Alum Patrice Vermette nominated for Academy Award for Dune: Part 2
Patrice Vermette (right), BA 23, with set decorator and co-nominee Shane Vieau (middle) and head scenic painter Serge Archambault
Production designer Patrice Vermette, BA 23, has been nominated for an Academy Award for his remarkable work on Dune: Part 2.
Vermette previously won the Oscar for Best Production Design for the first Dune film in 2022.
Vermette, currently at work in London, United Kingdom, on an as-yet-unnamed project, expressed his appreciation for the support he received from colleagues and friends.
“There was a rumour about a nomination, but you can never take it for granted,” he said. “What’s amazing is the amount of love you receive from colleagues and friends, people you haven’t heard from in a while. It’s like the Niagara Falls of emails and texts.”
Vermette also noted his disappointment that his long-time collaborator, Denis Villeneuve, DFA 24, was not nominated for Best Director — though Dune: Part 2 did earn a nomination for Best Picture.
“If it wasn’t for him, we wouldn’t be here. It’s a massive undertaking, and he is the captain of the ship,” Vermette remarked.
Vermette is nominated alongside set decorator Shane Vieau, a Nova Scotian who previously won an Oscar for his work on the 2017 film The Shape of Water. The collaboration further underscores the continued presence of Canadian talent in the film industry.