To help further immerse the actors on set, Dune avoided the use of blue and green screens. For such a large-scale film as Dune, it would make sense that the production designer and director would rely on the tried-and-true method of green or blue screens behind the actors to help create the foreign environments. The use of such technology has been around almost since the dawn of filmmaking, with the actors performing against a solid green or blue backdrop, which would then be removed by the visual effects team and replaced with either a matte painting back in the day or, more currently, computer-generated environments.

Since Dune encompasses a wide variety of locations that can't be recreated on Earth, the use of green screens by Denis Villeneuve, the film's director, wouldn't be surprising. The movie is based on Frank Herbert's novel of the same name, and he imagined some unique examples for the setting of his book. For example, the planet where most of the action takes place, Arrakis, is said to be made entirely of sand. So for those shots where the characters are in the desert, the scale would need to be created with special effects. The same can be said for the leader's palace on Arrakis, described by Herbert as the largest palace ever made by humans.

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However, instead of relying purely on green or blue screen technology, Patrice Vermette, Dune's production designer, went with a slightly different method. In an interview with /Films, Vermette described his idea of utilizing painted fabric for some set backgrounds instead of just a generic green screen. This created an atmosphere similar to that of a stage play, where the scenery was crafted on painted pieces of cloth that would help immerse the actors in their location. It also allowed the visual effects artists to have more accurate lighting for their work. Vermette stated using the painted fabric pieces prevented any unwanted green hue from showing up on the actors or other set pieces.

"The approach has always been that more is not better. For the actor and for Denis and for the crews, they are in the space as opposed to using green screen. So then we, obviously, we had the limitations on some of the sets, not all the sets, but some of the sets we had limitation for the space, because some of them also were just for budgetary reasons. So we had to come up with a couple of tricks, like moving the wall that would create another space. And another trick was to build everything that was higher than 24, and sometimes 30 feet, all out of fabric.

We would continue building the sets in fabric, like fabric on frame, paint them the same color as the average color of the sets. And we use that technique only for what was going on in the city. That technique would dictate where the light would be coming from, and the obstacles that the light would hit. So the sets would be lit, it would help light the set properly to represent what was on the concept part. It would also indicate to the VFX, the areas that needed to be collided with the right texture. Overall, it gave the right light environment, so the VFX part would be integrated better. So, the light is not contaminated by green. It all creates this world, that makes it more real."

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The use of large painted fabric pieces most likely allowed the actors to feel surrounded by the environments they were supposed to be in instead of looking out over the set's edge and seeing a location here on Earth. Traditionally, when actors film on location or even on a soundstage, the sets have limitations and boundaries that are easy to perceive. By creating such a large, immersive environment for Dune that is budget-friendly, Vermette and Villeneuve gave the actors space and room to develop their characters organically. They also helped the visual effects team with any lighting difficulties that may have arisen by using a green screen.

The use of the painted sets and backdrops was undoubtedly successful. The set design and visual effects of Dune were flawless and felt quite immersive to the viewer. It also seemed to assist the actors in their journey, as the entire cast appeared dedicated to the arcs their characters took. The result was an incredible achievement in filmmaking that is sure to make Dunecontender come awards season. Without such innovative and creative work from the whole cast and crew of Dune, the adaptation would have surely fallen flat.

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Source: /Film