Only a genius of unparalleled wisdom could have predicted that all the Mother of Dragons needed to do in order to turn the tide in Meereen was to use her fire-breathing creatures of flying death. What a gambit! But it worked when Daenerys took her place on the back of Drogon and rode alongside Rhaegal and Viserion to let the slave masters know who was in charge.
Dragons—that’s all it took. That and months and months of amazing VFX work to make it all look so damn real.
We came across this latest Game of Thrones season six reel, showing how the fantastic world of George R.R. Martin is brought to such vivid life by HBO, at Watchers on the Wall, and it mostly focuses on how the events beyond the Narrow Sea in Slaver’s Bay were made.
From the dual horse statues framing the entrance of Vaes Dothrak, to bringing an entire Dothraki horde to life so they can kneel before the Khaleesi standing among the flames, to raising the majestic cities of Mereen and Volantis, to creating a fleet of invading ships, the folks at Rodeo FX show how green screens become an entire world, one that feels as real as any we could visit.
The company says they produced 152 shots covering eight episodes of season six, “over six months, and working on the kind of tight production schedule required for episodic TV.” This past season looked amazing, but having to do it in such a short time period is totally insane.
It might have taken Daenerys Stormborn way, way, waaaaay too long to remember that dragons are useful, but at least there were talented people there to help her when she figured it out.
Which special effect from this past season of Game of Thrones was your favorite? Tell us in the comments below.
Images: Rodeo FX/HBO
