Warning: Spoilers for "Game of Thrones" season seven. If you aren't caught up on the series, read at your own risk.
Remember when Daenerys rode Drogon and fried the Lannister army? That battle sequence was inspired by "Apocalypse Now."
Business Insider recently talked to Robert McLachlan, a “Game of Thrones” cinematographer who worked on season seven episodes “The Spoils of War“ and “Eastwatch.”
McLachlan talked about why he loves working with smoke, what inspired the look and feel of the Loot Train Attack, and why a health and safety officer had to interfere with production. He also told us about a simply lit scene from “Eastwatch” that he is obsessed with.
Beyond this season, McLachlan has worked on other big "Game of Thrones" episodes including season three's "The Rains of Castamere" and "Mhysa," as well as season five's "The Dance of Dragons" and "Mother's Mercy."
McLachlan talked about what it was like to shoot such an epic battle sequence for one of the biggest shows on television:
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"My initial reaction after reading the outline of this [Loot Train] battle was, 'Oh boy, this is not gonna happen quickly.'"
"My other thought was, 'We're gonna need lots of cuts and shots.' It's a really daunting action sequence. This battle is massive, so it was important to keep the momentum. We were also under a lot of pressure, since the Battle of the Bastards was one of the best battles ever filmed, including television and movies."
"Our biggest enemy and our biggest ally is mother nature."
"For cinematographers, consistency often measures the quality of our work. So thank goodness there was smoke involved. Smoke helps with consistency when you're shooting exteriors, but I also love the way it looks, especially with the sun shining behind it."
"For inspiration and reference, director Matt Shakman and I looked at the Napalm scene in 'Apocalypse Now' and 'Saving Private Ryan.'"
McLachlan and Shakman wanted the brutality of the battle to feel realistic.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider