First Draft Screenplay of Dune

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Billiam
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First Draft Screenplay of Dune

Post by Billiam »

1st Draft for David Lynch's version of Dune, cowritten by Christopher DeVore and Eric Bergren:

Originally meant to be two movies, it's a very interesting read, a bittersweet one, revealing could have been. It ends with Paul and Jessica escaping to the desert., after the attack on Arakeen Palace. Part Two was never scripted, as DeVore and Bergren left the project soon afterward, as the decision was made to make Dune a single movie.

I knew OF this draft, from reading other Dune sites out there, but finding a copy always proved futile, as ones available for download have always been the 2nd and subsequent drafts. The 2nd draft is even a wonderful read. Subsequent ones available resemble more closely the finished movie.

I finally saw it for sale on eBay for 40 bucks and bit the bullet.... the copy I received was on goldenrod paper (obviously meant as a deterrent to make Xeroxes, as goldenrod copies as a dark, smudgy gray), and it's also obviously a copy of a copy of a copy, who knows how many times over. It's most apparent in the notes, scribbles and rewrites throughout the document. Some pages are downsized to allow for the scribbles, and since it's been copied many times over, sometimes the edge of the page is missing, or some of the notes are almost illegible.

All the same, it's a treasure.

I FINALLY was able to set aside some time to scan it, getting access to a scanner that created a multi-page pdf as I fed it through. The 126 pages scanned at 300 dpi into a document that was 140 megabytes, but I was able to reduce document size to 32 mb's, without any discernable loss to image quality (still 300 dpi)

It is available here, with the express intent of sharing it with other fans, I have no intention of selling it or stepping on anyone's toes, and hope that nobody else misappropriates it either. As there are other drafts of the screenplay available, I am assuming there aren't any issues about this.......

http://rapidshare.com/files/406205385/D ... _Draft.pdf

It will be there until such a time where it becomes problematic, which I hope it does not.

Enjoy!

Of special note is the extended dialogue between characters, a scene created involving a royal procession in the streets before Arakeen Palace, the emphasis on the palm trees in front of it, and the banquet scene.

True enough, there are simplifications, but the overall feeling and the way it ends suggests a satisfying story arc for part one, and the writing instills a deeper emphasis on characterization, as well as tragedy and loss.

I don't want to give away too much, just get it and enjoy it! :D
"I can't understand a word you're saying, you have a thing in your mouth!"
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Annie
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Re: First Draft Screenplay of Dune

Post by Annie »

Thanks! I just found my own copy and it's in a regular pdf. I found it originally on an MSN site dedicated to DUNE.
(We dune-lovers are rare in this forum and have to keep a low profile.) :wink:
Keep your eye on the doughnut, not on the hole.
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moviemaker
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Re: First Draft Screenplay of Dune

Post by moviemaker »

Such a beautiful thing! Thank you for sharing.
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