The Big Picture

Collider speaks with
Dune: Part Two
cinematographer Greig Fraser.
Fraser is an Academy Award-winning DP who worked on both
Dune
films with Denis Villeneuve as well as The Creator, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, The Batman, and more.
In this interview, Fraser shares which scenes he’s most proud of, working with talented casts and still being starstruck, and which actors may be stepping behind the camera soon.

The visions are clear now — Dune: Part Two is a visual feast for the eyes. Directed by Denis Villeneuve, Dune: Part Two continues the story of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), as he rises to power as a mythic figure to the Fremen; yet, the power he gains, the greater threat he poses, leading to all-out galactic war. The film has an all-star cast that includes Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, and Christopher Walken.

Part of what makes Dune: Part Two such an achievement is its mind-blowing cinematography, courtesy of Greig Fraser. After winning the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for Dune: Part One, he takes the visual storytelling to the next level in the sequel. Fraser is also known for his work on Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and The Batman.

During this interview with Collider, Greig Fraser spoke about the scenes he was most proud of accomplishing, as well as marveling at the performances of the actors during the final fight to the death between Paul and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen (Austin Butler). Plus, Fraser praised Zendaya and her vocal interest in cinematography and how he himself loves to share his craft with anyone on set. He also explains why he often forgets his shots after principal photography is finished.

You can watch the full interview in the video above, or you can read the transcript below.

Dune: Part Two Paul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen while seeking revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family.

Greig Fraser Reveals Why He’s Most Proud of the Sandworm Sequence

Greig, it is such a pleasure to meet you. How are you doing today?

GREIG FRASER: Really well, thank you. I’m talking about one of my favorite things, which is Dune: Part Two, so I’m having a great day.

I want to start off saying congratulations. What is it like for you seeing all of the praise for Dune: Part Two?

FRASER: I’m proud, of course. I mean, we worked hard. I worked hard, but let me tell you how hard Denis [Villeneuve] worked on the film. He’s been up to here [raises hand] in sand since 2018, 2019. The fact that he’s made Dune, he’s made the book that basically started him on this journey. So for me, I’m really proud of him, not in a sort of a paternal way, of course, but just in a bro sort of way. He’s done… he’s made it. He’s made his film. I think I’d probably be aligned with my collaborators here to kind of hope that we have helped him make his film as well as he dreamed it as a child when he was first reading the book.

It sounds like the way that the two of you have collaborated on this has really brought what was deemed unadaptable to life, which is such a feat and an achievement.When you think back on your time making it Dune: Part Two, is there a sequence or a scene that you’re most proud of capturing and why?

FRASER: You know, I’ve said it a few times in the past about the sandworm riding. I love the fact that…that’s so good. I love that sequence. I’m really proud of the way we captured it because it wasn’t easy. It wasn’t something that was simple to capture, and it wasn’t simple to shoot. It was probably one of the, I wouldn’t say, it was probably one of the more complicated sequences that I’ve done because it had a high probability of not getting it right. Do you know what I mean? There was a high probability that we could have screwed up and made some mistakes along the way. You know, it’s that high failure opportunity, so we were quite diligent about making sure that we didn’t let shots through that weren’t quite right. Because we realized that if you did that once, or maybe twice, or maybe three times… over the course of eight, nine, ten shots, the sequence would still be okay and still be good, still have great music, but it may not have that same visceral impact. I feel like we were quite diligent about making sure that we were really… precise when it came to getting that sequence.

I don’t know. There’s quite a few other ones. I love the fight at the end. I love the fight between Feyd and Paul, but not just because of the fight. This is the thing where I had the luxury, obviously, of seeing every frame shot on the movie — every single frame. One of the things I love about that sequence is all the other actors in that sequence. I love Paul. I love Feyd. I love the fight. Don’t get me wrong, but I love looking at Chani [Zendaya]. I love looking at Irulan [Florence Pugh]. I love looking at Jessica [Ferguson]. I remember we ran around as a technical aside. We filmed the fight, of course, but then we went around and did everybody’s close-ups, which is kind of a thing. When you’re facing this way, you go and do Christopher Walken’s and you do Florence’s, and you do Charlotte [Rampling]. You sort of knock off the close-ups, right? Every close-up we did, I was standing there in awe with my jaw on the ground going, “That’s Christopher Walken” for a ten-minute scene of him reacting. And then Florence, again, jaw on the ground, like, watching these amazing actors. We worked our way around the room and all of these actors, you know, Javier [Bardem] and Josh [Brolin]. I mean, it was quite a joy. So, that’s a joy that I get from the experience of making the film as much as I get from watching it.

Greig Fraser Explains Why He Thinks Zendaya Will Start Directing Movies Soon
Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

You just mentioned Zendaya, one of the stars of the movie. She has been very vocal recently about her fascination with cinematography and learning about the different lenses, and with her and even Josh Brolin just showing a lot of respect and awe for what you do. What is it like for you to share that passion with the actors or just other people on set who just have an interest in cinematography?

FRASER: Well, you know what I found? It’s really interesting because I think that the more that —and maybe this is because more people in the last 10–15 years have had phones, and they’re becoming more literate when it comes to images — is that suddenly people start to take a notice. Not suddenly, because it’s not happened suddenly, but there’s someone like Zendaya who’s grown up over the last, you know, 10 or 15 years with this technology. She and all people of her generation are kind of treating photography like it’s an extension of themselves. Whereas when I was growing up, to take a photo meant that I had to then have it processed or process it myself. It wasn’t something you just do quickly. I feel like someone like Zendaya has a really good understanding of images. She’s super smart and super keen to learn what a cinematographer does and how it contributes to the film. She’s incredibly clever. She’ll be producing and directing her own films soon enough. I’m positive about that. But it’s nice to have that sort of interaction with people on set who have that understanding.

It’s not just actors. Obviously, actors are one of those relationships you have, even with my team or electricians who have a passion for photography, as well. So it’s always good. I mean, I always love talking about photography and cinematography. And obviously, working with Josh [Brolin] on the [Dune: Exposures] was hugely fun as well because he’s an amazing writer and actor. He’s an amazing actor but a fantastic writer.

He just seems like an overall fun person to be around.

FRASER: He is fun. He is fun. Sometimes I wonder how he’s kind of internally entertaining as well. I don’t know. I wonder how he kind of keeps that energy going.

Greig Fraser Admits That He Doesn’t Remember Shots After He Films Them

There are so many shots that are just so jaw-dropping and awesome to watch in Dune: Part Two. Do you have a shot in particular that you are proud of but didn’t make the final cut?

FRASER: Oh, that’s a good question. The way my brain works with cinematography, with the images that I make, is I put all this energy into making the image that we’re working on right now, or whatever it is we’re working on. That’s all my focus. That’s my energy. We shoot it, and I pretty much forget about it. I need to remember because sometimes I need to match to it, or I’m coming back tomorrow, whatever that might be. So I don’t actually forget about it, but I pretty much go out of my consciousness until I get into the grade, and then I see the images again. I’m like, “Oh, there you go. There’s the images.” I could not tell you what’s been cut out of the film because we shot so many images for a start, but also, it’s my emotional journey with those images is I feel like they’re only good when they’re part of the bigger picture.

So, are there things that I wish could have made the edit? Maybe, but I don’t know what they are. I couldn’t sit here and tell you. I know we shot some beautiful stuff with Alia [Anya Taylor-Joy] in utero. I mean, more than what we saw. We saw a number of beautiful images. There were times we were shooting Alia that I was over the moon with some of the images, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that her journey wasn’t properly fulfilled. This is where my hats go off to someone like Joe Walker [editor] because Joe Walker can be a mercenary in a good way. He really makes sure the story sings, and the film works, and unfortunately, there’s got to be cuts. Sometimes, there are some great images; I’m sure they’re on the cutting room floor.

Well, thank you so much for your time, and again, congratulations on Dune: Part Two.

FRASER: Thank you, Meredith. Good to talk to you.

Dune: Part Two is available to purchase on digital now and on 4K UHD on May 14.

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