Miguel Sapochnik | |
|---|---|
 Miguel Sapochnik atSan Diego Comic-Con in 2016. | |
| Born | Miguel Vicente Rosenberg-Sapochnik (1974-07-01)1 July 1974 (age 50) |
| Other names | Miguel Rosenberg |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Spouse | |
Miguel Sapochnik (born 1 July 1974) is an Englishfilm andtelevision director of Argentine origin, and formerstoryboard artist. For his work as a director on theHBOepic fantasy seriesGame of Thrones, he won the award forOutstanding Directing for a Drama Series at the68th Primetime Emmy Awards andDirectors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series at the69th Directors Guild of America Awards.[1] Sapochnik also directed the science fiction filmsRepo Men (2010) andFinch (2021).
Born asMiguel Vicente Rosenberg-Sapochnik inLondon,England, Sapochnik began his career as astoryboard artist; some of his credits includeTrainspotting (1996, directed byDanny Boyle) andThe Winter Guest (1997, actorAlan Rickman's directorial debut).[2][3]
In 2000, Sapochnik directed a 2000 short film titledThe Dreamer, which he also wrote. He also directed the "Beautiful Inside" music video for singerLouise.[4]
Between 2001 and 2005, he was a director of Snowflake in Hell Films Limited, a film and video production company in London.[5]
Sapochnik's feature film directorial debut wasRepo Men (2010), starringJude Law andForest Whitaker.[1]
Sapochnik has since then worked mainly on American television and streaming series, directing episodes ofAwake (2012),Fringe (2011–12),House (2011–12) andMind Games (2014).[6]
In 2015, Sapochnik directed two episodes ofGame of Thrones for the show'sfifth season, "The Gift" and "Hardhome." In 2016, he returned to direct the final two episodes ofGame of Thrones'sixth season, "Battle of the Bastards" and "The Winds of Winter".[7] All of these episodes received acclaim from both critics and viewers. Sapochnik won thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series at the68th Primetime Emmy Awards, for directing "Battle of the Bastards".
In 2016, Sapochnik directed the series premiere of the showAltered Carbon forNetflix.[8]
In 2017, he directed an episode ofIron Fist.[9]
In April 2019, he directed the third ("The Long Night") and fifth ("The Bells") episodes of thefinal season ofGame of Thrones.[10] For the former, he was nominated once again for the “Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series”.
In 2022, he wasco-showrunner ofHouse of the Dragon, a prequel toGame of Thrones. The first season premiered on August 21, 2022. In August 2022, it was announced that he would be stepping down as showrunner after the first season, though he will remain as an executive producer for future seasons.[11][12]
Sapochnik is of Argentine origin, and has been married to actress Alexis Raben since 2006.[13]
Film
| Year | Title | Director | Executive Producer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Repo Men | Yes | Yes |
| 2021 | Finch | Yes | Yes |
Television
| Year | Show | Season | Episode | Episode title | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | House | 7 | 9 | "Larger Than Life" | |
| 11 | "Family Practice" | ||||
| 22 | "After Hours" | ||||
| Fringe | 4 | 3 | "Alone in the World" | ||
| House | 8 | 7 | "Dead & Buried" | ||
| 2012 | 16 | "Gut Check" | |||
| 21 | "Holding On" | ||||
| Awake | 1 | 13 | "Turtles All the Way Down" | ||
| Falling Skies | 2 | 4 | "Young Bloods" | ||
| Fringe | 5 | 1 | "Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11" | co-directed withJeannot Szwarc | |
| 2013 | Under the Dome | 1 | 7 | "Imperfect Circles" | |
| Revolution | 1 | 12 | "Ghosts" | ||
| Banshee | 1 | 9 | "Always the Cowboy" | ||
| 10 | "A Mixture of Madness" | ||||
| 2014 | Mind Games | 1 | 1 | "Pilot" | |
| Extant | 1 | 13 | "Ascension" | ||
| 2015 | Game of Thrones | 5 | 7 | "The Gift" | |
| 8 | "Hardhome" | ||||
| Masters of Sex | 3 | 3 | "The Excitement of Release" | ||
| True Detective | 2 | 6 | "Church in Ruins" | ||
| 2016 | Game of Thrones | 6 | 9 | "Battle of the Bastards" | |
| 10 | "The Winds of Winter" | ||||
| 2017 | Iron Fist | 1 | 4 | "Eight Diagram Dragon Palm" | |
| 2018 | Altered Carbon | 1 | 1 | "Out of the Past" | |
| 2019 | Game of Thrones | 8 | 3 | "The Long Night" | |
| 5 | "The Bells" | ||||
| 2022 | House of the Dragon | 1 | 1 | "The Heirs of the Dragon" | Also showrunner and executive producer |
| 6 | "The Princess and the Queen" | ||||
| 7 | "Driftmark" |
| Year | Title | Episode | Award/Nomination |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Game of Thrones | "Battle of the Bastards" | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series Nominated—Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form |
| 2019 | "The Long Night" | Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series Nominated—Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series |
| International | |
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| Academics | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
