Miguel Sapochnik
{{short description|English film and television director (born 1974)}}
{{Use British English |date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates |date=July 2016}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Miguel Sapochnik
| image = Miguel Sapochnik by Gage Skidmore.jpg
| caption = Miguel Sapochnik at San Diego Comic-Con in 2016.
| birth_name = Miguel Vicente Rosenberg-Sapochnik
| other_names = Miguel Rosenberg
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1974|7|1}}
| birth_place = Hammersmith, London, England
| death_date =
| death_place =
| alma_mater =
| occupation = {{Plainlist}}
{{endplainlist}}
| years_active = 1996–present
| spouse = {{marriage|Alexis Raben|2006}}
| website =
}}
Miguel Sapochnik (born 1 July 1974) is an English film and television director of Argentine origin, and former storyboard artist. For his work as a director on the HBO epic fantasy series Game of Thrones, he won the award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series at the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series at the 69th Directors Guild of America Awards. Sapochnik also directed the science fiction films Repo Men (2010) and Finch (2021).
Career
Born as Miguel Vicente Rosenberg-Sapochnik in London, England, Sapochnik began his career as a storyboard artist; some of his credits include Trainspotting (1996, directed by Danny Boyle) and The Winter Guest (1997, actor Alan Rickman's directorial debut).{{Cite web |title=Miguel Sapochnik Filmography |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/person/527876/Miguel-Sapochnik/filmography |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130130110642/http://movies.nytimes.com/person/527876/Miguel-Sapochnik/filmography |archive-date=30 January 2013 |access-date=23 August 2012 |website=The New York Times |department=Movies & TV Dept.}}{{Cite web |date=11 March 2010 |title=Exclusive: Repo Men director Miguel Sapochnik |url=http://www.shocktillyoudrop.com/news/14444-exclusive-repo-men-director-miguel-sapochnik |access-date=23 August 2012 |website=Shock Till You Drop}}
In 2000, Sapochnik directed a 2000 short film titled The Dreamer, which he also wrote. He also directed the "Beautiful Inside" music video for singer Louise.{{Cite web |last=Dawtrey |first=Adam |date=15 January 2006 |title=Sapochnik finally in view |url=https://variety.com/2006/film/columns/sapochnik-finally-in-view-1117936124/ |access-date=23 August 2012 |website=Variety}}
Between 2001 and 2005, he was a director of Snowflake in Hell Films Limited, a film and video production company in London.{{Cite web |title=Snowflake in Hell Films Limited |url=https://www.companieslondon.com/uk/04335462/snowflake-in-hell-films-limited |access-date=2 July 2016 |publisher=CompaniesLondon.com}}
Sapochnik's feature film directorial debut was Repo Men (2010), starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker.{{Cite web |last=Rich |first=Katey |date=19 March 2010 |title=Exclusive Interview: Repo Men Director Miguel Sapochnik |url=https://www.cinemablend.com/new/Exclusive-Interview-Repo-Men-Director-Miguel-Sapochnik-17650.html |access-date=13 April 2012 |website=Cinema Blend}}
Sapochnik has since then worked mainly on American television and streaming series, directing episodes of Awake (2012), Fringe (2011–12), House (2011–12) and Mind Games (2014).{{Cite web |title=Miguel Sapochnik Credits |url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/miguel-sapochnik/credits/303421 |access-date=23 August 2012 |website=TV Guide}}
In 2015, Sapochnik directed two episodes of Game of Thrones for the show's fifth season, "The Gift" and "Hardhome." In 2016, he returned to direct the final two episodes of Game of Thrones{{'}} sixth season, "Battle of the Bastards" and "The Winds of Winter".{{Cite news |last=Lincoln |first=Ross A. |date=June 28, 2016 |title='Game Of Thrones': Season 6 Finale Director Miguel Sapochnik On Military Aesthetic, That Score, And Putting His Stamp on the Long-Running Series |work=Deadline |url=https://deadline.com/2016/06/game-of-thrones-season-6-finale-winds-of-winter-director-miguel-sapochnik-hbo-1201779877/ |access-date=January 24, 2021}} All of these episodes received acclaim from both critics and viewers. Sapochnik won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series at the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards, for directing "Battle of the Bastards".
In 2016, Sapochnik directed the series premiere of the show Altered Carbon for Netflix.{{Cite web |last=Wagmeister |first=Elizabeth |date=May 12, 2016 |title=Joel Kinnaman to Star in Netflix Sci-Fi Series 'Altered Carbon' |url=https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/joel-kinnaman-altered-carbon-netflix-1201772819/ |access-date=September 20, 2016 |website=Variety}}
In 2017, he directed an episode of Iron Fist.{{Cite web |last=Robinson |first=Joanna |date=June 29, 2016 |title=The Best Director on Game of Thrones Won't Be Coming Back Next Year |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/06/game-of-thrones-season-7-directors |access-date=September 20, 2016 |website=Vanity Fair}}
In April 2019, he directed the third ("The Long Night") and fifth ("The Bells") episodes of the final season of Game of Thrones.{{Cite web |last=Chitwood |first=Adam |date=December 15, 2017 |title='Justice League' DP Fabian Wagner on Zack Snyder's Cut, Superman's Black Suit & 'Game of Thrones' |url=https://collider.com/justice-league-interview-fabian-wagner-superman-black-suit/#game-of-thrones |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216024149/http://collider.com/justice-league-interview-fabian-wagner-superman-black-suit/#game-of-thrones |archive-date=December 16, 2017 |access-date=December 18, 2017 |website=Collider}} For the former, he was nominated once again for the “Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series”.
In 2022, he was co-showrunner of House of the Dragon, a prequel to Game 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.{{cite web |last1=White |first1=Peter |title='House Of The Dragon' Co-Showrunner Miguel Sapochnik Steps Down Ahead Of Season 2 |url=https://deadline.com/2022/08/house-of-the-dragon-showrunner-miguel-sapochnik-steps-down-season-2-1235104770/ |website=Deadline |access-date=1 September 2022 |date=31 August 2022}}{{cite news |last1=Murray |first1=Tom |title=Game of Thrones alum Miguel Sapochnik steps down as House of the Dragon showrunner |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/miguel-sapochnik-got-episodes-quits-house-of-the-dragon-b2157218.html |access-date=1 September 2022 |work=The Independent |date=1 September 2022 |language=en}}
Personal life
Sapochnik is of Argentine origin, and has been married to actress Alexis Raben since 2006.{{Cite web |title=Miguel Sapochnik |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0764601/bio |access-date=2018-11-19 |website=IMDb}}
He is Jewish.{{Cite news |date=May 7, 2019 |title=Jews in the News: Chuck Lorre, Dave Franco and Billy Crystal |work=Tampa Jewish Community Centers & Federation |url=https://www.jewishtampa.com/jews-in-the-news/jews-in-the-news-chuck-lorre-dave-franco-and-billy-crystal |access-date=January 24, 2021}}
Filmography
Film
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Director ! Executive |
|---|
| 2010
| Repo Men | {{yes}} | {{yes}} |
| 2021
| Finch | {{yes}} | {{yes}} |
Television
| class="wikitable"
! Year !! Show !! Season !! Episode !! Episode title !! Notes |
| rowspan=5 | 2011
| rowspan=3 | House | rowspan=3 | 7 | 9 | "Larger Than Life" | |
| 11
| "Family Practice" | |
| 22
| "After Hours" | |
| Fringe
| 4 | 3 | |
| rowspan=3 | House
| rowspan=3 | 8 | 7 | "Dead & Buried" | |
| rowspan=5 | 2012
| 16 | "Gut Check" | |
| 21
| "Holding On" | |
| Awake
| 1 | 13 | |
| Falling Skies
| 2 | 4 | "Young Bloods" | |
| Fringe
| 5 | 1 | "Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11" | co-directed with Jeannot Szwarc |
| rowspan=4 | 2013
| 1 | 7 | |
| Revolution
| 1 | 12 | "Ghosts" | |
| rowspan=2 | Banshee
| rowspan=2 | 1 | 9 | "Always the Cowboy" | |
| 10
| "A Mixture of Madness" | |
| rowspan=2 | 2014
| 1 | 1 | "Pilot" | |
| Extant
| 1 | 13 | "Ascension" | |
| rowspan=4 | 2015
| rowspan=2 | Game of Thrones | rowspan=2 | 5 | 7 | "The Gift" | |
| 8
| "Hardhome" | |
| Masters of Sex
| 3 | 3 | "The Excitement of Release" | |
| True Detective
| 2 | 6 | "Church in Ruins" | |
| rowspan=2 | 2016
| rowspan=2 | Game of Thrones | rowspan=2 | 6 | 9 | |
| 10
| |
| 2017
| 1 | 4 | "Eight Diagram Dragon Palm" | |
| 2018
| 1 | 1 | "Out of the Past" | |
| rowspan=2 |2019
| rowspan=2 | Game of Thrones | rowspan=2 | 8 | 3 | "The Long Night" | |
| 5
| "The Bells" | |
| rowspan=3 |2022
| rowspan=3 | House of the Dragon | rowspan=3 | 1 | 1 | rowspan=3 | Also showrunner and executive producer |
| 6 |
| 7
| "Driftmark" |
Awards and nominations
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Episode ! Award/Nomination |
|---|
| 2016
|rowspan=2|Game of Thrones | "Battle of the Bastards" | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series |
| 2019
| "The Long Night" | Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series |
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
{{Commons}}
- {{IMDb name|0764601}}
{{DirectorsGuildofAmericaOutstandingDirectingDramaSeries}}
{{EmmyAward DirectingDrama}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sapochnik, Miguel}}
Category:20th-century English Jews
Category:21st-century British Jews
Category:English expatriates in the United States
Category:British storyboard artists
Category:Directors Guild of America Award winners
Category:English music video directors
Category:English people of Argentine descent
Category:English television directors
Category:Film directors from London
Category:People from Hammersmith