or New York where there are so many people. The work pool in the Bay Area is very small, not like L.A. I was living up in the Bay Area, having attended the film program at San Francisco State University and then on George Lucas’s films. Did you know David before then?ĭunham: I didn’t know David personally, but I knew of his work, of course. At the time, you had been working for George Lucas quite a bit in the editorial departments on The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, which, ironically enough, was a film David Lynch had at one point been in talks to direct. I believe he called you one day out of the blue to gauge your interest in working on Blue Velvet, so you flew out to meet him in Los Angeles. As you’ll read below, Dunham and Lynch share many things in common beyond each having a directorial effort currently available on Disney+.įilmmaker: I wanted to begin our conversation by asking about your initial encounter with David Lynch. A few days before the screening, I phoned Dunham to discuss his initial impression of working with Lynch, how he was able to negotiate directing several episodes of Twin Peaks at the height of its popularity (Dunham’s directorial debut, seen by over 15 million viewers, aired 32 years ago today), and, after a “Laura Palmer-sized” 25-year gap, returning to work with Lynch on Showtime’s Twin Peaks: The Return. Īn industry veteran who has continued to work extensively for both Lynch and George Lucas, Dunham was recently in Chicago to partake in a Q&A for Blue Velvet last Thursday. Running through April 14th, the retrospective also includes several in-person appearances, one being from Duwayne Dunham, Lynch’s editor on Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart, Twin Peaks and Twin Peaks: The Return. Blue Velvet, David Lynch, Duwayne Dunham, Twin Peaksįive years after the Music Box Theatre ’s previous David Lynch retrospective coincided with the television premiere of the highly anticipated Twin Peaks: The Return, the Chicago-based arthouse now presents David Lynch: A Complete Retrospective – The Return, a week-long celebration of Lynch’s work that also pays tribute to his many collaborators, friends and, in one particular instance, offspring.

David lynchs wild at heart poster