Shooting mud, fog and firelight in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

DOP Gustav Danielsson, FSF on shooting HBO's A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms with naturalistic firelight, practical battlefield fog, and in-camera POV shots

Podcast highlights include:

-How Gustav and director Owen Harris planned the show's night time, fire-light-driven look. -Beginning their shoot day at dusk to catch the natural blue hour light in the wide shots before moving into closer setups. -Pulling off the massive dueling tournament in Episode 5, using practical fog and mud to set the mood. -The sinister gray mist was chosen as a practical solution to use fewer extras, and added to the atmosphere of dread as it obscured the combatants. As for the mud, it looked great, but the production team had to adjust as it quickly became hard as concrete when it dried. -Using a Ronin 4D rigged to an operator's chest for the helmet POV shots. Rather than adding digital effects, the second unit shot the visceral mace-impact perspective entirely in-camera. -Shooting the flashback sequences on a Panavision’s T-Series Anamorphic lenses to distinguish it from the present-day story without adjusting the color grade.

Find Gustav Danielsson: https://gustavdanielsson.com/ Instagram: @gustavdanielssson

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is currently streaming on HBO.

SHOW RUNDOWN: 02:39 Close Focus 10:44-01:04:42 Gustav Danielsson Interview 01:05:10 Short Ends 01:14:26 Credits

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