Stefania Spampinato had been itching to direct an episode of television for years, but her realization of that longtime dream might be a classic example of that age-old adage, “Be careful what you wish for.”
“Obviously, everything that could go wrong went wrong!” she jokes on a recent video chat with Shondaland. Though Spampinato, whom Station 19 and Grey’s Anatomy fans know better as Dr. Carina DeLuca, was thrilled at the opportunity and is super-proud of her episode (“Trouble Man”), the particular 43-ish minutes of TV that she “With this episode,” she says, “you see s–t hitting the fan. You see every character get to a pivotal point where they can’t take it anymore, and they lash out. It was a very important moment in everybody’s story.”
Among the major storylines in the episode (big spoilers ahead, obviously!), we see tensions flare among the team as Herrera (Jaina Lee Ortiz) has to deal with mandatory budget cuts, Warren (Jason George) struggles with the limitations of his body, Beckett (Josh Randall) breaks down in a gut-punch scene where he’s struggling to contain his grief, and of course, Carina and Maya (Danielle Savre) go toe-to-toe as they battle over the best way to care for and comfort their new baby, Liam. All that on a full moon when the jaws of life somehow get stolen (!) and — and! — someone died because the team wasn’t able to save him.was assigned to helm was one of the most technically complicated and intense of the season so far.
It was a lot, but Spampinato says she loved getting a chance to get behind the camera. “It was an incredible opportunity,” she says. “I’m very proud of it. I was like, ‘Is it going to be crappy?’ But it was beautiful. The prep was fun; the shooting part was great. It was like the best parting gift.”
Spampinato had directed a short film before — previous directing experience was a requirement to get the assignment — but an episode of TV is a whole different story. Tight deadlines for turnaround mean everything has to be perfectly prepped and executed in as little time as possible. The cast and crew have about eight days to shoot, and naturally, with a show like Station 19, with its intense choreography and action scenes, directors have to cross every t and dot every i to keep everyone safe too. She joins a small but select group of Station 19 cast members who’ve been able to direct an episode of their beloved show, including Jason George, who directed an episode apiece in seasons five and six; Danielle Savre in season six; and Boris Kodjoe, who directed the upcoming episode six in the current season.
“I thought it was an excellent script for me and my personality,” she explains, adding that her strong suit is not necessarily action but feelings. Raw emotion was on full display throughout as Carina and Maya butted heads over parenting styles, and Beckett let out his anguish after a tragic day on the job. “We wanted the beginning to feel like a regular Station 19 day and then progressively get more insane and harder and harder,” Spampinato says. “We wanted to make sure it was also translated in the camera work, so I started wider, and as things got tougher, we go closer and closer. There are a lot of close-ups of people’s faces with blurry backgrounds because we wanted to get inside their struggle and what they’re going through at that moment.”
