Denis Villeneuve on Tech Cell Phones and Dune Set

In a recent interview with a US media outlet, the filmmaker discussed his approach to directing and his relationship with technology on set and off.

“I feel that human beings are ruled by algorithms right now. We behave like AI circuits. The ways we see the world are narrow-minded binaries. We’re disconnecting from each other, and society is crumbling in some ways. It’s frightening,” the ‘Dune’ director said.

According to Denis Villeneuve, the concept of cell phones is ‘addictive’ as they give any information at any point.

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“It’s compulsive. It’s like a drug. I’m very tempted to disconnect myself. It would be fresh air,” the filmmaker said.

Denis Villeneuve revealed that he had banned cell phones from his films’ sets as they distract people from their jobs.

“When a painter paints, he has to be focused on the color he’s putting on the canvas. It’s the same with the dancer when he makes a gesture. With a filmmaker, you have to do that with a crew, and everybody has to focus and be entirely in the present, listening to each other, and being in a relationship with each other. So cell phones have been banned on my set too, since day one. It’s forbidden. When you say cut, you don’t want someone going to his phone to look at his Facebook account,” the ‘Dune’ director said.

The filmmaker mentioned that he refused to sit on a chair while on the set of ‘Dune,’ however, it was due to his back problem.

“When I did Blade Runner, I had a back problem because I was sitting a lot. So for the Dune movies … [we] decided to stand, to have minimal footprints so we could be flexible and go fast, to keep the blood flowing, to be awakened,” Denis Villeneuve said.