Performers subscribed to Casting Networks’ Premium memberships gathered for food, drinks and an evening of friendly vibes with O’Neil, who has been finding the faces and personalities for some of the biggest brands and companies for nearly 30 years.

At the event, O’Neil commanded the room as she participated in a memorable Q+A. Topics discussed during O’Neil’s Q+A included self tapes, her process, the importance of doing your own work as an actor as well as other industry insights.

“It just depends on what I’m looking for. So there’s no, how can I be right? What makes me right? You make you right,” O’Neil said when asked about what makes an actor right for the role. “You make it who I’m looking for, depending on the job… there is no set rule, it’s on a per project basis. And that goes probably for every casting director…because we are given the breakdown of what the client’s needs are.”

As for audition advice, O’Neil shared that casting directors want to see how actors can be authentic while playing within the circumstances of a role.

“We want to get to the human being part. What are you bringing? What’s your personality? What are you bringing to life,” she said.

The prolific commercial casting director encouraged actors to chat and pick her brain about all things casting — an opportunity that many jumped at.

After an evening of networking and sage advice, Casting Networks members went home with encyclopedic knowledge to apply to their acting careers.

Special thanks to Melissa O’Neil for her time and wisdom. We appreciate your help in making this night a success!

The post Mel and Liz Casting’s Melissa O’Neil Captivates Casting Networks Members with an Evening of Sage Advice first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Mel and Liz Casting’s Melissa O’Neil Captivates Casting Networks Members with an Evening of Sage Advice appeared first on Casting Networks.

The ceremony, hosted by the Casting Society (CSA) and sponsored by our sister company Spotlight, was held across multiple venues–from New York to Los Angeles to London. Niecy Nash-Betts, Alex Edelman and Samantha Morton hosted the evening’s festivities across each area.

Niecy Nash-Betts at Casting Society’s (CSA) 39th Annual Artios Awards held at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on Mar. 7, 2024, in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Reza Allah-Bakhshi/Capture Imaging)

The event was also the first Artios to recognize commercial casting. Ken Lazer, the category’s inaugural recipient, gave an emotional acceptance speech where he reminisced about his father who was both a friend and mentor to him.

Several video highlight packages were played across venues honoring the likes of Ava DuVernay, The Drama Book Shop, Sharon Klein and others.

In recognition of the newly announced Academy Awards category for casting, an additional vignette aired containing various Oscar-winning speeches where actors thanked their casting directors.

DuVernay received the Lynn Stalmaster Award for Career Achievement, accepting with a warm and gracious speech in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton.

The LA crowd was also treated to a delightful segment with Jury Duty stars James Marsden and Ronald Gladden.

From left, Ronald Gladden and James Marsden at Casting Society’s (CSA) 39th Annual Artios Awards held at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on Mar. 7, 2024, in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Molly O’Keeffe/Capture Imaging)

New York City’s Edison Ballroom experienced a myriad of passionate teary-eyed speeches from casting directors such as David Caparelliotis and Bernard Telsey calling on their peers to keep pushing for further industry recognition and growing as a community.

In what felt like an impromptu moment, Cindy Tolan and Alexa Fogel thanked and awarded Telsey with a bouquet of flowers for helping push the newfound casting Oscars category. The New York casting legend then proceeded to give his own heartfelt speech as members of the casting crowd gave him a standing ovation and a rallying cry to “Get that Tony!”

To all the casting directors and their teams and the CSA, congratulations on your Artios and Academy Award victories, and thank you for all your dedication to the arts.

Below is the full list of winners at the 39th annual CSA Artios Awards:

FEATURE ANIMATION
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse – Mary Hidalgo

FEATURE BIG BUDGET – COMEDY
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret – Francine Maisler, Melissa Kostenbauder, Betsy Fippinger (Location Casting), Tara Feldstein (Location Casting), Chase Paris (Location Casting), Molly Rose (Associate Casting Director)

FEATURE BIG BUDGET – DRAMA
Killers of the Flower Moon – Ellen Lewis, Rene Haynes, Kate Sprance (Associate Casting Director)

FEATURE STUDIO OR INDEPENDENT – COMEDY
The Holdovers – Susan Shopmaker, Lisa Lobel (Location Casting), Angela Peri (Location Casting), Melissa Morris (Associate Casting Director)

FEATURE STUDIO OR INDEPENDENT – DRAMA
Past Lives – Ellen Chenoweth, Susanne Scheel

FEATURE LOW BUDGET – COMEDY OR DRAMA
Memory – Susan Shopmaker

FEATURE MICRO BUDGET – COMEDY OR DRAMA
Summoning Sylvia – Steven Tylor O’Connor

THE ZEITGEIST AWARD
Barbie – Lucy Bevan, Olivia Grant (Associate Casting Director)

FILM, NON-THEATRICAL RELEASE
Fire Island – Jessica Munks, Andrew Fem (Associate Casting Director)

TELEVISION PILOT AND FIRST SEASON – COMEDY
The Bear – Jeanie Bacharach, Mickie Paskal (Location Casting), Jennifer Rudnicke (Location Casting) AJ Links (Location Casting), Alison Goodman (Associate Casting Director)

TELEVISION PILOT AND FIRST SEASON – DRAMA
The Last of Us – Victoria Thomas, Corinne Clark (Location Casting), Jennifer Page (Location Casting), Megan Bayliss (Associate Casting Director)

TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY
Reservation Dogs – Angelique Midthunder, Chris Freihofer (Location Casting), Stacey Rice (Associate Casting Director), Tara Mazzucca (Associate Casting Director)

TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
Succession – Avy Kaufman, Scotty Anderson (Associate Casting Director)

LIMITED SERIES
Beef – Charlene Lee, Claire Koonce, Danny Gordon (Associate Casting Director)

LIVE TELEVISION PERFORMANCE, VARIETY OR SKETCH – COMEDY, DRAMA or MUSICAL
A Black Lady Sketch Show – Erica A. Hart

REALITY SERIES – STRUCTURED AND UNSTRUCTURED
Queer Eye – Danielle Gervais, Pamela Vallarelli, Jessica Jorgensen, Quinn Fegan

REALITY SERIES – COMPETITION
RuPaul’s Drag Race — Goloka Bolte, Ethan Petersen

ANIMATED SERIES
Big Mouth – Julie Ashton

CHILDREN’S AND FAMILY PILOT AND SERIES– LIVE ACTION
American Born Chinese – Leslie Woo, Julina Baber (Associate Casting Director)

SHORT FILM
Motherland – Matthew Glasner

SHORT FORM SERIES
We’re Doing Good – Alexa Pereira

COMMERCIALS
Spark Autism Awareness – Ken Lazer

NEW YORK BROADWAY THEATRE – COMEDY OR DRAMA
Leopoldstadt – Jim Carnahan, Maureen Kelleher

NEW YORK BROADWAY THEATRE – MUSICAL
Into the Woods – Craig Burns, Geoff Josselson, Bernard Telsey

NEW YORK THEATRE – COMEDY OR DRAMA
Downstate – Alaine Alldaffer, JC Clementz

NEW YORK THEATRE – MUSICAL
Merrily We Roll Along – Jim Carnahan, Jason Thinger

LOS ANGELES THEATRE
The Inheritance: Part 1 & Part 2 – Phyllis Schuringa

SPECIAL THEATRICAL PERFORMANCE
Fiddler on the Roof – Tara Rubin, Merri Sugarman, Becca McCracken (Location Casting)

REGIONAL THEATRE – TIE
A Chorus Line – Stephanie Klapper
What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank – David Caparelliotis

THEATRE TOURS
Six (Boleyn Tour) – Tara Rubin, Peter Van Dam, Kevin Metzger-Timson

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The CDG Casting Awards, in partnership with Spotlight, our sister site, and Headline Sponsor EON Productions, was hosted by Sir Simon Russell Beale, CBE. CDG award presenters included Jamie Dornan, Emma D’Arcy, George MacKay, Liz Carr, Tanya Moodie, Layton Williams, Erin Doherty, Fabien Frankel, Tom Francis, Anjana Vasan, Sindhu Vee, Adjani Salmon and Luke Millington-Drake.

The Casting Directors’ Guild represents entertainment industry casting directors in the UK and Ireland.

Productions which premiered between Sept. 1, 2022 and Dec. 31, 2023 were eligible for CDG awards. Big winners included Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann, Katie Brydon (Associate), Amy Beadel (Ensemble Casting Associate), Melody Gerard (Assistant) for Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical as well as Louise Kiely for The Banshees of Inisherin and Shaheen Baig and Jonny Boutwood, Carolyn McLeod (Original Film Casting) for the TV Drama Series Boiling Point.

“The CDG Awards have led the way in recognizing this vital craft, and the belated addition of the Academy Award for Casting Direction as a competitive category is a moment in cinematic history,” said Spotlight Managing Director Matt Hood. “At Spotlight we will always champion the work of brilliant casting directors and we’re delighted to be able to celebrate those winners who have excelled in their field.”

The full list of winners is below. Congratulations to all CDG members for your hard work and dedication!

Best Child Casting (All Media)

• WINNER: Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical (Film) – Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann, Katie Brydon (Associate), Amy Beadel (Ensemble Casting Associate), Melody Gerard (Assistant)
• Children With Cancer UK ‘Milestone Campaign’ (Commercial) – Nicholas Hockaday
• Mrs. Doubtfire, Shaftesbury Theatre (London Casting, Musical Theatre) – Verity Naughton (Children’s Casting Director)
• The Sound of Music, Chichester Festival Theatre (Regional Theatre) – Verity Naughton (Children’s Casting), Nicholas Hockaday (Children’s Casting Assistant)
• The Witches, Olivier Theatre, National Theatre (Theatre) – Bryony Jarvis-Taylor

Best Casting in a Commercial

• WINNER: Alzheimer’s Society ‘Nobody Asks’ – Aisha Bywaters
• Age UK ‘Know What To Do’ – Leanne Flinn
• Stonewall ‘Ban Conversion Therapy’ – Sue Odell
• Children With Cancer ‘Milestone Campaign’ – Nicholas Hockaday
• Vanish ‘Me, My Autism & I’ – Kharmel Cochrane

Best Casting in a Film, sponsored by Apple TV+

• WINNER: The Banshees of Inisherin – Louise Kiely
• All of Us Strangers – Kahleen Crawford, Carla Morris & Eliza Heslop (Associates)
• Barbie – Lucy Bevan, Olivia Grant (Associate), Lucy Downes (Assistant)
• Saltburn – Kharmel Cochrane
• Triangle of Sadness – Jessie Frost (UK Casting)

Best Casting in an Independent Film, sponsored by Independent Talent

• WINNER: Rye Lane – Kharmel Cochrane
• Blue Jean – Shaheen Baig
• Dance First – Olivia Scott-Webb, Ruth O’Dowd (Associate)
• Scrapper – Shaheen Baig
• The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse – Rachel Freck, Jessica Mescall & Nicholas Hockaday (Associates)

Best Casting in a Limited or Single Series, sponsored by Apple TV+

• WINNER: Time (Season 2) – Amy Hubbard, Shannon Dowling-McNulty (Associate)
• A Small Light – Nanw Rowlands
• Black Mirror (Season 6) – Jina Jay
• Somewhere Boy – Catherine Willis, Beatrice Ray (Associate)
• The Long Shadow – Victor Jenkins and Sonia Allam, Seth Mason (Associate), Paushali Banik (Assistant)

Best Casting in Musical Theatre (Inside M25), sponsored by JAG (Jonathan Arun Group)

• WINNER: Guys and Dolls, Bridge Theatre – Charlotte Sutton
• Sunset Boulevard, Savoy Theatre – Stuart Burt
• Tammy Faye, Almeida Theatre – Natalie Gallacher and Pippa Ailion, Richard Johnston (Associate)
• The Band’s Visit, Donmar Warehouse – Anna Cooper
• The Witches, Olivier Theatre, National Theatre – Bryony Jarvis-Taylor

Best Casting in Regional Theatre, sponsored by Conway Van Gelder Grant

• WINNER: Standing at The Sky’s Edge, The Crucible Theatre, Sheffield – Stuart Burt
• A Christmas Carol, Royal Shakespeare Theatre, RSC – Matthew Dewsbury
• A View From The Bridge, Bolton Octagon and Chichester Festival Theatre – Becky Paris
• Choir Boy, Bristol Old Vic – Julia Horan
• Cowbois, The Swan Theatre, RSC – Martin Poile

Best Casting in Theatre (Inside M25), sponsored by The Partnership Group

• WINNER: Dear England, Olivier Theatre, National Theatre and The Prince Edward Theatre – Bryony Jarvis-Taylor
• A Little Life, Richmond Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre – Julia Horan, Lilly Mackie (Assistant)
• A Streetcar Named Desire, Almeida Theatre and The Phoenix Theatre – Julia Horan, Lilly Mackie (Assistant)
• My Neighbor Totoro, Barbican Theatre – Hannah Miller, Martin Poile (Associate)
• The Motive and The Cue, Lyttelton Theatre, National Theatre and the Noel Coward Theatre – Alastair Coomer

Best Casting in a TV Comedy Series, sponsored by Hamilton Hodell

• WINNER: Dreaming Whilst Black – Heather Basten, Peter Noden and Fran Cattaneo (Assistants)
• Extraordinary – Suzanne Crowley and Gilly Poole, Katie Mozumder (Associate)
• Motherland Christmas Special – Sarah Crowe, Ben Marks (Associate)
• Sex Education (Season 4) – Lauren Evans
• Ted Lasso (Season 3) – Theo Park, Laura MacFadden (Associate)

Best Casting in a TV Drama Series, sponsored by United Agents

• WINNER: Boiling Point – Shaheen Baig and Jonny Boutwood, Carolyn McLeod (Original Film Casting)
• Andor – Nina Gold and Martin Ware
• Slow Horses (Season 2) – Nina Gold, Melissa Gethin Clarke (Associate)
• Slow Horses (Season 3) – Nina Gold, Melissa Gethin Clarke (Associate)
• The Crown (Season 5) – Robert Sterne, Kate Bone (Associate)

The post Lucy Bevan, Emily Brockmann, Louise Kelly Strike Gold at 2024 CDG Casting Awards first appeared on Casting Networks.

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Rebel Wilson hosted the AACTA Awards while Harry Connick Jr. hosted the Industry Awards.

Casting Networks partnered with AACTA for the ceremony, sponsoring two award categories. The awards, Best Casting in Film presented by Casting Networks and Best Casting in Television presented by Casting Networks, were won by Anousha Zarkesh for Shayda and Alison Telford and Kate Leonard for Deadloch, respectively.

Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images

Talk to Me was the event’s big winner, taking home eight trophies across both shows. Other AACTA champions included The Newsreader, Deadloch and The New Boy.

Winners of the AACTA International Awards included Barbie, The Bear, Succession and Oppenheimer. Barbie star Margot Robbie received the AACTA Trailblazer Award for her outstanding career.

Photo by Jono Searle/Getty Images for AFI

AFI Chair Jack Christian said in a statement “As we reflect on the remarkable achievements showcased at the 2024 AACTA Awards, we are reminded of the boundless creativity and dedication within Australia’s screen industry. From captivating performances to ground-breaking productions, the winners have exemplified excellence in storytelling. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all recipients and express our gratitude to our partners for their continued support in celebrating our nation’s rich cinematic and television landscape.”

The AACTA Awards celebrations were part of the inaugural AACTA Festival, a four-day celebration of Australia’s film and television industry. The festival hosted more than 90 events, including panels, meet-and-greets and screenings

“On behalf of Queenslanders, I congratulate all of the incredible talent who have been recognized with AACTA Awards,“ Queensland’s Tourism Minister Michael Healy said in a statement. “Hosting some of the world’s hottest talent on the Gold Coast for these awards shines the spotlight on the incredible film and television content being produced right here in Queensland and shares our beautiful tourism experiences with global fans. The invitation is open to all to come and experience our picture-perfect sets and make your next holiday to Queensland.”

Below is the full list of winners. Congratulations to all!

Best Direction in Film
Talk to Me – Danny Philippou, Michael Philippou

Best Film
Talk to Me – Samantha Jennings, Kristina Ceyton – Causeway Films

Best Lead Actor in Film
Aswan Reid – The New Boy

Best Lead Actress in Film
Sophie Wilde – Talk to Me

Best Supporting Actor in Film
Hugo Weaving – The Rooster

Best Supporting Actress in Film
Deborah Mailman – The New Boy

Best Casting in Film presented by Casting Networks
Shayda – Anousha Zarkesh

Best Cinematography in Film
The New Boy – Warwick Thornton

Best Costume Design in Film
Carmen – Emily Seresin

Best Editing in Film presented by Spectrum Films
Talk to Me – Geoff Lamb

Best Hair and Makeup presented by Hask
Talk to Me – Rebecca Buratto, Paul Katte, Nick Nicolaou

Best Indie Film
Limbo – Ivan Sen (Dir.), David Jowsey, Greer Simpkin, Rachel Higgins – Bunya Productions

Best Original Score in Film
Talk to Me – Cornel Wilczek

Best Production Design in Film
The New Boy – Amy Baker

Best Screenplay in Film
Talk to Me – Danny Philippou, Bill Hinzman

Best Sound in Film
Talk to Me – Emma Bortignon, Pete Smith, Nick Steele

Best Acting in a Comedy Series
Kate Box – Deadloch

Best Children’s Program
Bluey – Joe Brumm, Charlie Aspinwall, Sam Moor, Daley Pearson – Ludo Studio (ABC)

Best Comedy Entertainment Program
Hard Quiz – Chris Walker, Kevin Whyte, Tom Gleeson, John Tabbagh – Thinkative Television and ABC (ABC)

Best Comedy Performer presented by Network Ten
Cal Wilson – The Great Australian Bake Off

Best Drama Series
The Newsreader – Joanna Werner, Michael Lucas – Werner Film Productions (ABC)

Best Factual Entertainment Program
Old People’s Home for Teenagers – Tony De La Pena, Tara McWilliams, Emily Potts – Endemol Shine Australia (ABC)

Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series presented by Binge
Hugo Weaving – Love Me

Best Lead Actress in a Drama Series presented by Binge
Anna Torv – The Newsreader

Best Lifestyle Program
Gardening Australia – Gill Lomas – ABC TV (ABC)

Best Miniseries
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart – Jodi Matterson, Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky, Barbara Gibbs, Sarah Lambert, Glendyn Ivin – Made Up Stories, Amazon Studios, Fifth Season (Amazon Prime Video)

Best Narrative Comedy Series
Colin From Accounts – Ian Collie, Rob Gibson, Patrick Brammall, Harriet Dyer – Easy Tiger (Binge, Foxtel)

Best Reality Program
MasterChef Australia – David Forster, Simon Child, Eoin Maher, April Mackay – Endemol Shine Australia (Network Ten)

Best Screenplay in Television
Deadloch Episode 1 – Kate McCartney, Kate McLennan

Best Stand-Up Special
Hannah Gadsby: Something Special – Hannah Gadsby, Kevin Whyte, Kathleen McCarthy, Jenney Shamash, Frank Bruzzese – Guesswork Television Pty Ltd (Netflix)

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Hunter Page-Lochard – The Newsreader

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Heather Mitchell – Love Me

Best Casting in Television presented by Casting Networks
Deadloch – Alison Telford, Kate Leonard

Best Cinematography in Television
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart Episode 1 – Sam Chiplin

Best Costume Design in Television
The Newsreader Episode 4 – Zed Dragojlovich

Best Direction in Drama or Comedy
The Newsreader Episode 4 – Emma Freeman

Best Direction in Nonfiction Television
The Australian Wars Episode 1 – Rachel Perkins, Dylan River, Tov Belling

Best Documentary or Factual Program
The Australian Wars – Darren Dale, Rachel Perkins, Belinda Mravicic – Blackfella Films Pty Ltd (NITV, SBS)

Best Editing in a Documentary
The Australian Wars – Andrea Lang, Mark Atkin, Hilary Balmond

Best Editing in Television
Deadloch Episode 1 – Angie Higgins

Best Entertainment Program
Eurovision Song Contest 2023 – Grand Final – Paul Clarke, Emily Griggs – Blink TV Production Pty Ltd (SBS)

Best Original Score in Television
Deadloch Episode 1 – Amanda Brown

Best Production Design in Television
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart Episode 1 – Melinda Doring

Best Sound in Television
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart Episode 6 – David Lee, Robert Mackenzie, Leah Katz, James Ashton

Best Documentary
John Farnham: Finding The Voice – Poppy Stockell (Dir.), Mikael Borglund, Paul Clarke, Martin Fabinyi, Olivia Hoopmann – Beyond Oz in association with Blink TV Production

Best Cinematography in a Documentary
The Giants – Sherwin Akbarzadeh

Best Original Score in a Documentary
The Dark Emu Story – Caitlin Yeo, Damien Lane

Best Sound in a Documentary
Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story – David Williams

Best Online Drama or Comedy
Latecomers – Liam Heyen, Hannah Ngo, Angus Thompson, Emma Myers, Nina Oyama, Madeleine Gottlieb, Alistair Baldwin – Mad Ones Films & Lazy Susan Films

Best Short Film
Finding Addison – Francisca Braithwaite, Jess Milne, Nick Bolton – Blue Sparrow Entertainment

Best Visual Effects or Animation
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny — Andrew Whitehurst, Kathy Siegel, Alistair Williams, Julian Hutchens, Ian Cope – Rising Sun Pictures

Trailblazer Award
Margot Robbie

Byron Kennedy Award Recipient
Bruna Papandrea

Brian Walsh Award Recipient
Ngali Shaw

Reg Grundy Award Recipient
Rachel Berger (Seriously Funny)

Audience Choice Award for Favourite TV Show
Ginny & Georgia

AACTA Audience Choice Award for Favourite Film
Barbie

AACTA Audience Choice Award for Favourite Actress
Margot Robbie

AACTA Audience Choice Award for Favourite Actor
Adam Sandler

AACTA Audience Choice Award for Favourite Australian Media Personality
Sophie Monk

AACTA Audience Choice Award for Favourite Australian Digital Creator
Kat Clark and family @katclark

AACTA Audience Choice Award for Favourite Australian Sporting Moment
Soccer: Matilda’s World Cup run

International Award for Best Actor in a Series
Jeremy Allen White – The Bear

International Award for Best Actress in a Series
Sarah Snook – Succession

International Award for Best Comedy Series
The Bear

International Award for Best Direction in Film
Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan

International Award for Best Drama Series
Succession

International Award for Best Film
Barbie

International Award for Best Lead Actor in Film
Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer

International Award for Best Lead Actress in Film
Margot Robbie – Barbie

International Award for Best Screenplay in Film
Poor Things – Tony McNamara

International Award for Best Supporting Actor in Film
Ryan Gosling – Barbie

International Award for Best Supporting Actress in Film
Vanessa Kirby – Napoleon

The post Anousha Zarkesh, Alison Telford and Kate Leonard Take Home Best Casting Prizes at AACTA Awards first appeared on Casting Networks.

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“Every film that wins an Oscar has a casting director or team who brings its characters to life, searching for the right actors in the right combination to achieve a vision and make movie magic. As a company, we are privileged to watch casting directors do this skilled and artful work every day. We are delighted that their invaluable contributions are finally being recognized on our industry’s largest stage,” said Alex Amin, Co-CEO, Talent Systems.

The new award will recognize achievement in casting for films released in 2025 and beyond. It will be the first new category added to the ceremony since 2001, when Best Animated Feature Film became part of the program.

“Casting directors play an essential role in filmmaking, and as the Academy evolves, we are proud to add casting to the disciplines that we recognize and celebrate,” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang in a joint statement. “We congratulate our Casting Directors Branch members on this exciting milestone and for their commitment and diligence throughout this process.”

The inaugural trophy will be presented at the 98th Academy Awards, upping the total number of Oscar categories to 24.

“On behalf of the members of the Casting Directors Branch, we’d like to thank the Board of Governors, the Awards Committee and Academy leadership for their support. This award is a deserved acknowledgment of our casting directors’ exceptional talents and a testament to the dedicated efforts of our branch,” said Academy Casting Directors Branch governors Richard Hicks, Kim Taylor-Coleman and Debra Zane in a joint statement.

The rules for eligibility and voting for the new category will be announced in April 2025 as part of the 98th Academy Awards rules. The Academy’s board of governors and administrative leadership will determine the award’s presentation at a future date.

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Read on to find answers to the questions that we reviewed live with talent or click here to watch a recording of the webinar.

How does Media Storage work?

Casting Networks now has three membership options: Free, Essential and Premium, each fitted with different storage plans and features. Free provides up to 350 MB of swappable media, Essential allows 1 GB and Premium provides up to 3.5 GB (currently unrestricted). Also shown were examples of what makes a successful Casting Networks profile for those subscribed to the Essential membership, like finding the right media mix between headshots, self tapes (and audio for voiceover performers).

We showed talent how they can take advantage of the storage space provided in the Essential membership by archiving media to free up storage space. Talent can archive a media file 21 days after it has been uploaded. Talent can also add storage by changing memberships (e.g., moving from Free to Essential).

Talent asked about:

• Media uploads for multiple profiles. Only one profile needs media uploaded for it to appear on all profiles.
• Increasing storage space. Archiving outdated media will increase storage space. Media uploaded before the new memberships were released will not count toward existing storage.
• How media storage works for family accounts. It is not possible to share media storage across different accounts. However, a family of performers can create multiple accounts with varying membership options.

For more information, check out our support page.

Who can see Archived Media?

Casting directors can view archived self tapes that have been submitted. Media files are eligible for archiving after 21 days. Talent can reinstate archived media later if needed.

When can talent switch memberships?

Talent with monthly memberships can switch at any time. If a member switches from Essential to Premium, the change takes effect immediately. However, if they switch from Premium to Essential, it should take effect at their next monthly renewal date.

Talent subscribed to annual memberships, however, can only change memberships after their annual membership term has ended.

Want to learn about Casting Networks’ Essential membership or share the webinar with talent? View the replay here.

For more answers to frequently asked questions about our Essential membership, visit our support page.

The post Casting Networks Answers Talents’ Questions About Essential Memberships first appeared on Casting Networks.

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The gala ceremony will be held on March 7, where the winners will be announced.

Last March, Casting Society entered into a multi-year partnership with Talent Systems, parent company of Casting Networks, Spotlight, Cast It and other talent discovery platforms. This partnership kicked off with Spotlight’s presenting sponsorship of the 38th Annual Artios Awards on March 9. Spotlight will return to sponsor the 39th Artios Awards.

The full list of nominations is below.

Feature Animation

• Elemental: Natalie Lyon, Kevin Reher, Kate Hansen-Birnbaum (Associate Casting Director)
• Leo: Danielle Aufiero, Amber Horn
• Spider-Man: Across The Spiderverse: Mary Hidalgo
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem: Rich Delia, Adam Richards (Associate Casting Director)
• Wish: Grace C. Kim

Feature Big Budget – Comedy

• Air: Mary Vernieu, Lindsay Graham Ahanonu, Sydney Shircliff (Associate Casting Director)
• Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret: Francine Maisler, Melissa Kostenbauder, Betsy Fippinger (Location Casting), Tara Feldstein (Location Casting), Chase Paris (Location Casting), Molly Rose (Associate Casting Director)
• Asteroid City: Douglas Aibel, Jina Jay (Location Casting), Matthew Glasner (Associate Casting Director)
• Cocaine Bear: Debra Zane, Dylan Jury, Alli Coffey (Location Casting)
• Wonka: Nina Gold

Feature Big Budget – Drama

• The Color Purple: Bernard Telsey, Tiffany Little Canfield, Destiny Lilly
• Maestro: Shayna Markowitz, Dayna Katz (Associate Casting Director)
• Killers of the Flower Moon: Ellen Lewis, Rene Haynes, Kate Sprance (Associate Casting Director)
• Oppenheimer: John Papsidera
• Saltburn: Kharmel Cochrane

Feature Studio or Independent – Comedy

• American Fiction: Jennifer Euston, Lisa Lobel (Location Casting), Angela Peri (Location Casting), Melissa Morris (Associate Casting Director)
• Bottoms: Laura Rosenthal, Maribeth Fox, Meagan Lewis (Location Casting), Kimberly Ostroy (Associate Casting Director)
• The Holdovers: Susan Shopmaker, Lisa Lobel (Location Casting), Angela Peri (Location Casting), Melissa Morris (Associate Casting Director)
• Joy Ride: Rich Delia, Kara Eide (Location Casting), Kris Woznesensky (Location Casting), Adam Richards (Associate Casting Director)
• Theater Camp: Kristian Charbonier, Bernard Telsey

Feature Studio or Independent – Drama

• The Iron Claw: Susan Shopmaker, Brent Caballero (Location Casting)
• May December: Laura Rosenthal, Meagan Lewis (Location Casting), Rebecca Carfagna (Location Casting), Kimberly Ostroy (Associate Casting Director)
• Past Lives: Ellen Chenoweth, Susanne Scheel
• Priscilla: Nicole Daniels, Courtney Bright, John Buchan, Jason Knight
• Rustin: Avy Kaufman, Donna Belajac (Location Casting), Missy Finnell (Location Casting), Scotty Anderson (Associate Casting Director)

Feature Low Budget – Comedy or Drama

• Birth/Rebirth: Allison Twardziak, Danielle Pretsfelder Demchick
• Emily: Fiona Weir
• Jules: Avy Kaufman
• Memory: Susan Shopmaker
• Monica: Emily Schweber, D. Lynn Meyers (Location Casting)

Feature Micro Budget – Comedy or Drama

• The Donor Party: Anthony J. Kraus
• How I Learned To Fly: Jessica Sherman
• Summoning Sylvia: Steven Tylor O’connor
• What Comes Around: Eyde Belasco, Jeff Johnson (Location Casting)
• Your Lucky Day: Jessica Sherman

The Zeitgeist Award

• Barbie: Lucy Bevan, Olivia Grant (Associate Casting Director)
• The Flash: Rich Delia, Kate Ringsell, Adam Richards (Associate Casting Director)
• The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes: Debra Zane, Dylan Jury, Simone Bär (Location Casting)
• Rebel Moon: Part One – A Child of Fire: Kristy Carlson, Jeanette Benzie (Associate Casting Director)
• Transformers: Rise of the Beasts: Wittney Horton, Additional Voice Casting by Ruth Lambert And Robert Mcgee, Eve Streger (Associate Casting Director)

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We made a series of enhancements to Casting Networks throughout 2023 for casting directors, talent representatives and performers. Not only did we bring back our Talent Scout® feature for agents, managers and talent, we also added the Project Wizard for casting directors. We even added flexibility for talent by introducing the Essential Membership.

Here’s a quick recap of all the features Casting Networks added this year.

Simplicity for Talent Representation

This year, we rolled out several improvements for talent representatives designed to make their work faster and easier. From a quick improvement to Submission Notes, to the revival of a legacy tool, to a roster upload enhancement, there are plenty of ways for talent agents and managers to get the job done faster than before.

January: We kicked off 2023 with an update to Submission Notes for talent representatives for easier access to this feature. The icon now displays on a talent’s baseball card so that representatives no longer have to select talent to preview their default notes or click to edit them.

May: Talent representatives looking to add new talent to their roster now have a quick path to finding them on Casting Networks. Talent Scout® is a legacy feature that we refreshed and relaunched that allows agents and managers searching for new talent to connect with Essential and Premium members who have indicated that they are seeking representation.

August: Talent representatives can invite a large roster of talent to build profiles on Casting Networks with Bulk Uploads, saving time and enhancing their workflow.

Convenience for Casting Directors

Casting directors received the gift of efficiency from Casting Networks this year as we introduced several new features to make their daily tasks easier.

February: Casting directors can speed up their workflow with two new features: filter by represented talent to organize search and submissions, plus resend a Media Request to talent based on status to ensure talent timeliness and accuracy.

July: We wanted to help casting directors prioritize, sort and quickly search their projects, so we updated the experience with Project Lists. Now, you can view, sort and group your projects by project type, status and series.

September: Casting directors can simplify their project creation process with the Project Wizard. The Project Wizard is a tool that increases productivity so that casting directors can complete their project setup more quickly.

Setting Talent Up for Success

This year, we made several enhancements to Casting Networks to help push performers’ careers forward. Here’s how the actors you cast and represent can get a leg up in 2024.

January: We made sure our Spanish-speaking members started their year on the right foot by enabling a Spanish language setting on our iOS app.

October: We added Apple Pay® as a payment method for Casting Networks members, allowing more primary and backup options to ensure talents’ accounts stay active on their terms.

December: We wrapped up the year by introducing the Essential Membership for talent. Essential is a lower-priced membership option that provides more flexibility and benefits for young performers, families and talent looking to grow their careers.

Happy Holidays from Casting Networks!

Whether you’re a casting director or a talent representative, sign up or log in to Casting Networks to check out our newest features now!

The post Looking Back at New Casting Networks Features from 2023 first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Looking Back at New Casting Networks Features from 2023 appeared first on Casting Networks.

“We are thrilled to introduce the Essential membership, created for talent looking to balance simplicity, access and value in their Casting Networks experience,” said Ram Pitchumani, General Manager of Casting Networks. “Essential is priced to enable more young performers, families, and up-and-coming talent to discover and be considered for new roles every day, making the industry more inclusive for everyone.”

Choosing Essential unlocks a suite of career-boosting features for only $9.99/month USD*!

• Create a profile and resume
• Receive and confirm Audition and Media Requests
• Customize and receive notifications for Saved Searches
• Store up to 1 GB of swappable media
• Get discovered by agents and managers through Talent Scout^®
• Access our iOS app to create reels on the go and respond to alerts

* For international pricing, please see our support article: How much does Casting Networks cost?

Essential for Talent Representatives and Managers

As more talent join Casting Networks with the new Essential membership, talent representatives will have more opportunities to connect with them via Talent Scout^®.

Plus, all Casting Networks memberships now include swappable media, enhancing talents’ ability to continuously update photos and other media, ensuring their profiles remain fresh and engaging.

Talent can monitor media storage usage, including how much space each file uses, how much is used by different types of files, and the total amount of media storage used.

Any new media, including media you add as a talent representative, counts towards that membership’s allocated storage capacity. However, swapping media is simple – talent can just archive the files they no longer need to free up more space. Media is eligible for archiving 21 days after it is uploaded. Free members get 350 MB, Essential members get 1 GB and Premium members get 3.5 GB (currently unrestricted).

Learn more: Essential for Talent Representatives

Essential for Casting Directors

With the addition of Essential to our membership options, more emerging, unrepresented and small-market talent will have the opportunity to submit for roles. So, if you’re eager for more submissions in order to cast the perfect performer, more talent will now be eligible to submit!

Learn more: Essential for Casting Directors

Keeping the Playing Field Level

As we launch this new membership, we want to remind everyone that no matter which membership talent chooses, that detail remains hidden from talent representatives and casting directors on Casting Networks. And when it comes to casting, every performer who submits or auditions gets the same shot, regardless of their membership type. We’re keeping it equal for everyone on our platform.

The Essential Membership is available now!

To learn more about our new Essential membership, please visit our pricing and support pages.

The post Introducing the Casting Networks Essential Membership for Talent first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Introducing the Casting Networks Essential Membership for Talent appeared first on Casting Networks.

When she’s not diving into data, Hunter is participating in mentorship groups for young women. She took time out of her day to open up about her role, talk about a mentor who inspired the pay-it-forward work she does today and more.

Tell us a little bit about your background and your role at Casting Networks.

My background is very colorful, spanning different regions and different businesses, but always in the operations and people space. I think operations has a natural transition to people because business ops are only as effective as the people that are involved in and running them.

I started my very first foray into startups right out of college when I took a vacation to Maui, Hawaii, and connected with a physician over there who had a great business idea and wanted to do a startup. I was involved from the ground up in putting all that together because over in Hawaii there are very few resources. We had to do everything ourselves and it was a really great introduction. I think that’s when I caught the bug for startups.

Many startups, mergers, acquisitions and an IPO later, I ended up here at Talent Systems because it has all of the pieces in the puzzle of a company that I get really excited about. The most important part to me is really smart people doing interesting things and caring a lot about the people that work with them and for them.

I’ve come on as the senior vice president of Human Resources to partner with the executive team at a really strategic level to make sure that everything that touches the human capital is nurturing for the people and for the business as well.

What is your favorite part of the job?

My favorite part of the job, honestly, is watching everything click together. I know I’ve done a good job when two things happen- first, when employee satisfaction is high and second, when the business is healthy. When people are happy and they feel engaged and fulfilled, then the business naturally also thrives and I believe that those two things are very much interdependent.

I’m a data person and I’m a process person, which is not always the case for a Human Resources person, but I really enjoy solving problems and helping people find their inspiration and motivation so they can do the things they need to do and do them more effectively.

What are you most excited about working on here?

I’m excited to find out what’s working really well for people and what may not be working as well, help connect those things and help improve everyone’s work-life balance as well as everything that goes into driving the people and subsequently moving the business forward.

Despite the recent strikes, I think that the business is in a really exciting place and I think it has a great group of people propelling it forward . I’m most excited about seeing how I can add value to that and help keep on this trajectory that they have by optimizing the People function.

What’s something interesting or unexpected about your role that people would be surprised to know?

I think that Human Resources can sometimes get the reputation of coming in and telling people what they can and can’t do or what they should and shouldn’t do. Many times people are surprised by my philosophy, which is you can do whatever you want to do as a company or a CEO or even as an employee, you just need to be thoughtful and strategic about it – and I can help with both those things!

For me, everything comes down to problem-solving and making good decisions. Arming people with the tools and the information to help them get where they want to go and maybe just providing some alternate routes to get there. You’d be surprised how many things are motivated by miscommunication and how much more productive people can be when they feel seen and heard as opposed to just being told what to do.

What specifically drove you to pursue a career in human relations or Human Resources?

I didn’t pursue a career in human relations. As with most people, it’s something that evolved out of the experiences I was having, what I was doing and what I found I was good at.

What I first started out doing was crafting and helping build businesses, systems, processes and operations. It really evolved for me in the realization that all of those things involve people, and if you want them to be effective, you need to be really good at the people part of it, too.

You realize there are other factors that determine whether people are going to be high performers or not and sometimes you have the ability to move those levers and change that trajectory. It’s not about the person and their potential, it’s about whether you are utilizing their potential in the best way. I found that fascinating.

Is there a mentor or a person who inspired you that you helped you to get to where you are today?

It was a woman that I had met early on in my career who was an employment attorney and a fierce litigator. I had partnered with her on a few employment-related issues and she was just really dynamic. She was vibrant, exciting and interesting. She took me under her wing and really helped me find my voice and I still engage with her to this day.

When I first started out, I was more often than not the only woman in my environment. I would be the only woman on the leadership team, the only woman on the executive team or in the Board room. Those can be tricky waters to navigate and it was really important for me to have strong female guidance and support to help me gain my footing and build my confidence. I think that’s probably the case for many women and any underrepresented group in the business world.

She was and is still a great mentor to me and I try to give that back in as many ways as possible. A lot of it is through the work that I do, like creating mentorship opportunities for people within companies, building training programs that promote awareness of systemic and unconscious bias and creating equitable structure around things like compensation, titling and growth paths to ensure people are given access, opportunities and advancement for the right reasons.

The post Meet the Team: Marla Hunter, Senior Vice President of Human Resources first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Meet the Team: Marla Hunter, Senior Vice President of Human Resources appeared first on Casting Networks.