Game of Thrones Picks Up Two ASC Award Nominations for Cinematography

When it rains, it pours! Only a day after Game of Thrones snared two Writers Guild Award nominations, the show has been recognized by the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) for its work on season six.  The television nominations for the 31st annual Outstanding Achievement Awards, handed out every year by the ASC, were announced yesterday in Hollywood. Game of Thrones appears twice on the ballot, both nods in the category of “Regular Series for Non-Commercial Television.”

The first nomination is for Anette Haellmigk for “Book of the Stranger,” the fourth episode of this past season. The episode showed off the diversity of the cinematographer’s work, from the mix of light and dark in Margaery and the High Sparrow’s scenes, to the powerful images of Daenerys and her Vaes Dothrak takeover.

The second Thrones nomination is Fabian Wagner for “Battle of the Bastards,” the epic ninth episode that brought us the Battle of Meereen and the Battle for Winterfell in one hour. It’ll be be hard for anyone to top the action cinematography of the battlefield, but it’ll be interesting to watch the nominees duke it out.

Their competition in the category includes John Conroy for Penny Dreadful, (“The Day Tennyson Died”), David M. Dunlap for House of Cards, “Chapter 45,” and Neville Kidd for Outlander, “Prestonpans.”

Both Wagner and Haellmigk have been down this road before, nominated for their GoT cinematography. Last year, Wagner was nominated last year for his work on “Hardhome,” and the two went head to head again in 2014: Haellmigk up for “The Children” and Wagner for “Mockingbird.” They lost to Jonathan Freeman of Boardwalk Empire.

Interestingly enough Freeman won the year before that as well, defeating Haellmigk again. However, in that case, they were both representing Game of Thrones, with Freeman winning for the season three premiere “Valar Dohaeris,” with Haellmigk nominated for “Kissed by Fire.”

Game of Thrones has had a strong presence at the ASC Awards going back to season two, when Kramer Morgenthau won for his work on “The North Remembers,” the season two premiere.

Will Wagner or Haellmigk take it this year? We’ll find out when the winners are revealed on February 4th, 2017, during the official ceremony, held at the Hollywood & Highland Ray Dolby Ballroom. Place your bets, Watchers!