Matt Shakman explains how he directed the record-setting Loot Train Attack

Matt Shakman’s directorial debut on Game of Thrones was a literal trial by fire. Known for working on lighter fare like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Psych, Shakman was given the gargantuan task of filming Episode 704, “The Spoils of War,” in which Daenerys Targaryen and Drogon rain down fiery hell upon the combined forces of Houses Lannister and Tarly.

“You have actors on horseback next to wagons that are on fire, it really was the perfect storm in terms of danger,” Shakman told awards site Goldderby. But as someone unused to working on this sort of sequence, was Shakman nervous when he first found out what he was in for?

"They make you sign all these NDAs before you get your script. Then they deliver the scripts to you and it’s like Christmas morning. So I’m reading through and I get to the ‘loot train battle.’ I’m flipping page after page after page, and it’s still going on. I began to realize the task that was ahead of me and also the opportunity. As a director, you live for the opportunity to work on that level and that scale. But also you’re bringing this big action sequence to life that has all these wonderful characters that you’ve loved for years coming together for the first time. So it’s unusual that it’s not just about Transformers tearing up a city, but it’s got real heart and emotion at the center of it."

Shakman with the Transformers shade.

Overall, though, it doesn’t sound like Shakman was phased by the challenge of this project. “[Game of Thrones director David Nutter] basically said, ‘You’re about the keys to the best Ferrari you’ll ever drive, and all they want you to do is put the pedal to the medal.’ And I took that to heart, and I tried to dream as big as I could, and the support is there.”

Shakman earned his first Director’s Guild Awards nomination for “The Spoils of War”; the episode has also been submitted for consideration for an Emmy Award for directing. And given that the Loot Train Attack set a record for the most stuntmen ever set on fire (20 at once, 73 total), Shakman may deserve it:

"We didn’t set out to break a record. It sort of just happened. A battle like that, especially when you have a big visual effects dragon, can quickly become something that feels unreal. I wanted it to always feel particularly visceral. People on fire: there’s nothing more visceral than that. It also is one of the most dangerous stunts you can do."

Considering how hard it sounds to light even one performer on fire — with the cooling gel and the breathing tube and the brief window of time available to put them out…yeah, we’re all for Shakman winning the Best Director Emmy. No injures, either.

One of our favorite things about the Loot Train Attack was the way it was told from the perspective of Jaime Lannister and his men, rather than from Daenerys’ perspective. According to Shakman, that was intentional. “[W]e’ve seen Daenerys torch the slavers,” he said. “We’ve been with her in these heroic moments when she was using her dragons to liberate her people. I felt like this was the first time we have a chance to see what it would be like to be on the other side of a dragon attack. To realize how horrific it is.”

"To see what war is like when it changes forever, like when a new weapon is produced. A dragon comes into it and then all of a sudden everything changes forever. I looked a lot at ‘Apocalypse Now,’ where you are down on the ground with these poor villagers as this fire and napalm takes over."

Actually, I always thought that Apocalypse Now battle sequence was told mostly from the perspective of the dragons guys in helicopters, but there are a few moments from the other side:

Although “The Spoils of War” earned the bulk of its accolades for the Loot Train Attack, Shakman had a blast directing the fight between Arya and Brienne. He again had a lot of fun playing with perspective, juggling the different responses that Brienne, Sansa and Littlefinger had to realizing that Arya was a lot deadlier than advertised.

Arya is also his favorite character. “[Arya] is scrappy and fun and smart and the ultimate survivor.” So say we all.

Matt Shakman didn’t direct any episodes for the final season, although he does know “bits and pieces” about what’s coming, not that he’ll give out any details.

Next: Scenes from the Game of Thrones series wrap party

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