How the Crew of 'The Rehearsal' Kept a Straight Face on Set

My favorite TV show I've seen this year is The Rehearsal. Its second season was so bold, so weird, and so engrossing that I looked forward to watching every week, even if I had to take a walk after or watch through my fingers.

That's why I was so excited to sit down with cinematographer Marco Cordero, makeup department head Katie Machaiek, and costume designer Briana Jorgenson to talk about their work on the show and how they could keep a straight face while filming some of the most challenging scenes.

Let's dive in.

NFS: Hi team! The Rehearsal has become quite a cultural phenomenon in its second season. Could you each describe what it has been like to see the show gain such traction week after week?

Katie Machaiek: Hearing reactions to the show has been amazing. When I started working on the project almost a year ago, I don’t think I understood how timely the show would be in 2025. Ever since working on Nathan For You, I knew Nathan, the writers, the producers, and crew were all creative geniuses, so it’s nice to see the fandom break out of Reddit and into mainstream media and pop culture.

Briana Jorgenson: It felt great to see everyone’s hard work and contributions get recognized. I have so much gratitude for the costume team, department heads, and everyone on the crew who came together to help make so much happen. I also loved seeing the fans’ reactions and fan art, especially of the “Sully Family.”

Marco Cordero: It’s been exciting to see so many people engaging with something we worked very hard on. It seems audiences feel compelled to talk about it not just because it’s entertaining but because it moves them in different ways.

NFS: Audiences are familiar with Nathan Fielder’s onscreen persona, but what is he like behind the camera as a director and collaborator?

KM: Nathan’s gears are constantly turning. Being the main character, director, writer, and producer is an incredible challenge. He also has an incredible eye for realism and detail, so the crew always has to bring their A-game. It can be stressful at times trying to make things perfect, but that’s part of what makes the show so good.

MC: It’s a great collaboration because Nathan has really high standards for the quality and integrity of what we’re doing, and so we’re encouraged and expected to do our best work. When you are making something that doesn’t have a guaranteed outcome, so much is riding on the process itself.

BJ: I have worked with Nathan since the fourth season of Nathan for You, so we have developed a level of trust through our collaboration over the years. Because of this history and knowing the show's complex nature, I’ve been able to support that process more effectively.

NFS: Katie – your work on S2E3 “Pilot’s Code” is both detailed and hilarious. What was your favorite part of the episode’s Sully transformation?

KM: I mean, the reveal is such an amazing shot. It really lets the audience know we’ve taken a sharp left turn into surrealism. We had to put a bald cap on Nathan for every age he played Sully to hide his natural hairline under the wigs. It was a lot of fun to play with time periods and create characters in a “play within a play.” Mara Rouse was my key and did an amazing job helping me with the Sully character, and I was very lucky to have several artists come and help on this episode: Rocky Calderon, Erin Walters, and Laura Peyer.

Katie MachaiekCourtesy of Katie Machaiek

NFS: What is the collaboration like between each of you as department heads?

MC: I think it starts with our individual investment in the ambitious challenges of the season and knowing that the stakes are just as high for the other departments. We support each other and problem-solve together.

BJ: Some of us had worked together since Nathan For You, so it was nice to work with familiar faces again. We were all continually having dialogue with one another to ensure we were all on the same page, as things evolve rapidly on the show. Katie might hear something in the makeup chair, Marco might hear something at a location scout, and I might hear something in a fitting, so it's good to share knowledge.

KM: There is a ton of collaboration between hair, makeup, and wardrobe. Usually, our job on the show is to be unnoticeable, so it was a lot of fun to stretch our legs with “Pilot’s Code” and the ‘Wings of Voice’ finale. I lived and worked in a hotel in Arkansas for a month with Briana for Nathan For You’s series finale “Finding Frances,” so we understand each other’s process and style. Becca Weber, the hair department head, and I would often go to fittings or receive images from Briana and we would work together to create looks for the tertiary characters. The 90s looks from the Sully episode are some of my favorites we created. There are also amazing hair, makeup, and costume looks in the ‘Wings of Voice’ medley that only appear for a few seconds. Definitely go back and check it out!

Briana JorgensonCourtesy of Briana Jorgenson

NFS: Briana – So much of The Rehearsal relies on completely accurate replications of real-life people and places. How do you approach the costume design for the show with such extreme attention to detail in mind?

BJ: The costume team and I did extensive research. There was a giant wall of research photos in our office. We also made exact replicas of insignia, patches, and uniforms of anything we couldn’t find – this was anything from Sully’s US Airways tie to Panda Express uniforms to insignia worn in the Bangla flight in 2018.

NFS: You each boast impressive backgrounds in comedy storytelling, both within Nathan’s sphere and beyond. Can you recall a particular credit or experience that uniquely prepared you for the demands of a show like The Rehearsal?

KM: As I mentioned before, having worked with Nathan on one episode of The Rehearsal last season and season 4 of Nathan For You, I understood Nathan’s process. I grew up in Maine doing a lot of theatre, went to film school in Boston at Emerson, and then Cinema Makeup School when I moved to Los Angeles. I started my career working at theme parks, mostly Grinchmas at Universal Studios. I learned how to do technical makeups in a fast-paced environment. I was featured as a contestant on season 4 of the FX makeup show Face Off, which was another stressful and creative, fast-paced environment. Since then, I joined the Local 706 makeup union and worked on a lot of different television sets. Having my makeup knowledge, history with Nathan and the crew, being able to handle pressure, to go with the flow, and getting stuff done fast, I don’t think there was a better candidate for the job. [laughs]

BJ: Every project I do gives me some sort of informative experience, but I’d say the last episode of season 4 of Nathan for You called “Finding Frances” had a similar way of storytelling and is a bit “unconventional” compared to the other episodes within the series. We were a small costume team on the show, and keeping track of wardrobe continuity while filming in multiple states and over a span of time was a necessary experience to do The Rehearsal. I’ve also got my jumpstart in costuming several seasons of sketch comedies, so it helps with a wide variety of costuming.

MC: I don’t think I can point to any particular project or experience that prepared me, because The Rehearsal writes its own rules from scratch for the most part. I think one of the things that has helped my work on The Rehearsal is refining my approach to lighting and blocking in order to allow for maximum freedom. We have multiple cameras, we rarely adhere to marks, and our takes are often an hour long. We move throughout a space mostly in an improvised fashion, like a documentary. So I try to stay within a single lighting setup for an entire set/location that is flexible enough to allow for any possible blocking or framing without setup changes. This not only maximizes shooting time but also protects the experience of everyone participating on camera from interruptions or distractions. I’ve also come to appreciate the value of leaning into the rawness or inconvenience of the light sometimes, as something that lends further credibility to what we’re doing because we didn’t exert total control over it.

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NFS: Marco – Can you tell us about the equipment and cameras you used on the show?

MC: We use many different types of cameras and consumer devices like phones. For our primary cameras, we used the Alexa Mini LF, and as our primary lenses, the Canon 15-120 and 25-250. We mix up those lenses between the multiple camera bodies, and sometimes an AC will hand the operator a different camera that has a different lens on it because it’s faster than changing the lens. Inside the Boeing 737, we had over 30 small cameras. The smallest type was the Sony RX0II with a modification to accept tiny C-mount lenses. We made our own fan housings for the smallest cameras to keep them from overheating, and mounts to rig cameras and run cables inside the cabin. None of that particular hardware existed for this type of application, so we created it.

NFS: Do you have any upcoming projects you can tell us about?

KM: I am currently day playing on a couple of different shows in Los Angeles, hoping to find my next big project soon!

BJ: Yes! I costume designed a comedic silent short starring and directed by Sandy Honig that will come out this summer.

MC: Nothing I can talk about yet, but I am looking forward to what lies ahead!