In her latest endeavor, production designer Ruth Ammon brings a vivid authenticity to Pachinko Season 2 (both seasons streaming on Apple TV+), transforming historical settings into immersive storytelling. Based on Min Jin Lee’s novel, the series explores intertwined Korean and Japanese histories, mostly through the lens of Koreans struggling to be seen as equals since World War II. Ammon, enlisted by showrunner Soo Hugh, embraced the complexity of designing for multiple eras, locations and socioeconomic status, crafting a world that feels both expansive and intimate. Despite the formidable challenges, Ammon describes the experience as one of the most creatively fulfilling of her career.
In its sophomore season, Pachinko widens its scope to delve into the struggles of the Zainichi Korean community during Japan’s tumultuous 1940s and 1950s. Ammon and her team spare no effort in recreating Toronto’s Ikuno Ward, meticulously depicting its evolution over time to capture both the vibrancy and hardships faced by this displaced community. The history depicted in Pachinko, particularly the experiences of Zainichi Koreans during Japan’s colonial rule and their struggles in Japanese society, has rarely been explored on screen for American audiences. While there have been some films and series in Asia addressing these themes, Pachinko is one of the first major multilingual productions to present this history through a global lens, reaching a Western audience. To ensure utmost authenticity, Ammon embarked on research trips to Japan and Korea, delving into architectural history, cultural nuances, and the lingering effects of colonialism.
Pachinko boasts a remarkable international cast led by Academy Award-winner Youn Yuh-jung as the older Sunja, Kim Min-ha portraying her younger self, Lee Min-ho (Koh Han-soo), Jin Ha (Solomon Baek) and Anna Sawai, fresh off her Emmy win for Shogun as Naomi.
At the helm of this ambitious project is showrunner Soo Hugh, whose visionary leadership has been instrumental in translating Min Jin Lee’s novel into a compelling, multilingual series. Known for her work on shows like The Whispers, Hugh’s storytelling expertise ensures that Pachinko retains its literary soul while embracing the opportunities of serialized television. Ruth Ammon’s contributions, combined with the cast’s powerful performances and Hugh’s narrative precision, elevate Pachinko from a historical drama to a profound telling of human resilience and cultural identity.
Ammon sat down with Awards Focus to discuss the challenges of bringing Pachinko’s intricate world to life, striking a balance between historical accuracy and creative storytelling, and the personal impact of working on such an emotionally resonant project. Below is a complete transcript of our conversation, offering an intimate glimpse into the artistry behind one of television’s most ambitious series.
Awards Focus: It’s truly a pleasure to get to do this interview with you. The show is so great and I feel like I’m learning about such an important part of history. How did you originally get involved in Pachinko Season 2?
Ruth Ammon: Lindsey Springer from Media Res, who produced Pachinko with Showrunner, Soo Hugh, was looking for a strong, passionate designer brave enough to tackle the world-building of season 2. Lindsey and I worked together on Jack Ryan which was a story that was multicultural and took place in seven countries. We filmed in four countries, so I was prepared for the cultural integration needed for Pachinko. Soo told me up front that Pachinko would be harder than I could imagine. She was right, but it was one of the most rewarding jobs I’ve ever worked on.
AF: Can you share your first thoughts upon reading the script for Pachinko?
Ammon: I’m always excited to read a script for the first time, but Soo’s writing is epic. I have to admit, as a Westerner, reading any episode of Pachinko was daunting. There was so much history and cultural nuance we are unaware of between South Korea and Japan. I was terrified of misrepresenting two very different cultures.
I wanted to do this show because, despite all my travel, I never worked or lived in an Asian country. That excited me and I wanted to surrender my Western design perspective and learn and experience Asian culture through my work. I had to reexamine everything. It was an entirely new language on every level.
AF: How did you balance historical accuracy with creative interpretation in the show’s set and environment designs?
Ammon: Historical accuracy was tantamount to Soo’s purpose and vision so we had an army of historical researchers in Japan and Korea who deciphered tens of thousands of historical photographic imagery. These images inspired the creative interpretation of my designs and then creatively expressed in the sets by scale, color pallet, fabrics, textures, atmosphere, lighting, and scenic applications.
AF: Are there specific locations or sets from Pachinko Season 2 that were particularly challenging or rewarding to create? Can you describe how they evolved?
Ammon: Season 2 jumped 10 years to 1945 World War II Japan where we rebuilt and expanded on the Ikuno Ward, adding a decade of time and congestion of overcrowded life. We created tight pedestrian roads along with back alleys depicting the everyday life of the Zainichi community. This set we built in Toronto.
Also, finding authentic Japanese architecture from the period before World War II in both Japan and Korea, was challenging and tragic. So much of Japan was destroyed during World War II and much of South Korea was mostly destroyed during the Korean War. What remained was destroyed by Koreans who wanted to erase the horror and memories of the Japanese occupation of Korea.
AF: The show transitions between Japan and Korea, across different eras, as well as different social classes. How did these shifts influence your design choices? What kind of research process did you undertake to represent both Korean and Japanese settings with authenticity?
Ammon: During my first week, I went to Japan to scout some proposed locations. I used every moment of the day to research each town we entered to find little traces of the past. I bought every book I could find with images of pre and post-war Japan, the history of Koreans in Japan, and I visited the Korea Museum in Tokyo which gave me an intense understanding of the culture and hardships at the hands of the Japanese. My utter fear of misrepresentation kept me open-minded and energized to keep the designs as authentic as possible.
AF: The landscapes and interiors have a poetic feel in the series. Were there any symbolic design choices you made that viewers might not immediately notice?
Ammon: Soo’s writing projects visual poetry moving from intimate daily life scenes in the overcrowded city then to wide verdant rice fields during the bombing of Osaka. It helped me make many symbolic choices throughout the sets. Many were made in the preparation of food with the families in their homes and the food in the markets.
AF: What were the biggest challenges you faced in designing for Pachinko this season, whether due to the show’s scope, logistics, or the subject matter itself?
Ammon: Time, weather and travel. We had very limited prep time for the scope of the show and we had to build two time periods of the Ikuno ward, 1944 and 1950 Japan, during the Toronto winter. We also had to build a substantial amount of the back alleys on stage due to the weather. As for traveling, in a 9 month period, I flew from Toronto to Japan two times, Toronto to Korea four times, and Toronto to LA two times. I also probably circled the peninsula of South Korea more than seven times in a van all while communicating with my team in Toronto.
AF: Looking back, how has Pachinko impacted your perspective on production design? Have you found new insights or techniques that you’ll carry into future projects?
Ammon: I’m going to quote one of our directors Sang-il Lee when he said, “Ruth, you are Oyabun (translates to ‘leader’).” I took that as a compliment. Though run-ragged, I learned to trust myself, trust the story, be bold, and be brave. Working with a diverse team from different cultures who were also in some ways out of their element showed me the strength in diversity and the importance of expanding outside your corner of the world.