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Jóhann some examples of something I would like. But that is quite minor in the process. DG A: Can the two of you talk about the blending of music and sound eects that we sometimes hear in your films–and if the audience can't tell the dierence, is that the eect you're looking for? VILLENEUVE: Jóhann's music is very sophisti- cated and very atmospheric. Because we are doing that process early on, and our editor Joe Walker is also a sound editor, the sound design is done thinking about Jóhann's music, to try and create an atmo- sphere where music and sound design are married together. JÓHANNSSON: We have a lot of discussions about where and how the sound eects and music interact. It was especially important in the scenes where we hear the alien language. The sound design there is re- ally strong, very powerful, unique and original. I had to be very careful to create music in a frequency range that stayed out of the way of those sounds. In some cases, people feel that they are part of the same thing. The lines are very much blurred. The quality of sound, the texture, is a very important element in my music. Those two worlds are gelling, increasingly. People like Denis and Joe are very aware of this. That is really the way for this to work, for everyone to have a very strong understanding of the role of each element of the film. DGA: Arrival's music seems especially com- plicated, considering the use of voices, real instruments and electronic processing. How much did you two discuss before beginning this ambitious eort? V I L L E N E U V E : We discuss the themes and ideas of the movie, the emo- tions that I'm looking for, the sensations. On Sicario, for instance, I was talking about the violence and brutality along the border, and I let Jóhann go. Then I receive one of those weird messages in my email box where I see Jóhann doing some crazy thing somewhere in the world, with a heavy metal guitar ri in Berlin, or making loops with tapes in Iceland, or recording things in insane places, with a very daring and experi- mental technique. I still remember when we heard that first track that he composed for the desert: Joe Walker and I were dancing in the editing room. It was so powerful and perfect for the movie. JÓHANNSS ON: The thing we talked most about was the necessity for two dierent musical approach- es. One was the emotional side of the story, the more human side; and then the science fiction side, the story of the aliens and the whole process of communi- cating with them. What really struck me first was, the film is so much about language, about communica- tion. How do you communicate with an intelligent species with whom you have nothing in common? The voice seemed to me to be the perfect element to use— but I wanted to use the voice in a way that I had not heard before in film. When you think of science fiction and voices, you immediately think of 2001 and [com- poser György] Ligeti and his approach to the mono- lith. I didn't want that sound. I wanted something dif- ferent, more avant-garde, using harmonic singing, throat singing, very extended vocal techniques. D G A : So you spend months, as opposed to weeks, on every score? DIRECTOR DENIS VILLENEUVE AND COMPOSER JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON DISCUSS THEIR MODUS OPERANDI AS THEY TEAM UP ON THEIR FOURTH FILM, BLADE RUNNER 2049 CONTINUED ON PAGE 94