The Annecy International Animation Film Festival got off to a high octane start on Sunday evening with the world premiere of Illumination’s Minions & Monsters, and the surprise appearance of Guillermo Del Toro in the audience.

The third movie in the Despicable Me spin-off, sees the Minions land in the Golden Age of Hollywood, with a storyline led by new characters, James, an artistic Minion with dreams of becoming a director; his comedic sidekick and bestie Henry, and their mute companion Ed.

The story unfolds with a recap of the Minions’ indefatigable hunt for a truly evil boss, which leads them to California, where they latch onto a gun-toting bandit, thinking he could be a candidate, not realizing he is an actor and that they have gate-crashed a film shoot.  

While the director tears his hair out, the producers see the footage and sign the Minions on the spot, but their fame is short-lived with the arrival of the talkies. James plots a comeback film, conjuring up a real-life monster for a key role, unwittingly leashing an evil power hellbent on destroying L.A. and the world.

The high-energy adventure is also a love letter to cinema with cameo appearances for George Lucas, as a live exhibit in a Hollywood history museum, as well as Harold Lloyd among others.

Sunday’s Annecy screening marked a homecoming for Illumination boss Christopher Meledandri and director Pierre Coffin, who first brought the Minions to Annecy in 2014 with the world premiere of Despicable Me.

“The dawn of cinema in 1920s Hollywood is not obvious place to begin a movie about the Minions but it is the perfect era to set a story that honors cinema and pays homage to the inspiration for the Minions themselves, the silent clowns Keaton, Lloyd, Chaplin and as it turns out, it’s a great setting for one Minion who loves to draw and dreams about making a movie,” said Meledandri.

The Illumination boss said there was nowhere in the world where he and Coffin would rather world premiere Minions & Monsters than Annecy.

“Annecy not only provides this moment to celebrate animation but it also gives an opportunity to honor Illumination and its artistry… I’m particularly excited because I love this movie so much and tonight I get to share my appreciation for all of the care which has been poured into every one of the frames of this movie by hundreds of artists sitting in the center of Paris at Illumination Studios,” he continued.

Prior to the screening, Meledandri and Coffin were also presented with plaques for the festival’s Wall of Fame, which has been installed at Annecy’s new animation center. The hub, situated in the restored buildings of the city’s late 19th century national stables, opened on the eve of the festival.

Annecy Mayor Antoine Armand told the opening ceremony that the Animation hub was a sign of the city’s commitment to culture at a time when it was under attack in certain quarters.

“We believe in culture and that’s why we have decided that in the years to come, here in Annecy, we’ll support culture, we’ll increase the funds for culture because when culture is attacked around the world, we have to defend it. When it is threatened, it needs to be protected. Here in Annecy, we protect culture and world culture,” he said to loud applause.

In that context. Armand also paid tribute to Iranian-French artist and animator and Oscar-nominated director Marjane Satrapi who died at the age of 56 on June 6.

“I would like us to have thoughts for Marjane Satrapi… She left us a few weeks ago, and I think she embodies that freedom. Some of you remember her book, Woman, Life, Freedom. Some of you, remember her film, Persepolis, where she transformed her own story into a universal fable,” said Armand.

“She reminds us that freedom is not a given and never will be. So, we need you. We need animation. We need you in Annecy.”