Director Matt Shakman compares filming Game of Thrones to Summer Camp

Game of Thrones is a giant production, that has been running like a well oiled machine for over eight years now. It has had plenty of great directors, and one of them is Matt Shakman, who came in when long time Game of Thrones director David Nutter stepped out. in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Shakman talked about filming Thrones, and how it was the hardest Summer camp ever. Read on!

There’s a lot of background work that goes into directing, especially when the show is as big as Thrones. Speaking of how he worked with the other directors, Jeremy Podeswa, Mark Mylod, and Alan Taylor, for six months, Shakman said:

“It felt like camp. Of course, it was the hardest camp ever. And it was all very collegial. We were all going to the same sets, facing similar challenges. … I loved the opportunity to pick the brains of the veterans who had directed on the show before. It helped that all of the scripts get done months before, so we as directors take them and things can evolve.”

He discussed how all the directors on the show need to be in sync and carry the same style so that the show doesn’t wander away too much from its vision:

“You don’t necessarily want to bring a distinctive visual style to Game of Thrones. If Guy Ritchie did an episode, for instance, it would feel dissonant from the series because of his particular way of directing.”

He compared being a Game of Thrones director to being an art student:

“Coming into a show that’s operated for seven successful seasons, you’re more like an art student. You learn to paint like Rembrandt and get new tools you can add to your toolkit when you work elsewhere.”

Shakman directed the Season 7 episode, ” The Spoils of War“, best known for Daenerys Targaryen‘s Loot Train attack scene. Arguably the best Season 7 episode. However he will not be returning for Season 8, so that’s all we have seen of him. Let’s hope he returns to helm one of the prequel show episodes!

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