Bernadette Caulfield - The Unsung Woman Behind 'Game of Thrones'

We know all about the badass female leads in the revolutionary male-dominated shows, but HBO’s Game of Thrones (GoT) is a trendsetter. While fans are mostly rooting for Emilia Clarke, Sophie Turner,  Arya Stark and Lena Headey, however, Game of Thrones wouldn't have been possible without Bernadette Caulfield sharp execution. Bernadette is the executive producer of the show. Yes, she isn’t as familiar a face to fans but it's time we get to know her better.

Thanking Caulfield for her tireless work throughout the years, the creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss said, “We only made it this far because of Bernadette Caulfield, the greatest producer alive,” NY Times reported.

“Caulfield’s the beating heart of our show,” Emilia Clarke said.

The much awaited last season premieres on April 14, 2019. George RR Martin’s fantasy tale only gets more interesting from here because of the plot twist between the mother of dragons and our very own Jon Snow (or should I say a better claimant to the Iron Throne).

“Caulfield, the woman who I want to grow up to be like,” Sophie Turner said.

Over its eight seasons, it used nearly 13,000 extras in Northern Ireland alone, and among the film crews only one woman deserves the credit - Caulfield.

“Caulfield, the true Mother of Dragons,” Lena Headey said.

“Without her, the whole thing would have collapsed under its own weight long ago,” Benioff and Weiss said.

“The single best thing that ever happened to the show,” Benioff claimed.

“Well, I wish I was that important,” Caulfield said who is working on Joss Whedon’s new series “The Nevers” for HBO. “But obviously it takes a major team to put it together,” she added.

“My job is to make whatever they write on the page come to the screen,” Caulfield said.

Caulfield's team consists the producer Chris Newman, and the show’s production designer, Deborah Riley, to oversee all aspects of the production. For Caulfield, however, the task was relatively straightforward. “My job is to make whatever they write on the page come to the screen,” she said.

READ: Five Web Series Characters Who Overturn The Feminine Trope

Caulfield hails from New York and went to high school in Rochester, where she also worked in the local theatre. In 1981, she signed on as a production assistant for a movie in the area. She was instantly hooked and moved to Los Angeles within a year. She has worked with Steven Bochco (on Brooklyn South and Philly), Michael Mann (Robbery Homicide Division) and Ridley and Tony Scott (The Good Wife) in Hollywood.

She then got an opportunity to work on multiple-unit chops as a producer on The X-Files and then later on the HBO polygamy drama Big Love. She then joined Game of Thrones, replacing the outgoing producer Mark Huffam.

“There are so many versions of ‘Game of Thrones’ that would have fallen apart under the strain of producing 10 increasingly big hours of television on a 12-month schedule. Pretty much every version except the Bernie version,” Benioff and Weiss said.

Feature Image Credit:  HBO

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