At Deadline’s The Contenders Emmys event last month, the main cast and creator of AT&T’s Audience Network drama series Kingdom gathered to tell a packed crowd of TV Academy and Emmy voters how they manage to blend sometimes very personal family tragedy and drama with an authentic look at the world of mixed martial arts.

Now going into its third and final season, executive producer/creator Byron Balasco and stars Frank Grillo, Jonathan Tucker, Matt Lauria, Joanna Going and Kiele Sanchez took to the DGA theater stage to explain how they pull off a show that demands so much — physically and emotionally. Balasco also talks about incorporating real MMA fighters into the process, the rigors of having trained actors who can look realistic in this kind of series, and the reasons behind his wanting to make it in the first place.

Check out our conversation above.