Question 1

What does a Casting Director do?

Lisa Ystrom · Accepted Answer

We are primarily responsible for finding the Actors to do roles for different projects, whether it’s film or TV. A pilot or a movie might already come with a famous person attached, like “the new Julia Roberts movie.” It’s usually well-known Actors that are attached, and then for all the rest of the roles, we provide choices to our Producers, the studios, the networks, or all three. Ultimately it’s not our decision. We certainly guide it when we bring them the choices, but we’re not the ones paying for the project.
With each project, the knowledge on the other side (the studios, Producers, and networks) is different. So we provide them with the choices. That can be through actually auditioning Actors, which is what the most common assumption is. We can make lists of ideas. And then we watch demo reels. There are ways that we go about putting the ideas in front of them. But we’re responsible for giving them the ideas.

Question 2

What skills do you need to be a Casting Director?

Lisa Ystrom · Accepted Answer

You need a knowledge of Actors. You need to be able to see talent in people. Somebody might walk into your room and do a really bad audition, but you might be able to see something there that another Casting Director, or an Associate or an Assistant, might let go right out the door. So you need to be able to spot potential in people and then bring it out sometimes.
We read with the Actors. My partner and I, when the Actors come and audition with us, we’re literally the people reading the scenes with them. It’s not like I have to be an Actor and have that background, but I have to be able to do it. To be able to direct them—which, once again, I don’t need to be Steven Spielberg—but I need to be able to direct Actors in some capacity.
You need to be diplomatic because you’re the middle man between studios and Producers and networks and Agents. You’re dealing with a ton of different personalities so you need to be able to get along with those. You need to be open-minded. The script says, “White male, 40s.” Maybe you go, “Could it be a woman of color?”
You need to be organized. You need to be able to multitask. You’re dealing with several things going on at the same time, even though I listed a certain chronology. Maybe you’re working on a show and you need to be finishing up one episode and starting another episode. There are multiple parts. Maybe you’re casting 15 parts in a project. You need to be keeping track of everything. I’m a big list person and a big chart person, so that helps me.
You need to have communication skills. You need to be able to talk to your Producers and your studios and your networks and your Actors and everyone who’s working with you. You need to be really good under pressure, because there are always deadlines.
A good memory is always helpful. You need to be able to work hard. There’s a lot of fun in it, but there’s a lot of really hard, grueling aspects to it. So you need to be able to work hard and you need stamina. Being connected, caring about the project, caring what happens to it: some people innately have that and some people don’t.

Question 3

What should someone major in to become a Casting Director?

Tiffany Little Canfield · Accepted Answer

Taking some acting classes to start to develop your taste is one of the biggest things for Casting Directors. We are lovers of talent. And how you develop that love and appreciation is by understanding the art form. Even though you might not be a performer in your soul, take some acting classes so that you understand how an Actor prepares and develop your taste for the styles of acting that you particularly respond to. It helps to have a language for that.
I would say watch everything. Film degrees are great because you do some of that the way we do drama history through the theater programs; we learn about Ibsen and Chekhov and Shakespeare and Molière. When you have a film degree, you often learn about the filmmakers that have created the foundation of the history of film. That is going to help you have context.

Question 4

How do Casting Directors get paid?

Anna Keizer · Accepted Answer

Casting Directors typically work as independent contractors, which means they’ll usually be hired temporarily by a production company or studio to determine the casting choices for a project. The amount that a Casting Director is paid will depend on their experience, the overall budget of the project, and their union status.

Question 5

Who is the highest paid Casting Director?

Anna Keizer · Accepted Answer

The amount of money a project makes doesn’t necessarily mean that the Casting Director was well paid for it. For that reason, it’s challenging to determine the highest paid Casting Director based off a film’s gross revenue. That being said, some Casting Directors with great experience and a highly regarded reputation can likely ask for a higher payday. Among those in this category are Sarah Halley Finn, Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins, Debra Zane, and Allison Jones.

Question 6

Is it hard to become a Casting Director?

Anna Keizer · Accepted Answer

Becoming a Casting Director is no easier than becoming a successful professional in any other part of the filmmaking world. It will take patience, determination, and a strong work ethic to find your place among the many others wanting to do the same specialty. Most importantly, you must prove that you have an eye not only for talent but also the right talent for the right project. Being able to understand what the Director visualizes for a role while also providing casting choices you feel fit the character is likewise a necessary skill.

Question 7

How do you get into casting?

Jessica Daniels · Accepted Answer

I think there are a lot more roads to casting now than there were when I started out. The Casting Society of America has a mentorship program, and there’s also a training program. There are a couple initiatives.
One really great thing to start doing is to watch the documentary Casting By, about the Casting Directors Marion Dougherty and Lynn Stalmaster. They were two pioneering Casting Directors. It’ll give a sense of what the profession is.
Several universities also offer casting classes. I know NYU has some, Syracuse does, and I’m pretty sure there are other regional schools in other areas of the country, not just the East Coast, that offer classes in casting.
But it used to be really internship-based, where you would kind of have to work for free just to get your foot in the door. I think as an industry, we’ve stepped further away from that these days; it’s not as advisable to either offer or take unpaid internships because it can be really hard financially. But you can do a fair amount of digging on your own.
Watch as many films, as much TV as possible, and keep track of which Actors you like. That’s important. Your taste is something that’s eventually going to be what leads people to hire you, so it’s something that’s great to develop early. A lot of times, it’s hard to put a finger on what your taste is, or describe it through words, but start making lists (which is something that Casting Directors do all the time) of who you like and why.
And if you don’t know why, maybe you can keep that part blank for the meantime. But who really speaks to you? Whose performances really speak to you? Not just like the standard Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington. Who are the Actors that not everyone knows, that you saw … in a small role in a movie, or a show, or theater? There are Actors in so many places now online, and if you see someone’s performance that really sparks something in you, that’s important to remember.

Question 8

How does the casting process work?

Tiffany Little Canfield · Accepted Answer

It depends on the project. We start with the script and analyze the roles. We create lists of known Actors to see if there is someone that the creative team would like to make an offer to….and then we release breakdowns of the roles to Agents and Managers, who submit their talent.
We comb through those submissions and decide who seems best suited and schedule them for auditions, both in person or self-tapes. We send our selects from those auditions to the creative team and discuss potential callbacks.

Question 9

Anything else you want people to know about being a Casting Director?

Tiffany Little Canfield · Accepted Answer

If you love collaboration and Actors, I think it’s an incredible place to work. It’s a real career. You also don’t have to work on one type of project. I’ve had the opportunity to work on plays, musicals, Broadway, regional, off-Broadway, films, indies, studio films–you can really have quite an eclectic career.

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