Patrice Vermette began his career designing music videos and TV commercials. His collaboration with Jean-Marc Vallée continued with Young Victoria, earning him his first Academy Award nomination. Patrice is best known for his collaboration with director Denis Villeneuve on the films Dune Part 1, for which he won an Academy Award, as well as Dune Part 2, Prisoners, Arrival and Sicario.
In Episode 7 of Apotheosis, Patrice Vermette and Alexander Whittenberg chat about the philosophy of subtraction, the poetry of space and what it means to build worlds that feel both ancient and futuristic. Vermette reflects on his creative beginnings, his deep relationship with music, and how curiosity and collaboration shape his approach to design.
The conversation moves into rich, specific territory as he breaks down designing the monumental yet restrained worlds of Dune and Dune: Part Two, describing how history, landscape and light inform everything from Caladan’s mournful architecture to the brutal geometry of Arrakis.
He also shares intimate, process-driven stories from Prisoners, Sicario, Arrival and Enemy, revealing how small, almost accidental details—labyrinths on walls, figures hidden behind plastic or negative space within a frame—can profoundly deepen character and story.
Throughout, Vermette and Whittenberg explore spontaneity, intuition and the responsibility of production design to quietly serve the narrative, ultimately circling back to a hopeful vision for the future of filmmaking rooted in human creativity and lived experience.
The Cala City Palace Dining Room in Dune.
”When you subtract, you add to the frame.”
The Dessert of Arrakis in Dune: Part Two.
The wall of mazes in Prisoners.
”A movie is an animal that needs to be tamed.”
A Palace Courtyard in Arrakeen from Dune.
