How J.A. Bayona Used Music During Filming Of 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom'
The sounds of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom will include things like volcanic eruptions, explosions, and dinosaurs biting into their prey, but if we were to hear the sounds that played during the actual filming of the movie, we'd hear a whole lot of music.
On the set of the upcoming Jurassic World sequel, director J.A. Bayona told us how he used music to enhance his actors' performances – and even scare them a little.
Bayona has a long history of pumping music in during filming to help create the right atmosphere on his sets, and he kept that tradition alive during Fallen Kingdom. Be sure to read our full set interview for more.
Bayona revealed that even though he played John Williams' iconic Jurassic Park theme and music from composer Michael Giacchino (who's composing the score for this sequel), he couldn't allow himself to get wrapped up in the nostalgia of it all. There "was so much emotion in that moment on the set," he explained of the first time he played Williams' track, "but the truth is that there's so much work to do that you're not really, at least I can tell you, you're not into that nostalgia. You have your characters in front of you. You have so much work to do every day that it's [only] when you come back home and you say, 'Oh my God, I've been doing a Jurassic Park movie.' It's the moment that you are aware of it."
Bayona told us that he sometimes plays music not just between takes, but during the actual filming process. When asked if he played dinosaur sounds, he said, "I'm joking all the time with Justice [Smith] because I'm playing sounds to scare him during the takes. So it's been a lot of fun to work with him in that setting."
"I like music," he said. "It helps a lot in creating the tension, the mood. Sometimes you play light music to make the actors feel good on the set. And the lines come with a freshness that maybe you would not get in a different way."
He explained how he worked with star Bryce Dallas Howard on a scene that didn't have any dialogue, and he used music to specifically shape her performance. "I played three pieces. Every piece very different from the other one. So one was like romantic music. The other one was scary. And she played three different performances in every take. And it was very interesting. These are the kind of things I do enjoy...especially in these movies, they're so big. They're so pre-designed that you want to get to the set and break that."
The best parts of the most recent trailer look like they came straight out of Bayona's head, and I'm excited to see if he was able to break away from the "pre-designed" aspects of the film and truly put his stamp on this dino-sized sequel.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom arrives in theaters on June 22, 2018.