by Van Hamme in the late 1970s, but stopped due to a lack of success and the huge amount of work Van Hamme ...

'' * 2009: ''

Welcome A welcome is a kind of greeting designed to introduce a person to a new place or situation, and to make them feel at ease. The term can similarly be used to describe the feeling of being accepted on the part of the new person. In some context ...

'' * 2009: '' Coco'' * 2009: '' Un prophète'' * 2009: ''

Park Benches ''Park Benches'' (french: Bancs Publics (Versailles rive droite)) is a 2009 French film directed by Bruno Podalydès, with an all-star cast. Plot ''Bancs Publics'' tells the story of a lonely man, observed by employees from an office across the ...

'' * 2009: '' Happy End'' * 2009: ''

L'affaire Farewell ''Farewell'' (french: L'affaire Farewell; literally ''The Farewell Affair'') is a 2009 French espionage thriller film directed by Christian Carion, starring Guillaume Canet and Emir Kusturica. The film is loosely based on the actions of the high- ...

'' * 2009: ''

Le Petit Nicolas ''Le Petit Nicolas'' (Little Nicholas) is a series of French children's books created by René Goscinny and illustrated by Jean-Jacques Sempé and it was first published on 30 March 1959. The books depict an idealized version of childhood in 19 ...

'' * 2009: ''Une affaire d'État'' * 2009: ''

22 Bullets ''22 Bullets'' (french: L'Immortel) is a 2010 French gangster-action film directed by Richard Berry. It tells a part of the life story of Jacky Imbert, and is based on the novel ''L'Immortel'' (2007) by Franz-Olivier Giesbert. Filming began on 23 ...

'' * 2009: '' Coco and Igor'' * 2009: '' Splice'' * 2010: '' With Love... from the Age of Reason'' * 2010: ''

Sarah's Key ''Sarah's Key'' (french: Elle s'appelait Sarah, links=no) is a 2010 French drama film directed and co-written by Gilles Paquet-Brenner. The film is an adaptation of the 2006 novel with the same title by Tatiana de Rosnay. The film alternates b ...

'' * 2010: ''

'' * 2011: ''

'' (Illumination opening logo variant only) * 2011: ''

'' * 2012: '' The Gatekeepers'' * 2012: ''

Taken 2 ''Taken 2'' is a 2012 English-language French action-thriller film directed by Olivier Megaton and starring Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Rade Šerbedžija, Leland Orser, Jon Gries, D.B. Sweeney and Luke Grimes. It follows Bryan Mil ...

'' * 2014: '' Brick Mansions'' * 2014: '' 3 Days to Kill'' * 2015: ''

The Transporter Refueled ''The Transporter Refueled '' (French: ''Le Transporteur: Héritage'') is a 2015 action thriller film directed by Camille Delamarre and written by Bill Collage, Adam Cooper, and Luc Besson. It is the fourth film in the ''Transporter'' franchise, ...

'' * 2015: ''

Taken 3 ''Taken 3'' (sometimes stylized as ''TAK3N'') is a 2014 English-language French action-thriller film directed by Olivier Megaton and written by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen. It is the third and final installment in the ''Taken'' trilogy. A ...

'' * 2016: ''

'' * 2017: ''

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets ''Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets'' (french: Valérian et la Cité des mille planètes) is a 2017 space opera film written and directed by Luc Besson, and produced by his wife, Virginie Besson-Silla. It is based on the French scie ...

References

External links

* {{Animation industry in the United States American animation studios Companies based in Paris French animation studios Visual effects companies