Although his family has banned music for generations, Miguel dreams of becoming a musician. While searching for a guitar to enter a competition, he borrows his idol Ernesto de la Cruz's guitar from his mausoleum and is immediately transported to the Land of the Dead. There, he meets his ancestors, who refuse to return him to the Land of the Living unless he agrees to abandon his ambitions of becoming a musician. Miguel rejects his family's demands and sets off to find his great-grandfather, a musician who he believes can help and understand him.