The day I was invited to Titanic Studios to meet David Benioff and Dan Weiss, creators of Game of Thrones, nerves were high, and little did I know, this meeting would lead to a pivotal moment in my career. We were unaware of how iconic the series would become at the time.
As a home economist, I’m no stranger to exciting offers, but the details are usually vague initially, and I often commit to jobs without knowing precisely what’s involved. However, the challenge that awaited me was far from ordinary.
A few days after receiving the initial offer, Gordon, the prop master, called me. He asked if I could pop into his office, which I had expected, but I didn’t anticipate the whole nature of his request. We had to create a raw stallion’s heart for a ritual scene in Game of Thrones, where Daenerys Targaryen, the Khaleesi, consumed the whole heart as part of a Dothraki ceremony. Initially, I assumed this task would fall to the prop-making department, but Gordon asked how I would approach making the heart, and panic began to set in. With only minutes to prepare before meeting Benioff and Weiss, I was thrust into a high-pressure situation.
I have to level with you – I had yet to do my research when I sat down with the creators. I was familiar with the scripts, having read all ten, but I had no in-depth knowledge of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series or the worldwide following of the show. The writers quickly shifted the conversation to the heart. They wanted it to look “realistic” — they wanted the audience to feel sick when they saw it. David and Dan’s enthusiasm was palpable, and while their passion amused me, I started to get a clearer picture of the gravity of the task.
Despite my growing confidence in the idea, I could sense Gordon’s anxiety. He tried subtly calming me down, pinching my knee under the desk and glaring – telepathically telling me to shut up as I continued to rattle on excitedly about how I would tackle it. As we left the meeting, Gordon was still visibly stressed, warning me that I needed to deliver. But I remained calm, assuring him everything would be fine, as a bead of sweat left the nape of my neck.
Over the next month, I worked with the prop team to create thirty stallion hearts. We used all but two of them during the intense two-day shoot. Emilia Clarke, playing Daenerys, delivered a stunning performance, making the scene unforgettable.
Finally, to clear up any confusion from a YouTube interview with Benioff and Weiss, I can confidently say that no gummy bears were harmed in making that iconic heart. Despite the challenges, the project was a success. We got the shot, and the scene remains one of the most memorable in the series.
