Director Miguel Sapochnik has a distinct memory of his initial briefing with series creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss before Sunday's episode, "Hardhome." "They said, 'You have got lots and lots and lots of small talkie scenes, and then one big monster f**k‑off big action scene at the end.' " Sapochink's initial reaction to the pages? "Uh, bollocks," he says.

Go inside how Sapochnik and crew crafted what Benioff calls "the most intense 15-minute sequence we’ve ever put together."