One thing is for certain. Star Wars’ Anakin Skywalker and Jon Favreau do not agree about sand. Anakin says it’s coarse, rough, and gets everywhere. Favreau thinks it’s what made his season two episode of The Mandalorian work so well.
Favreau writes many episodes of Disney+’s The Mandalorian but he’s only directed one, season two premiere episode “The Marshall.” That’s where Timothy Olyphant as Cobb Vanth helps Pedro Pascal’s Din Djarin fight the hulking krayt dragon so Mando can get Vanth’s armour. In a new video from the American Film Institute (via Slashfilm), Favreau breaks down that scene, speaking about all the different elements that went into it including, of course, the sand. Check it out.
We also get some Luke Skywalker and Grogu talk too, which is nice, but the meat of the matter is Favreau discussing all the different layers that go into a scene like this. Practical outdoor filming with green screen. Plates shot in other parts of the world that are added later. Some real actors, some CG actors. The creature design and execution, which includes simulations of sand that Favreau says would’ve been impossible years ago. And all of it tightly planned in a “robust” pre-production process which we’ve learned about before. Basically, entire episodes of The Mandalorian are made beforehand, in pre-viz, before filming, just to make sure it’s all doable.
Favreau doesn’t do a lot of interviews about The Mandalorian so whenever you get a chance to hear him speak about it, you love to hear the passion. He’s currently working on The Book of Boba Fett with season three of The Mandalorian to come soon after.