Game of Thrones Extract Essay

The author of Game Of Thrones had a vision of creating a medieval world where iron and steel are the measures of a man, but gold and the banks are what runs the world. The author creates a believable world by creating impressive structures and including flawless logic in the creation of systems. While I have not personally seen Game of Thrones, by viewing the five-minute extract, all of these facts are apparent.  In this extract, there are a total of two main scenes, one on a boat and one in a “bank.”

              The the extract starts out with a ship (prop) sailing on a blue background of water. We are viewing this from a god’s eye view. In the background, we can hear the diegetic sound of seagulls and the ominous music of the soundtrack. As the scene progresses, we get a two-person medium close up shot of two main characters. They are dressed in old fashion cloaks and look angry. As the camera moves away, we are exposed to the whole of the ship, as well as the giant sculpture of a warrior “protecting” a great city. The lighting is bright, and the rays are linear. The only editing taking place in this scene is an action match, and later a jump cut. Overall, the world is genuine and can’t be distinguished from the real world.

              The next the scene begins with the two main characters standing in a dark room in Infront of a blindingly bright window. The camera angle is now medium two people. The soundtrack is gone, and there is a defining silence. As the scene progresses, there is a pan exposing us to the rest of the great hall.  On one side, there is light, and the other is darkness. As the scene continues, we are given an insight into the main plot of the excerpt, the king wants to fund, but he is a bad bet. We are introduced to another character/ system in this next part of the scene. This is, of course, the famous iron bank of Bravos. We are introduced to three of its representatives in the form of a long shot from the side. As the discussion continues, we come to realize that this bank is very much like any bank: smart and cold. As the conversation progresses, the editing is in the form of a shot-reverse shot for two minutes. Then the extract ends.

              I am right about the director’s vision because of the clearly extreme amount of effort it would take to create just these two scenes. As we move through this world, everything is as we would expect, and even knowing that is just a show, we can hardly tell.  First off, the lighting is different everywhere, especially in the bank. In the first scene, the world is bright and full of life and wonders, and as a result, sunny and warm. However, as we move closer to the discussion of war, the lighting gets progressively darker, something that often is a result of our subconscious. Additionally, the acting, as well as the camera angles, combine to create a real-world with conflicting emotions. This all adds up to a seamless world, which would not have been created without and an extremely frustratingly large amount of work involved.