The production team behind HBO’s blockbuster “Game of Thrones” will be given the BAFTA Special Award at this year’s British Academy Television Craft Awards.

Hannah Murray and John Bradley from the hit series will collect the award on behalf of the team. BAFTA said the accolade is recognition of the boundaries that have been pushed across all areas of production in the making of the fantasy epic.

Filming is underway on the eighth and final six-episode season of “Game of Thrones,” which will air in 2019. HBO is working on several potential spinoffs.

The award also recognizes the support that “Game of Thrones” has provided for high-end TV production in the U.K., BAFTA said. The show has filmed across various locations in Northern Ireland and set up a production headquarters at Titanic Studios in Belfast, the Northern Irish capital, which has been a base for the series since the pilot.

Speaking on behalf of the production team, executive producers D.B. Weiss and David Benioff said in a statement: “Many, many people work insanely hard to create any film or television show. They are creators every bit as much as actors, writers, producers or directors, and deserve to be recognized as such.”

“The craft behind what is one of the most popular dramas of our time is nothing short of incredible, from the breath-taking location shots to the intricately designed costumes and set pieces, and not forgetting the level of detail from the makeup and prosthetics team, to name a few,” added Krishnendu Majumdar, chair of BAFTA’s television committee. “Huge congratulations to everyone involved.”

The BAFTA Craft Awards take place on April 22 in London. They will be live streamed on YouTube and Twitter. [Source]

Some spoilers for Josie below.

You’d be forgiven for failing to recognize Sophie Turner when she first appears in Josie. She’s blonde, for one, ditching the red hair that she’s famous for as Game of Thrones’s Sansa, she’s sporting multiple tattoos, and she’s got a Southern drawl that places her miles away from Westeros. “This is one of the most transformative roles I think I’ve done so far,” Sophie Turner says of Josie, a young woman who turns a sleepy Southern town on its head when it seems that her relationship with an older man (Dylan McDermott) may be more than just platonic. But don’t let appearances fool you: In Josie, much like in Game of Thrones, nobody’s quite who they say they are. Before the movie’s March 16 release, Vulture caught up with Turner to talk about the ins and outs of learning an accent for the film, method acting, and why she’d love to do a comedy.

Without spoiling anything, I’m curious to know how this movie was pitched to you, because it has so many layers to it. Did they tell you the whole story straight off the bat, or did you read the script first?
I was pretty much sent the script straight away — there was no real pitching. I knew the references that Eric [England], the director, had for me were like Killer Joe and True Romance, so I kind of brushed up on those movies. I read the script, watched the movies, and then I implemented a little bit of Alabama Worley in True Romance into it, and obviously the Killer Joe part.

When I spoke to Eric after I read the script, he wanted it to not even give any real hint of a thriller until the very end. We wanted it to be light and bright, and have Josie be this beacon of fun and laughter and light.

The movie also reminded me a lot of Ellen Page’s Hard Candy, insomuch as it features this young woman who’s really weaponized her sexuality. Was there anything that you were kind of wary of in playing this part, particularly because of how young the character’s supposed to be?
Not really, because that’s kind of the whole point of the character. She has to be young and it has to be questionable. It has to be incredibly intriguing that this young girl is so sure of herself, owning her sexuality and completely independent. That’s the alluring thing about her for [McDermott’s character] Hank. There was really no discussion about aging her up or anything, because it felt like it had to be that. Also, actually, the real Josie — obviously “Josie” is this facade that this girl has put on — I think we discussed that her real age was 21, and pretending to be 17. So it was all part of the plan.

What were the conversations like during filming between you and the director, as well as with Dylan McDermott?
Dylan was in character pretty much from the get-go. He went pretty method, actually. It was really, really interesting to see; I’ve never worked with someone who’d kind of gone method before. But going around to his house and having rehearsal, he would have it set up, like, he would be playing country music, and he would open the door and he would have his boots on, and he would talk in a Southern accent. He was 100 percent committed to the role. We would have rehearsals, and Eric and I would talk about the script, but honestly, that was the most interesting thing for me. He would be in his trailer smoking cigars, listening to country music. It was fascinating. Continue reading  »