When production designer Nina Ruscio returned to the set of “The Pitt” for Season 2, she made subtle changes that weren’t necessarily visible to the audience, but for the cast and crew, they played a major role in making the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center feel larger, more immersive and more alive. The set now spans over 24,000 square feet and introduces several new locations, including the karaoke bar, the wing where Frank Langdon checks on one of his patients and the parking garage. And with practical lighting embedded throughout the set, the cast and crew had greater freedom to move throughout the space.
Following the success of Season 1, Ruscio entered the sophomore season determined to expand the triage without altering its now-familiar look. One of the most evident changes was building beyond the fire lane where ambulances drop off high-priority patients so the hospital wouldn’t feel confined. The HBO series was the most nominated show of the year at 25 nominations, with Ruscio earning a nomination for Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program for episode 15.
Ruscio believes the season finale stood out because it highlighted the evolution of the hospital while expanding the show’s world. It showcased the additions and extensions, and there are a handful of sets that opened up the perspective a bit more,” she says. Each new location was designed with a careful attention to detail.
Lighting effects mimicked the glow of neon lights spilling into the karaoke bar, and “moments of release” were created via the rooftop when staff gathers to watch the Fourth of July fireworks, which was filmed at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh. Ruscio wanted to make the emergency department feel alive. The emergency department has an energy and a dynamic to it that’s as a supporting character almost for the whole show,” Ruscio says.
This philosophy extended to even the briefest moments. Frank Langdon’s (Patrick Ball) supervised drug test lasts just 46 seconds in the 54-minute finale, but the bathroom was intentionally designed to contrast the open, sterile feel of the emergency department. Dark-paneled walls and a small space highlighted the intimacy and Langdon’s unease of having another doctor watch him provide his urine sample.
Baran Al-Hashimi (Sepideh Moafi) returning to her car after her shift received just over a minute of screen time, but it showcased her against the backdrop of Pittsburgh sitting alone in her “sad, little car,” physically unable to drive away from the trauma of the day. By the time viewers reach hour 15, the staff has spent an entire shift navigating a cyberattack that forces the emergency department to abandon digital systems, a nonstop influx of Fourth of July emergencies and an abandoned baby. To demonstrate that chaos, there “was crap everywhere,” with papers and folders scattered to reflect the emotional clutter the doctors were experiencing.
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