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It’s the big set-piece battles which help give The Hollow Crown its authenticity. You can almost smell the tired and wet actors, heavy armour and blood-spattered fields...

These are all in a day's work for Stunt Co-ordinator Andreas Petrides. We caught up with him to find out more about the background to the battle scenes and how he got into this line of work.

Working on stunts and battle scenes must be hard work for the actors - do they complain?

Artists are often surprised at how heavy the armour and weapons can be.

Andreas Petrides

t​hink what it was like for the real warriors!​ with no trailers and tea on standby!

When they get tired and drained during battle scenes, I always say "t​hink what it was like for the real warriors!​ with no trailers and tea on standby!"

When actors ask "w​hy do we have to do another take?” ​I always say "Because you can do it better,​ can't you !" – and they always agree!

How did you battle time pressures?

Teaching fight routines and moves to actors takes time. I have to get them looking like battle-hardened, experienced warriors in a sometimes a very short amount of time, so the pressure can be tough on the artists and myself. ​

Benedict and Luke [Treadaway] have a theatre background where they’ve learned stage combat.

Screen combat’s a little different. We need to make everything work for the camera. We need to work on that realism. The energy and aggression to make it work for the camera.

How do you train the artists?

I break the training down to 3 phases: ​

1: Teach the fight movements and techniques

2: Demonstrate and teach the fight routine

3: Work with the artists on the character style and realism

Routines and moves for the actors take time and we don’t have a great deal of time filming, so it’s been very full on. The actors have to learn the moves they’re going to do, then they have to learn the dance, then perfect it and make it look real.

The fights and battle training was extremely full-on - in cold, raining weather, up to your knees in mud and waist height in rivers! It can be exhausting for everyone involved, from the main actors and stunt performers through to skilled supporting artists.

How does the live action work alongside CGI?

A lot of the scenes will have CGI arrows. A line of soldiers runs towards another line of soldiers, firing crossbows. They will release the mechanism but there will be no arrow or bolt in the weapon, and the CGI will make them hit the guys on the other side, and they will fall and react.

"A horse! A horse!..."

Horses are unpredictable and do their own thing! They’re working in close proximity to a lot of extras and a lot of artists. With a horse fall, it’s simulating that it has been hit by an arrow. The arrow going into the horse is done by CGI. The rider, who is trained, will ride the horse over and land it on a bed that has been dug out and set in a pre-set area.

How many actors make up a battle stunt?

This can vary dramatically, dependent on budget, time-scale and requirements, but on The Hollow Crown: War of the Roses we had 10 - 12 principle ​actors fighting at once​ during the main battle clash sequences, about 20 stunt performers and over 100 skilled supporting artists.

Organising and designing the battles with this many people was challenging, but using real people instead of CGI effects always makes battle sequences more realistic.

You get a sense of satisfaction when you watch back rushes and see that it all works because the entire department has put their time in. My side is making the action look real and authentic, with minimal accidents, because accidents can happen. If everyone is trained and knows what they’re doing, we can control that. It’s great to go home with no injuries – perfect.

Unlike feature films, ​I didn't have the luxury of weeks ​/months of rehearsal time. That's why it was imperative that we had teams of stunt performers and skilled supporting artists who are trained in screen combat. Having all been trained in the British Action Academy's Warrior Masterclass screen combat course, it prepares performers in how to fight for screen. Having an entire battlefield with trained artists is a blessing for stunt co-ordinators and a necessity for Production. It minimises training/rehearsal time and Production have the guarantee of performers who are safe and competent in their action.

Bloody battles?!

I don’t know how many pints of (fake) blood were spilled, but the SFX team were there​ all the time with blood guns spraying constantly ​in between takes.​ They were also busy filling the battlefield with limbs and ​decapitated ​heads​. Even though the blood and limbs are fake, they can look terrifyingly real!

​We use lightweight materials for weapons and armour so they are lighter than the real armour and weapons these warriors used to wear. That being said, the armour can still be heavy and cumbersome and the weapons can still weigh a lot and can cause damage! You can easily lose a finger get your head split open with prop weapons, that's why using trained performers and having rehearsals is essential!

Upping the ante for The Wars of the Roses...

I think the main thing for me in creating the action for the battle sequences on the Hollow Crown II was the limited time I had for rehearsals and to train the actors. As I had worked on the earlier Hollow Crown series,​ I knew that the Producers wanted the action to be bigger and better than before, which was achieved!

What was your biggest challenge on The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses?

The most difficult sequence to set up was the battle clash in the wood for the Tewkesbury battle. We needed to have most of the fighting cast seen and involved, with around 20 stunt performers​, 20-30 horses, 100 ​skilled supporting artists ​and lots of camera crew, ​running at each other on two side​s and clashing in the middle in a very small enclosed wooded area. Scenes like that take a lot of planning and preparation to ensure no one gets hurt.

We sometimes shot full on for up to 5 minutes a take so it can get exhausting for everyone involved! Th​ose scenes​ are challenging but, for me, the best part of my job!