The Cinematography Podcast Episode 307: Johanna Coelho
As the cinematographer of all 15 episodes of The Pitt, Johanna Coelho helped create a fresh take on the medical genre’s visual style. Executive producer John Wells wanted a feeling of constant urgency and realism to the hospital drama. They chose to treat The Pitt as if it were live theater, meticulously choreographing and blocking every action and movement within the bustling emergency room setting.
Most of the episodes of The Pitt were shot in order, which helped with continuity on set. Johanna used the scripts as her blueprint, which carefully detailed character positioning in the background and clearly indicated the point of view for each scene. Her shot lists were fluid, evolving organically from the actors’ movements within the space. This approach gave the camera operators remarkable freedom to follow the kinetic energy of gurneys and operating tables as they navigated the ER. The set was entirely open, with few places for the camera people to hide, so the entire crew wore scrubs to blend in. “Because of the way it’s shot, the way everyone moves, we do no marks on the set,” says Johanna. “There’s no marks, there’s no lighting on the ground. It’s a 360 set completely.” This required flexibility from the crew to embrace the spontaneous adjustments made by both the actors and the camera team, only doing additional takes when absolutely necessary.
With an open set, Johanna and the electrical team had to get creative with their lighting strategy. The lighting was all integrated into the ceiling and run through a dimmer board. Absolutely no stands, flags, or fill lights were on the floor of the set. The gaffer created custom lighting that could be attached to the matte box on the camera and the occasional fill light was handheld on a pole. Cameras were entirely hand held, using a ZeeGee camera rig on a Steadicam arm, enhancing the sense of immediacy. As a result, the actors and crew never had to wait around for lighting or camera setups, which enabled them to shoot at a fast pace, about 9-10 pages per day. “We shoot extremely fast,” explains Johanna. “We come in at call time, we do the blocking and then we’re ready to shoot, because the lighting is integrated. It’s happening so fast, and we know the space so well. It’s mostly the same pace and space all the time.”
The immersive world of The Pitt was primarily constructed on a stage at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, with select exterior shots filmed on location in Pittsburgh. The production heavily relied on practical effects, employing detailed prosthetics and makeup captured in close-up to amplify the raw and visceral feeling of working in a high-stakes emergency room. “When I read the scripts, I felt it was clear you needed to be immersed in the middle of it,” says Johanna. “It’s an experience for the audience, but it was also an experience for the crew shooting it. We were really inside that bubble, inside that ER set with the cast and crew.”
You can see The Pitt on Max
Find Johanna Coelho: Instagram @johanna_coelho
CAMERAS: ARRI Alexa Mini LF, shooting Open Gate ProRes 4444 XQ finished in 4K.
LENSES: Angénieux Optimo Prime and Angénieux Ultra Compact Zoom lens.
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT: ZeeGee camera rigs on top of a Steadicam arm.
Close focus: Some highlights from NAB Las Vegas. Overall, attendance was down, probably due to the uncertainty of tariffs and higher customs and immigration controls.
- Live Cinepod interviews with Alice Brooks and Adam Bricker
- New innovations from Strada and DaVinci Resolve
- New Laowa Probe Zoom lenses
- New lighting products from Aputure and others
- A new cloud service called Lucidlink, which allows teams to access footage simultaneously across the world.
- NAB Product of the Year awards
Ben’s short end: Adobe Premiere has a new update, which includes Generative Extend that can extend a shot, media intelligence which allows your footage to be searchable, easy captions translation, and more.
Illya’s short end: Andor Season 2 begins on April 22 on Disney+.
Sponsored by Hot Rod Cameras
Check out the new Betty Luminous Reflector at Hot Rod Cameras! The Betty Luminous is a full-spectrum light reflector designed to beautifully flatter human skin. Its fresnel-like directionality provides focused illumination while its gentle Gaussian falloff ensures a soft, natural look.
Sponsored by Laowa by Venus Optics: Laowa’s Wide Angle VV Cine Series lenses provide zero distortion wide angle lenses, even covering full-frame and VistaVision sensors. You can find them at Hot Rod Cameras.
Sponsored by Greentree Creative: If you enjoy The Cinematography Podcast and you’re interested in growing or starting your own podcast, contact Alana Kode at Greentree Creative. Greentree Creative can help you with all of your digital marketing needs including podcast launch and creation, advertising, social media management and content creation.
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Podcast Credits:
Producer: Alana Kode
All web and social media content written by Alana Kode
Host and editor in Chief: Illya Friedman
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Host: Ben Rock
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Instagram: @bejamin_rock
Editor: Charlie Nix
Composer: Kays Al-Atrakchi
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