Meagan Needles (BA ’11), a former locations and costume
co-ordinator for HBO’s Game of Thrones, describes what it was like to work on the hugely popular fantasy series.
Can you tell us about your journey after graduation from the University of Waterloo to working for HBO’s Game of Thrones?
I wanted to take some time off to travel before getting into the workforce. I spent a few months travelling Europe, eventually taking a position as a nanny in Northern Ireland. The woman I was working for was the costume supervisor for Game of Thrones, and she offered me a position on the show. My role involved ordering materials, supplies and equipment for the costume department for the third season of the show. I was lucky enough to be asked back for the fourth season in the locations department.
What was it like to work internationally and what advice do you have for our alumni thinking about working abroad?
For the most part, I was pretty grounded. It didn’t take long for Ireland to really feel like home. I was lucky enough to go to Morocco in season three, but by switching to the locations department we solely focused on all the outdoor shooting locations in Northern Ireland. So it meant I was stationary for that season and I was able to see some hidden gems.
How has your Waterloo experience helped influence where you are today?
It gave me the confidence to try something completely different and the skill set to succeed in something I had never done before. At the end of the day, the relationships I built in those positions were what helped me get my first and second role on the show. The years I spent at Waterloo made me much more self-assured in my ability to network.
Tell us more about your roles as locations and costume co-ordinator.
Locations co-ordinator is a unique position because most productions are not done on a large enough scale to require this role. I assisted the head of our locations department in finding all the beautiful places you see on the show. The department is asked to explore a country and find its most prominent parts. After prepping, the shoot phase initiates and then we put everything back together to make it look like we were never there. This process can take weeks or months depending on the complexity of the scenes.
In my role with costumes, I was able to see an amazing process come to life: drawings turned into reality and attention to detail was taken to a whole new level. It was an amazing opportunity to work with
such creative minds.
