Saturday Night Live editors Christopher Salerno and Mak Makower are celebrating Emmy recognition for their work on “MAHAspital (The New Pitt),” the Harry Styles-led sketch nominated for Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming (Segment).
For Salerno, the nomination follows his 2025 Emmy win for SNL50: The Anniversary Special. For Makower, it marks a first Emmy nomination after seven seasons on the SNL editing team.
“MAHAspital” presented the pair with a particularly tricky editorial challenge: taking the visual language of HBO’s The Pitt, known for extended takes, minimal cutting and a near-total absence of non-diegetic music, and transforming it into a fast-moving comedy trailer without losing the grounded tension that makes the original series work.
The entire process unfolded on SNL’s famously compressed schedule. Production began Friday morning, with footage reaching editorial around noon while filming was still underway. Makower led the assistant editorial team through the rapid ingest and organization of incoming footage, allowing Salerno and Makower to begin cutting almost immediately and continue through Friday night into Saturday.
From there, the editors worked alongside director Christopher Werner, the writers, producers and cast through dress rehearsal, making final changes based on the live audience response before the sketch aired during Saturday night’s broadcast.
The result was a tightly calibrated parody that gradually escalated from convincing medical drama into increasingly absurd “Make America Healthy Again” treatments, and found a huge audience online. The official SNL Instagram cutdown has since surpassed 30 million views, making it one of the season’s most-viewed sketches on the platform. Watch below:
Reel 360 spoke with Salerno and Makower about the nomination, the intense Friday-to-air workflow, preserving The Pitt’s dramatic language, editing for both horizontal and vertical formats, and what it takes to finish a sketch under one of television’s most unforgiving deadlines.
Congratulations on the Emmy nomination. Where were each of you when you learned that “MAHAspital” had been nominated, and what does this recognition mean to you personally and professionally?
Mak: When I found out about the nomination, I was actually on the phone with my mom. I got a text, followed by a call from Chris telling me we had received the nomination. I was over the moon. As soon as I hung up with him, I called my mom right back and asked if she would be my plus one. She enthusiastically said yes. That moment became more than just celebrating an Emmy nomination; it was a chance to reflect on the journey that brought me here.
Growing up with significant learning disabilities, I never imagined I’d one day be recognized at this level. This nomination feels bigger than me. It’s for every kid who’s been told they’re not capable, and for every parent who chose to nurture their child’s strengths instead of focusing on their challenges. I hope it’s a reminder that success doesn’t always follow the path people expect, and that perseverance can take you farther than anyone imagines.
Christopher: Thank you so much! The morning we learned about the nomination, I was at home working when my fiancée called to tell me the news. She had seen it online and immediately called me, and it was really special to share that first moment with her since she’s been by my side through all of this. As soon as we hung up I called both of my parents, who were so proud and who have always been supportive of whatever path I’ve chosen.
This recognition means so much to me because, in a way, it’s a recognition of all of the people around me who have supported and cheered me on throughout my career. From my sisters, who growing up would put up with me shooting silly little videos with them on our family’s handicam, to my grandma who would call me every Sunday after an episode to discuss her favorite (and least favorite) parts of the show. I’ve been incredibly lucky to have that kind of support throughout my life, and getting to share a moment like this with all of them makes me even more grateful for it.
Chris, this marks your second consecutive nomination in the category following your 2025 Emmy win for SNL50: The Anniversary Special. How does this year’s recognition feel different?
Christopher: I feel incredibly grateful to be recognized two years in a row. It’s been a really cool experience. Last year’s win was especially meaningful because working on the Anniversary Special was such a privilege. It really felt like the culmination of the show’s 50 year history. I also got to share that win with a group of editors I’d grown close to over years of working together, including some who came back specifically for the special.
This year’s nomination feels special in a completely different way. Mak and I have been a team for a few seasons and have built such a great working relationship and friendship over that time, so to have the work that the two of us put in week after week be recognized in this way feels incredibly rewarding. We were so proud of how this sketch turned out pretty immediately after it was finished and it was one of those pieces where the hard work of every department really clicked together in the edit. To be nominated for something that we feel represents our unit at its best makes it that much more meaningful.
Mak, after seven seasons on the Saturday Night Live editing team, what does your first Emmy nomination represent to you?
Mak: After seven seasons at SNL, this nomination represents a true full-circle moment. I started at SNL as a Post intern (which at the time was already a dream come true), eager to learn from the incredibly talented people around me, and over the years I’ve had the opportunity to grow into an editor on one of television’s most iconic shows.
This nomination isn’t just recognition of one piece of work, it’s a reflection of years of learning, collaboration, and showing up every week to make silly videos with an amazing team. On a personal note as a trans masculine person, this nomination also carries the possibility of making history, and I don’t take that lightly. I hope it shows that there is space for trans people in this industry not just to be included, but to thrive and be recognized for our work at the highest level.
When you first read the “MAHAspital” script and saw the footage, what immediately stood out as the central editorial opportunity or challenge?
Christopher: The first thing that jumped out to me when reading the script was just how funny the premise was and how it naturally allows for so many individual bits. The script was written as a promo/trailer, which inherently gave us the freedom to move from bit to bit, while continually building momentum, culminating in the reveal of James Austin Johnson’s incredible RFK Jr. character.
Once we started receiving footage it was immediately apparent how closely the production captured the style and tone of “The Pitt”. This gave us a strong foundation to lean into the seriousness of a medical drama, which made the absurdity land that much harder. At that point it became our job to preserve the authenticity of “The Pitt”, while allowing the comedy to live naturally.
HBO’s The Pitt is known for its long takes, minimal cutting and absence of non-diegetic music, while comedy and trailer editing depend on rhythm, compression and escalation. How did you preserve the show’s distinctive tension while making “MAHAspital” function as a comedy trailer?
Christopher: Using the rules of trailer editing really gave us the freedom to craft the piece without losing any of the authenticity of The Pitt. As you mentioned, the show itself relies on longer takes and completely natural soundscapes to create the tension and real-life urgency of a hospital. By framing our piece as a trailer, we were able to introduce familiar trailer editorial tools like music builds, sound design, and quicker pacing while still preserving what makes the original show so compelling.
The performances from the cast and host were also so grounded in reality that we could build the natural ebbs and flows of a trailer around each moment without ever having to push the comedy too hard. That dichotomy between these incredibly grounded performances and dramatic situations and the absurdity of what was actually happening created this perfect storm of parody that was really fun for us to play with in the edit.
REELated:
Emmy snubs x surprises: Taylor Sheridan, The Bear, Ariana Madix
How did you use pacing, performance and the order of reveals to move the sketch from a convincing medical drama into increasingly absurd territory without giving away the joke too quickly?
Christopher: Ben Marshall, Will Stephen, and Bryan Tucker wrote an extremely well-paced and clear script from the beginning that gave us the exact blueprint we needed to make the final piece sing. In the edit, we spent a lot of time pacing out the opening sequence to bring the audience into the world, while building anticipation for both the premise and the reveal of Harry Styles as the Noah Wyle-esque attending doctor.
We made the decision to cut directly into a high-energy action sequence rather than open with any sort of VO or graphics package, which immediately sets the tone and throws you into the urgency of the hospital. Once the premise is established and we’re off, it was important for us to treat each section as its own high-stakes situation while still threading everything together and continually building momentum.
That’s where the collaboration between Mak and I became especially important. With the turnaround we have at SNL, we don’t have the luxury of working through every moment together, so we were each able to take ownership of individual sections and work simultaneously. Because we’ve developed such a strong shorthand over the last few seasons, we could then bring those pieces together and make them feel like one cohesive edit, constantly building in pace and intensity toward the final reveal.
Please take us through the extraordinary Friday-to-air schedule. When did footage begin arriving, how did you divide responsibilities and what was required to deliver the finished sketch for Saturday Night’s live broadcast?
Christopher: The shoot for this sketch began around 8 a.m. on Friday, and with the help of our incredible Post Supervisor Matt Yonks and Post Coordinator Rachel Labianca, Mak received the first batch of footage between noon and 1 p.m.
It’s really important that they’re the first person to see the footage coming in from set, because they’re in direct communication with the crew and can flag any issues or inconsistencies which, thankfully are rare, as they’re shooting. With a schedule this fast, catching something early can make a huge difference.
From there, Mak works with our extraordinary assistant editors, Kingsley Golder and Ian Dugan, to break out and organize the footage while continuously receiving new cards throughout the day. They’ll also start pulling music and sound effects from our libraries, which gives me a huge head start when I begin assembling with whatever footage we have available.
As the organized projects are passed over, I’ll start building out the piece while Mak and the team continue processing everything that’s coming in. Something that put us in a particularly great position with this sketch was the large hospital set they built, which was lit consistently enough that production could shoot out full scenes incredibly efficiently.
That meant we were often receiving complete scenes rather than getting them piecemeal throughout the day, which is more typical for us. Once all the footage was in, Mak was able to jump into scenes as well, and we tandem cut throughout Friday night and into Saturday morning.
From Saturday morning through dress rehearsal at around 8 pm, the process really becomes collaborative. We’re working directly with the director, writers, producers, and cast to continue shaping and cutting the piece, while Mak is also communicating with our incredible VFX, graphics, color, and sound teams as everything moves toward final. And then, the final tweaks based on the response at dress rehearsal take us home for the finished piece to air live that night.
Mak, you led the assistant editorial team through the ingest and preparation of footage while production remained underway. What did that workflow involve, and how did it enable the creative edit to move forward so quickly?
Mak: As the shoot progresses, we start receiving card drops from set. I coordinate the assistant editors as we ingest, organize, and break down the footage. We build organized setups by scene or comedy bit and send them to Chris as soon as they’re ready so he can begin assembling the piece while we’re still processing incoming material.
At the same time, I create a line-by-line stringout, which compiles every take of every scripted and not scripted line from every camera angle. This allows us to quickly compare performances and choose the strongest line read.
It’s also invaluable when the writers or director want to explore alternate jokes, reactions, or deliveries, we can instantly pull up every available option and make informed creative decisions. Organization is everything. In the fast-paced environment of SNL, there’s no time to dig through cards wondering if a take exists. Having every setup clearly organized and immediately accessible means we can respond to creative notes almost instantly and keep the edit moving forward.
What did your collaboration with director Christopher Werner, the writers, producers and cast look like during the edit? Did the live response during dress rehearsal lead to any notable changes before broadcast?
Christopher: Working with Christopher Werner these past few seasons has really upped our game editorially. He’s incredibly hands-on and involved in the edit while still completely trusting us to deliver. On this piece, we had a lot of conversations beforehand about making sure we leaned into the language of a trailer and didn’t fall into the trap of cutting it like a conventional scene-based sketch.
After the shoot wrapped around 8 p.m. Friday night, Chris came into the edit to pass along any initial notes and thoughts from set, which allowed us to go into the night with really clear direction. The next morning, we worked with him exclusively until around noon, when the writers started coming in and we all began shaping the cut together. Throughout the day, producers would come into the edit room as well and give their input. This was one of those pieces where it felt like every new perspective and note helped us find another way to elevate the sketch.
Then, once the piece played at dress rehearsal in front of a live audience, we had our final round of feedback. Based on the reaction of the audience we could tell what worked and what needed refining. Their feedback shows us clearly where we might need to cut, tighten, or reorder to allow us the opportunity to make the piece as sharp and cohesive as possible before air.
To me, that’s the most unique part of editing at SNL, you get this massive room full of people essentially test-screening your cut, and then you have only a couple of hours to take what you learned from them and make the piece better before it airs.
You edited “MAHAspital” in Adobe Premiere Pro and also delivered both 16:9 and 9:16 versions. Which tools were most valuable under the compressed schedule, and how did adapting the sketch for vertical viewing affect its visual composition or comedic timing?
Christopher: It’s really essential that we cut in Premiere at the show, especially given the schedule we’re working under. We have an amazing team of VFX and GFX artists who we’re constantly passing projects and assets back and forth with, so the integration between Premiere, After Effects, and Photoshop is vital to keeping everything moving.
Premiere also allows us to bring footage directly into our projects and onto our timelines with virtually no steps in between. When footage is constantly coming in throughout the day and every minute counts, being able to start working with it immediately means we can be off to the races as soon as we receive it.
Mak: Keyboard shortcuts are definitely my favorite tool to use! I’m always looking for ways to move faster and work as efficiently as possible, and customizing my shortcuts has completely changed my workflow.
As soon as we deliver the piece for air, I start working on the vertical version for social media. While I’ll always have a soft spot for the horizontal version, I want to make sure viewers watching on Instagram and other socials can have the same experience as someone watching it anywhere else.
A big part of that is being intentional about who we’re watching and making sure the framing serves the joke. Sometimes I’ll use a pan and scan to follow whoever is speaking or emphasize a specific comedic moment.
Looking back, which editorial decision had the greatest impact on the finished sketch, and what do you hope fellow editors and Emmy voters recognize in the work?
Christopher: I think our instinct to really lean into the grounded drama of the performances and shooting style is ultimately what made the biggest impact editorially. In sketch comedy, it can be very easy to point to the laughs or make a farce out of everything, but we really resisted that here.
By cutting with propulsion, choosing music that felt big and dramatic, and building an emotional arc, we were able to treat the piece with the same seriousness as the show we were parodying. The more grounded we kept everything around the jokes, the more the comedy and absurdity were able to speak for themselves.
We’re incredibly proud of the final piece, but we also hope voters recognize the unique circumstances under which this work gets made. It only gets done because of an incredible post team working together at a really high level under an insane amount of time pressure. We hope the nomination is a recognition of their work just as much as it is ours.
