‘Dune’ Documentary Acquired By Sony Picture Classics
Sony Pictures Classic has acquired the rights to Frank Pavich’s acclaimed Dune documentary.
Jodorosky’s Dune tells the story of cult director Alejandro Jodorowsky’s attempt to adapt author Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel. Although the filmmaker worked for two long years on the project, he was never able to get the production off the ground.
The Wrap reports that Sony Pictures Classics recently acquired the North American rights to the Dune documentary. The distributor announced the acquisition on Thursday (June 11).
Alejandro Jodorowsky had big plans for his adaptation of Dune. In addition casting his 12-year-old son in the movie, the filmmaker was extremely interested in getting Orson Welles, Gloria Swanson, Mick Jagger, David Carradine, and Salvador Dali involved with the film.
H.R. Giger, who provided the creature designs for Ridley Scott’s Alien, would have helped out on the adaptation as well. The score would have been provided by the rock outfit Pink Floyd. Unfortunately for fans of the director, his vision of Herbert’s world would never happen.
“To have my first film distributed by Sony Pictures Classics is a dream come true. I’m incredibly excited to know that we will be working alongside the company that so fully supported such great documentaries like Crumb and Searching for Sugar Man,” Dune documentary director Frank Pavich explained in a statement.
He added, “SPC has seen that, even though this is a documentary about a never-completed film, it is not a story about failure. It’s a story about ambition and how the power of art can effectively change the world.”
The adaptation of Herbert’s sci-fi novel would eventually end up in the hands of Eraserhead director David Lynch. The film would go on to become one of the biggest flops of all time.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Jodorosky’s Dune premiered at Cannes last May. However, it’s unclear when the documentary will be available to the rest of us. A release date has not been set as of this writing.
Are you a fan of Frank Herbert’s Dune? Are you looking forward to the upcoming documentary?
