Dragons master Game of Thrones reveals the secrets of Daenerys's babies

In the run-up to the last season of Game of Thrones on HBO, almost daily rumors about what will happen to characters like Jon Snow, Cersei Lannister and Arya Stark. But humans are not the only ones having to fight until the end.

The Targaryen Dragons – Drogon, Rhaegal and Viserion, who are now a terrifying ice dragon – will also have a major interest in what is happening.

Few people know dragons better than Sven Martin, visual effects supervisor in Frankfurt, Germany, who has worked on the dragons animation of the international Pixomondo effects company.

Martin's resume includes work on Super 8, Star Trek Into Darkness and The Hunger Games. His work on Game of Thrones earned him two Emmys.

He does not do it alone. The dragon team is made up of 30 to 40 artists, he said. Add to that those who have worked on castles, wights, ships and other elements, and up to 300 artists have been involved. Renowned creator creator Dan Katcher designed the dragons.

Martin had the right training to work with dragons.

"The funny thing is that my movie at the end of the film school was a short film about a dragon father who showed his son how to fight the dragons," Martin told me. "For the short, I had done a lot of research on all types of mythological dragons and I was so well prepared."

The dragons seem real on the screen, but they are all computer generated.

"No puppet or animatronic has ever been used on Game of Thrones," Martin said.

But sometimes a physical part of the dragon has to be built, especially when the actress Emilia Clarke, who plays Daenerys Targaryen, must be seen riding the creatures.

Clarke needs a 3D "dragon" to interact with him, so that mobile platforms or Styrofoam depictions of Drogon's back, the dragon that she rides, were built by L & # 039; 39, special effects team of production, said Martin. A mobile "male", like a flight simulator, was used for flight scenes. In post-production, Martin's team preserves Clarke's images, but replaces these physical dragon substitutes with computer-generated renders of dragons.

These dragons actually have as much foundation as a mythical creature. From the beginning, Martin knew that he wanted to help anchor the Game of Thrones dragons in the real world of science and "not just follow a cool design in itself".

"What makes the Game of Thrones Dragons so special is that they are neither beasts nor monsters, nor characters too agitated," Martin said. "Their general treatment as real live animals with just enough expressions to understand their feelings allows the public to communicate with them in the same way as the emotional connection with pets."

This approach could not have been better suited to a show like Game of Thrones, where everything from dragons to werewolves, to giants like Wun Wun, was created to be as realistic as possible.

"I think that's why so many people can connect to the show (even if they're not), normally fantastic movie fans," Martin said.

He himself had "no idea" of author George RR Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire" book series when he began working on the series in 2011, but he was "thrilled" with the possibility of creating realistic dragons that would be seen interacting with humans. . This level of preparation required extensive research on birds, crocodiles and other prehistoric creatures, who seemed to be close to Drogon and his crew.

"By following the idea of ​​actually melting dragons, we started to build them from the inside to the outside, that is, they are based on a real skeletal structure, with muscles covered with fat and skin, "Martin said. "Based on the initial design and the baby (dragon) pattern of season 1, we've changed the design for birds, knowing that dragons must fly in subsequent episodes." Anatomy of birds and bats led us to increase the thoracic bones and to change the proportions of the body. "

For the dragon's features, the Pixomondo crew searched for lizards, snakes and other reptiles. A supermarket chicken, among other things, helped them understand how the birds' wings stretch and move.

"For the skin color patterns, we went even further, choosing frog or cheetah ideas," said Martin. "Every detail of the dragons has a counterpart in the animal world."

The dragons started as eggs, babies and quickly grew to become the huge creatures the size of an airplane that they are today. The animations also had to change, said Martin.

"In season 3, new design features were implemented to support their new role as Dany Watch Dogs," he said. "Based on the idea of ​​existing collared lizards, dragons have this row of ruffles on their necks, appearing when they are threatening the enemy." This is supported by a sliding upper jaw element. towards the front to better expose the fangs. "

At each new season, the dragons had to be rebuilt as the three creatures grew and changed.

"A single adult dragon chest scale is about the size of the season 2 baby dragon," said Martin.

The artists also had to think about what was happening in the brains of the dragons.

"Although they are especially cute the second season, they become stronger in season 4," he said. "But, like teenagers or teenagers, they are not fully aware of their power and are starting to rebel against their mother."

If you watch the dragons carefully from season to season, you may notice some changes required by the scenario.

Once Daenerys started flying Drogon, other spikes were added to his back to allow him to ride more easily on board.

"Making Dany rise on Drogon's back was actually one of the most difficult tasks, both for design and for animation," Martin said. "It's so big! We did not want to cheat, so we imagined using the wing as a lift and climbing picks as climbing grips. The production team built a special working equipment in sync with our pre-animation to help (actress) Emilia Clarke ride (and ride) on the set. "

Viserion became an ice dragon at the end of season 7. His new look was based on an emaciated version of his frame, combined with the wrinkled skin of the Ice-Eyed Night King, which had been last seen in train Viserion to fight. Wall.

"(Viserion's) skin is more translucent and has (now) an icy color, with thin ice spikes scattered along the edges of the body," noted Martin. "Last but not least, the eyes turned to ice blue, the lighthouse element of rebirth."

Although Martin can not reveal any secrets, look for the dragons to burn during the last season of the series, which he qualifies as "incredible".

"The way in which dragons are used in history and in scenes is very natural – they live in the world of Westeros," Martin said. "I am personally very proud that we can support their growth for so long."

Game of Thrones returns to HBO on April 14th.