‘Dune’ Cinematographer Says Film Is a ‘Fully Standalone Epic’ Despite Two-Movie Plan
Zack Sharf
For Oscar-nominated cinematographer Greig Fraser, filming Denis Villeneuve‘s “Dune” meant having to forget about his time in the “Star Wars” universe as the director of photography on projects such as “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” and “The Mandalorian.” In a new interview with Collider, Fraser says part of the fun of “Dune” was changing things up from his work on “Star Wars” projects.
“I had to forget a lot of ‘Star Wars’ when I was making ‘Dune.’ It wasn’t hard, though,” Fraser said. “Denis and I spoke clearly about how the film should look and should feel, and the formats and this and that, so it was not hard to swerve and change lanes.”
Fraser continued, “There were some similarities like the deserts. I mean listen, ultimately, I’m positive George Lucas was inspired by ‘Dune’ when he made ‘Star Wars.’ I don’t know if that’s sacrilegious to talk about, but there are a lot of similarities in some areas, so you could tell he was definitely influenced by that. So I had to be careful doing both [‘Dune’ and ‘The Mandalorian’] and not to repeat myself. Also not just for the sake of the movie, but for fun. I hate to do the same thing twice.”
According to Fraser, “Dune” is a “fully standalone epic film” even though Villeneuve took on adapting Frank Herbert’s legendary novel as a two-part film. While the director intends to make a second “Dune” movie, Fraser assures fans the first entry that is dated to open in December will feel like a standalone movie.
“It’s a fully formed story in itself with places to go,” Fraser said. “It was quite an adventure visually. It was a beautiful experience making it. The people involved with it, I was overwhelmed. Some of the actors, as well as being insanely talented actors, are just lovely, lovely people who I’ve become very close to since then.”
Villeneuve’s “Dune” stars Timothee Chalamet in the leading role opposite an ensemble cast that includes Oscar Isaac, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin. Warner Bros. currently has “Dune” on the release calendar for December 18. Head over to Collider’s website to read more from Fraser.
