PRODUCTION DUNE: PART TWO
head as a character. Also, we now felt like we had experienced the desert for what it was – and could be bolder with our choices of colour.” A seasoned filmmaker whose other credits include The Creator and Rogue One , Fraser highlights Unreal Engine’s growing significance, describing it as a tool which becomes more indispensable with each production he works on. On Dune: Part Two , the game engine was deployed for planning desert sequences, which were pivotal to the film’s narrative. The production schedule was structured with stage work in Budapest, Jordan and Abu Dhabi, and meticulous planning was imperative owing to tight schedule constraints – especially prior to shooting in Jordan. “We were on a real tight ship,” recalls Fraser. “We absolutely had to make our days count as there wasn’t any wiggle room to go over.” Utilising Unreal Engine, the team conducted extensive light studies to precisely determine the sun’s positioning; especially crucial for scenes set amid intricate rock formations, such as the eclipse sequence. “That scene takes place over more than ten locations, so we had to be on the ball when it came to knowing what time we were going to shoot things, how long we were there for – and effectively planning,” he shares. Past experiments with infrared light came in handy when depicting Giedi Prime, where House Harkonnen resides. The revelation of removing the infrared lens filter from digital cameras – allowing for the capture of original infrared light –
is a concept Fraser has been playing with for over a decade. In Rogue One , infrared light played a significant role in the visual effects, though it was often imperceptible as it was employed for tracking markers, mattes and alpha channels. “I’ve always known how cool it looks, so have been looking forward to finding the right application for it,” enthuses Fraser. “Denis [Villeneuve, director] told me he was thinking about doing this exterior in black & white because maybe the sun doesn’t record colour. I told him I had an idea I wanted to show him – and he loved it! I’m happy we got to do it. From a narrative perspective, it was 100% the right tool for the job.” An iconic moment from the source material, which had to be executed to perfection, was Paul Atreides riding a
EPIC SCOPE Production took the team from Budapest to Abu Dhabi, presenting plenty of new challenges along the way
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