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New Documentary Called 'Jodorowsky's Dune' Currently in the Works

by Alex Billington
May 12, 2011

Now this sounds great already! THR is reporting that a new documentary was announced in Cannes today that is titled Jodorowsky's Dune. We wouldn't normally hear much buzz about this just beginning production, but it's a new documentary that I already can't wait to see. The film chronicles the attempt, and subsequent failure, of Chilean filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky (El Topo, The Holy Mountain, Santa Sangre) to adapt Frank Herbert's seminal science fiction classic Dune with an incredible team of artists and filmmakers (listed below) back in the mid-70s before David Lynch's film was made in 1984. I'm totally sold.

Directing this new documentary is Frank Pavich, also of the 1999 music doc N.Y.H.C. Pavich has already completed interviews with Jodorowsky and the other surviving members of the original team, filming in France, Switzerland and the UK, and will be heading to the US next. Jodorowsky worked for two years on the adaptation, amassing an amazing team of creative artists, including: H.R. Giger, known for his cinematic work on Alien, Dan O'Bannon, who wrote Alien and Total Recall, French artist Jean "Moebius" Giraud, who worked on Empire Strikes Back, Tron and Fifth Element, and Chris Foss, who worked on Alien and Superman. How did this not get made?! I guess that is exactly what we will find out.

Snowfort Pictures, France's Camera One, and Koch Media of Germany are developing the documentary. Stephen Scarlata and Travis Stevens are producing. I'm hoping we'll either see this at Sundance next year or maybe even the 2012 Cannes Film Festival, but either way I'm already sold, I'll be there at the very first screening. It seems like Dune always has trouble making it to the big screen, as Peter Berg's version in the works last year got canned by Paramount before it could get the greenlight. My hope is that this doc focuses on why it's such a challenge to adapt, not only for Jodorowsky, but anyone with a unique vision of the story.

For a bit more on Jodorowsky's Dune and its development, you can head over to Unseen Dune or read some quotes on SlashFilm. This reminds me a bit of Terry Gilliam's Lost in La Mancha doc, but being formed after the fact, which may make for a much more honest look at what happened to Jodorowsky's adaptation.

Related categories: Development, Indies, Movie News

Goudos

This sounds awesome! I cannot even begin to imagine how cool (and mind bending) Jodorowsky's Dune would have been. Looking forward to this one, good call.
Sinopra

How did it not get made? Lol. He spent millions on having the Spanish artist Dalì design a puppet of himself and star as the Emperor of the universe for one day ... so Jodorowsky ran out of money, like, in an instant. It was crazy. Beautiful, but really without any sense of how to get anything actually done.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9emWB_rrMt0 Crapola

I love Jodorowsky, partly because he's insane. Obviously Moebius, the greatest living comic artist is a good one to be in there too. They go into Dune a little in the Moebius documentary Redux, also how Ridley Scott, used his city designs for Bladerunner, in a 'borrowing' sort of way. I liked the David Lynch version, it was decent, I just like the way Jodorowsky talks about film and art, he's pretty passionate, his rant about superheroes is hilarious.
Lando

I cant wait to see this. There is a lot of details about this version of dune out there but it'd be nice to see them all together with interviews and hopefully some footage. While it sucks that it was never made, just that union of artists and creatives led to many great projects afterwards for everyone involved. Moebius and O'bannons "The Long Tomorrow" which finds its way into blade runner, M and O and Foss working together in Alien, Giger just kept rocking ..etc..and yea, Ive heard that Dali' had asked for a MILLION DOLLARS a day for shooting...yea..ok..