What did<\/em> attract Marsalis to \u201cThe Pitt\u201d was the opportunity to collaborate with John Wells, the veteran producer behind NBC\u2019s long-running medical drama \u201cER.\u201d <\/em>Wells had joined forces with \u201cER\u201d <\/em>star Noah Wyle and \u201cThe Pitt\u201d <\/em>creator and showrunner R. Scott Gemmill, who worked as a producer on \u201cER.\u201d Set during a grueling shift at a Pittsburgh emergency room\u2014with each installment spanning an hour of the day\u2014the series became a phenomenon earlier this year thanks to its realistic portrayal of the challenges facing the health care community.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Marsalis directed four episodes of the first season, and she\u2019s earned an Emmy nomination for directing the powerful 12th installment, \u201c6:00 P.M.,\u201d in which the hospital is thrown into chaos in the wake of a mass shooting. Here, she discusses the technicality and emotional impact of \u201cThe Pitt,\u201d as well as her transition from photography to filmmaking.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n I think about support and trust. John Wells trusts Scott Gemmill; Scott trusts Noah; Scott and Noah trust me.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n With John, it\u2019s like when somebody uses their powers for good and not evil. It\u2019s a really lovely environment of people who let other people do their jobs, and it\u2019s something I don\u2019t take for granted. In those environments, you just do your best work. It was a really lovely place to call home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The main reason I wanted to do <\/em>\u201cThe Pitt\u201d was because it was with John. I try to say this without sounding like an asshole, but I didn\u2019t think a medical show was for me. And I was incredibly wrong. As soon as I read the script, I understood how amazing it was. I got an ego check like nobody\u2019s business. I\u2019m now nominated for an Emmy. Like, this is a life-changing experience, and thank goodness for that.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n We did something really special. A friend of mine who lives in Denmark texted me a newspaper review of \u201cThe Pitt\u201d and translated it for me. It said \u201ccompetency porn.\u201d It\u2019s a show about a bunch of people who are just trying really hard to do good work, and that\u2019s something that all of us could use right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I can\u2019t imagine a director not being like, \u201cPrep is everything,\u201d because prep is<\/em> everything. If you are not prepared, your whole crew will just smell it and you are chum in the water. I think it\u2019s technical and emotional. To know what we need to feel that day and to know what the point of our scenes are allows us, in the technical prep, whenever something goes wrong, to center ourselves back to: The only thing that matters here is that we feel this. And so if we felt it, then you know we\u2019re OK.<\/p>\n\n\n I knew. In some ways, it was like a wall of violence coming my way. And I knew I didn\u2019t want the episode to be like medical porn. The reason the episode is so good is that it really shows us how horrible and difficult events like this are to the actual humans in them. Prepping it was very technical. There was a lot of, \u201cThis person\u2019s going to move there; this person\u2019s going to come back.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, oh my goodness, all the blood. We had a blood library. And the amount of blood\u2014there\u2019s floor blood, clothing blood, mouth blood, wound blood, artery blood. I should have done a photo book on the blood of <\/em>\u201cThe Pitt.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n I always wanted to be a photographer, from [the time I was] a 13-year-old punk rocker going to shows in people\u2019s basements and all-ages clubs. I started taking pictures because I wanted to have a reason to be there and to participate.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n I went to art school, and I didn\u2019t even know I was going to be a working photographer. I was just like, Wait, I have to pay the bills, so I\u2019d better figure this photography thing out. I had a really wonderful career and traveled the world. Then I got an email one day from Rebecca Walker, whose mother is [writer] Alice Walker. I had photographed Rebecca many years before, and we had stayed friends.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n She was like, \u201cThere are these guys who have a movie called \u2018Echo Park,\u2019 and they\u2019re looking for a director. I thought you would be good. Are you interested?\u201d It wasn\u2019t like I was trying to be a director; I was deeply satisfied with my photography. [But] now, if I wasn\u2019t a director, I don\u2019t know if I would still be alive. I can\u2019t explain my life without it; I\u2019m using all of my brain, and I was not before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Make your own work. Trying to chase something\u2014like, \u201cOh, this is the thing that I think will get me hired\u201d\u2014doesn\u2019t work. But telling your own stories and making your own art and understanding yourself does really well for you. It\u2019s a very hard time right now, but there\u2019s always room for passionate, talented people.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The fashion photographer\u2013turned-director thought medical shows weren\u2019t her thing\u2014until now.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":1719,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1714","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhen you reflect back on the experience of making \u201cThe Pitt,\u201d where does your mind go first?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
What initially drew you to the show?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Do you have a general approach to your preparation for an episode, and was there anything unique about it when it came to this show?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/08\/AM-headshot-Photcred-Sidarth-Kantamneni--683x1024.jpg\")
You\u2019re nominated for directing Episode 12, which follows the hospital staff dealing with the devastation from a mass shooting. From the start, were you aware that this was coming?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
You previously had a career as a successful photographer. But did you always want to be a filmmaker, and what was that transition like for you?\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
What advice would you give to aspiring filmmakers who are also looking to make the jump from whatever field they\u2019re currently in?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n