Photo: Boungawa / CC BY-SA 4.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Pierre Coffin makes me smile, because he's the rare creator who is also the secret voice behind a global phenomenon. A French animator and director, he co-directed the first Despicable Me films and personally voiced nearly all of the Minions, that gibberish that somehow charmed audiences worldwide and earned him a Kids Family Award. I love that the man steering the whole project also became its unmistakable sound. He even drew a Best Animated Feature nomination for Despicable Me 2. To me he's proof that craft and playfulness aren't opposites. There's real skill in building characters this universally beloved out of nonsense syllables and warmth.
Overview
Pierre-Louis Padang Coffin (born 16 March 1967) is a French animator, director, producer, writer, and voice actor. He is best known for co-directing the first four installments in the Despicable Me franchise and being the primary voice of all of the Minions, which won him the Kids Family Award at the 10th Seiyu Awards. He also received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for Despicable Me 2.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Pierre Coffin
- Name (Japanese)
- ピエール・コフィン
- Reading
- ぴえーる・こふぃん
- Born
- November 1, 1967 (age 58)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Scorpio / Goat
- Origin
- Limoges, Haute-Vienne, France
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- voice actor / film director / animator / screenwriter / actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
Awards & achievements
- 2016 Seiyu Awards Kids/Family Award
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Despicable Me | — |
6. Links
Voice actor — see all → · Film director — see all → · More people from France →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.