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Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar may have proved somewhat divisive among audiences when it arrived early last month, but the general consensus was that the director’s cerebral sci-fi still served up some of the most awe-inspiring scenes of the year. It’s a feat that can largely be attributed to cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema’s astute eye and Nolan’s penchant for practical effects.

And in a new featurette released via Yahoo Movies, the esteemed director dissects one of the film’s best sequences: the arrival of the crew on Miller’s planet. Those of you who have seen Interstellar will know that this is the first planet that the Endurance crew visit in their search for a hospitable world, though things soon turn awry when McConaughey and co. realize that the entire surface is blanketed in shallow water roiled by towering, mountain-sized waves.

In the clip above, Nolan reveals how he effectively created the alien world. By filming in Iceland, the director and his crew were able to transport the spaceship itself to the country and capture it landing in the shallow water without the need for CGI wizardry. Moreover, the director touches upon how the team built the sets more like simulator rides, enabling the actors to recreate the motions of breaking through a planet’s atmosphere and landing relatively safely as accurately as possible.

It’s a fascinating look behind the scenes of what is, arguably, Nolan’s most audacious and high concept film to date. Whether you loved or loathed it, there’s no doubting that Interstellar pushed the envelope in terms of visual and indeed practical effects — there aren’t many studios that would greenlight the building of a full-size spacecraft, after all — and it’s nice to learn more about the director’s modus operandi. Now all we need is a similar anatomy of the scene for the film’s docking sequence.