In person its almost distracting how gorgeous she is, says Ingram. How to Get Cast on a TV Series via Self-Tape | Backstage Fuck yeah!. WEBN Reporter Ali Inglese sat down with "Breaking Bad" Casting Directors Sharon Bialy and Sherry Thomas. While eager to gather a diverse troupe for Mindy Kaling and Lang Fishers series, casting directors Collin Daniel and Brett Greenstein quickly realized that until they had nailed down their series leads, there was no ensemble to assemble. Its great to virtually meet you, Sherry, and lets kick things off right at the beginning of your career. So, I was working with Shawn Ryan and Sharon was working with David Mamet, I mean, it was like a big deal. She came in for Mo [Zoeys neighbor, played by gender-fluid actor Alex Newell], and everybody remembered her when we were casting [Zoeys sister-in-law] Emily, says Ulrich. Over the course of my daughters lives my oldest is going to be 12 in September and my youngest is 10 Ive probably forgotten to pick them up from school about 20 times. Now, I would never assume that Melissa McCarthy would be so interested in my life that she would say yes to playing me in a series about it. Im always thrilled when stunt casting works, because people immediately feel a sense of connection by knowing somebody from the past, he says. Our approach to that is a direct line of communication. And I have now grown to see what a great dramatic actor he is, in the role of Zoeys brother, says Ulrich. Look, I think Bill Hader is in a category all his own. BIALY / THOMAS CASTING - The Casting Society of America That openheartedness that Gidget needed to have, Skyler innately has., J. Producer: Indecent Proposal. How did you come to realize that casting was the job for you? Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, The 2020 Emmys are closer than you think. Natalies name came up at the very beginning, and she is someone who Liz liked but we were originally told she wasnt available. And so, were sitting in the session, and he walks in and everybody says, hi. Hes a wonderful actor. So he was intrigued. Sherry Thomas: I think it is a little bit of both. He doesnt necessarily work with people twice in a row, so we didnt immediately go to Regina, says Thomas. Its also an emotional drama. And so I said, Oh my God, oh my God, Michael Rispoli is going to be in town from New York and we need to get him in. Its good to be (Regina) King: The Oscar winner might win her fourth Emmy for her portrayal of Angela Aybar/Sister Night in Watchmen., The Doctor is in: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II was a surprise choice to play Dr. Manhattan in HBOs Watchmen.. Thats a fantastic pick! But Luca is very connected to the human side of actors, so I think he connected with her., Chlo [as Frasers other mother] is someone I have loved from the beginning. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Was that hard at all? Get to Know the Casting Director: Sherry Thomas, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. There would be years where people would be like, Where did you get all these drug addicts? . Photo Credit: Deanna Baldwin Boyd, courtesy of Sherry Thomas. You really need to find actors who can do all of those things which can be challenging. Casting Directors From 'Never Have I Ever,' 'Zoey's Extraordinary His instinct was that she was the perfect fit for the part, and he didnt give up. Was that something you were both conscious of when originally casting him? Casting a Casting Director: How Allison Jones Ended Up in Front of the The actors dont care that they come in 10 times and didnt get the part, because they know that one time with us they will., Once you have Matthew Rhys, you want to make sure whoever is opposite isnt wiped off the screen, says Bialy of their lead. Sherry Thomas, Casting Director. Did it make your job easier or was it challenging having actors come in with a preconceived notion of what the show should be? For Lady Sherlock series publicity inquiries (media coverage, review copies, and interviews), please contact Tara O'Connor at Penguin Random House [Laughs] I love them, as well as my husband, and we all have fun together. How did you guys bring her on? Bradley Whitford @BradleyWhitford 10 months ago. We are very passionate about not pigeonholing actors. Sherry Thomas - Managing Director, Global Strategic Advisory - Guy Exclusive: AMCs Emmy episode submissions for Breaking Bad & Mad Men, Even though Breaking Bad is over, Bialy and Thomas are still involved in that universe thanks to their casting of the spin-off series Better Call Saul. However, Bialy warns us, I cant tell you anything about Better Call Saul. Were sworn to secrecy! Theyre also keeping busy casting Halt and Catch Fire, which just ended its first season on AMC, Foxs upcoming comic-book series Gotham and TVs biggest ratings hit The Walking Dead., Hey, whats with all the dark shows on their resumes? Seriously. And I said, Yeah, I think its going to be really cool and really interesting. Let me try it. For Austin Winsbergs musical extravaganza, Ulrich was asked to put together a cast that could sing, dance and pretend none of it is really happening. And Sherry was like, Shes so smart. Its going to be hard for us because we love to be in the room with them. And especially for kids, dont try that hard in the slate to be liked and all of that, its just, Hey, Im Lance Carter, Im five foot 10. She needed the right role to be able to show that shes not just someone whos gorgeous, and Mississippi allows her to do that., Elarica [as dancer Autumn Night] has a very openhearted vulnerability that comes forward when you just look in her eyes, says Ingram. And my sister has had her own salon for about 35 years now its called the Hairspace Salon in Easthampton, Massachusetts. Murdoch has survived scandal after scandal. Liz Feldman has a great knowledge of actors and comedic actors. Liz Feldman, Christina Applegate, Jessica Elbaum, and all of our producers fell in love with working with him and figuring out a complex way to bring him back. Its definitely a world that were extremely interested in.. Natalie [Morales] was someone [showrunner Liz Feldman] had in mind from the beginning, but she was working on a movie. We would give a little context of the tone. You learn what you want to change moving forward. For the vampire mockuseries What We Do in the Shadows, nominees Gayle Keller, Jenny Lewis and Sara Kay find themselves looking for actors who dont look like typical actors. RS: With Katey, we wanted someone who is very special because there is a lot to unpack there with Lindas mother being in prison. ST: I dont think any character was as challenging as Natalies. Sharon Bialy & Sherry Thomas Q&A: 'Breaking Bad' casting The Envelope spoke with some of TVs top casting directors about their part in helping stories get told and actors get Emmy nominated. She has been nominated for eight Emmys (The Handmaid's Tale, Barry, Breaking Bad) and 19 CSA nominations. Good lighting is typical, and shooting from the right angle, and just be yourself in the slate. Among them, theyre responsible for five of the shows nominated for casting Emmys this year as well as a host of others that have received acting nominations in the past. Name one of your favorite television shows and its a sure bet that Sharon Bialy and Sherry Thomas were the casting directors for at least one of them. Bruce and Lizzie were thrilled with him. Hes coming in this week. . Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. Thats how we kept bringing up Natalie Morales. In a COVID and post-COVID world do you think youre job will permanently change? 'Breaking Bad' casting directors Sharon Bialy & Sherry Thomas 'very ST: I think this year is so off kilter. You dont have to try to crack jokes and just be yourself. So, I got that part covered. We will never, ever be an office that is strictly self-taped. I dont want to make it sound so righteous, but I think it was just a good, interesting, and different way to go. It is how we really modulate a performance. THE PHIL SPECTOR BIOPIC (HBO Movie): David Mamet, Writer-Director Barry Levinson, Michael Hausman, Exec Producers Starring: Al Pacino, Helen Mirren, Jeffrey Tambor, Chiwetel Eji of or (HBO) WIDOW DETECTIVE (pilot): Carol Mendelsohn, David Hubbard, Julie Weitz, Davis Guggenheim, Exec Producers RS: We went through that entire process and read a lot of people. And I also just love her as a person. [Tim] talks about the spirit and the soul of the actor marrying with the spirit and the soul of the character, says Thomas. Then he went to dinner with Regina and came back and said, Why didnt I just I feel so ashamed. Because here, on a plate, is this great actress. . The driving force was that this world felt real, [that] we could see these people living here, Ingram says. It seems that reboots are a dime a dozen these days. Slowly they realized that Maitreyi and Jaren have this really great chemistry, so it naturally evolved into this love triangle, which was really fun to see., Finding stars for a show that centers entirely on musical numbers is not the daunting task one imagines especially if you were the casting director of Glee and have an enormous roster of singing actors at your disposal. Contact | Sherry Thomas We have to experience the duality of his life, and that heartbreak, and the choices he makes., I remember in the audition process, the actors had to say to Mississippi how they could take care of her abusive boyfriend, Ingram recalls. I mean, its just, its incredible. Skylar is obviously a name, but hes also just a real standout, an extraordinary singer and actor., Michael Thomas Grant, who plays [rival coworker] Leif, I knew from The Glee Project, says the casting director. And were really fing funny! You really want to buy into that environment. She cites the scenes with Mark Proksch as energy vampire Colin Robinson in his workplace. Every actor that comes in, even if they dont get the job, we keep a lot of notes . Well often write notes like, Remember for BCS because theres a naturalistic approach to the acting on the show; its not showy at all. One thing I love about casting this show is that its not just a lot of offers. We were finding choices and some incredible singers, but it just clicked when it became Alex. In 1974, Sherry joined Talent Associates, as an executive in charge of development. Often times we are reading more people for those roles than anything else. Casting Director Casting Department Producer IMDbPro Starmeter See rank Sharon Bialy is known for Rudy (1993), The Handmaid's Tale (2017) and Barry (2018). Sign up for emails from Casting Networks News. I hope she never sees us. Survivor Users Leaderboard Coming Soon! Wiley plays the rebellious Moira on Handmaids and has one Emmy win in three nominations for the role. She was kind of in my head when I read it. Unsurprisingly, the series' casting directors are Sharon Bialy and Sherry Thomas, who have each been nominated for seven Emmy Awards for casting. AppleTV+ Casting Director Panel with Lucinda Syson, Theo Park, Sherry Sherry Thomas is represented by the brilliant Kristin Nelson of . And Peter [Gallagher, as Maggies husband, Mitch] obviously had been on Broadway. Members | The Casting Society of America Livin' the dream. Jonathan [Masons employer], was the first one. You can see a number of actors for an audition before that one person comes in, and everything just clicks. But now that the show has cooked its last batch of blue meth and said goodbye to the Albuquerque sunset, Bialy and Thomas finally heard their names called on nominations morning, along with Kiira Arai, in the Best Drama Casting category. Interview: Jeremy Davis on Playing Olaf in Frozen, Costume Mishaps and Making the Role His Own, Interview: Casting Director Kim Coleman on Five Days at Memorial, Self-Tape Tips and Portraying Real People, Interview: David Christopher Wells on His Role in To Kill a Mockingbird, Being an Understudy and Getting His MFA, Interview: Clifton Collins Jr. and Molly Parker on Jockey, Research and Bad Auditions, Ted Lasso Star Phil Dunster on How He Got the Role of Jamie Tartt, Theres No Such Thing As Chemistry In Acting. And, speaking from first hand experience, they are the best people to audition for. Jeremy O. Harris was cast in a small role in FXs What We Do in the Shadows. Co-showrunner Jemaine Clement then wrote an episode just for him. She was the lead casting director on this one and what she did was really take actors that are known for one thing and respect them and the breath of their talent and say, Im going to try something else here. The bar has been set and we set it for ourselves as creative people with high standards. ST: Not for us particularly. We discussed a bunch of people [for the role of Caitlins father, an Army lieutenant] and then it just felt natural for Scott and Luca to meet. RS: A lot of times those small roles are the hardest to cast. Im not just saying that because hes my boss Im saying that because Ive had the privilege of watching the dailies [raw, unedited footage shot during a filming day] for Barry and have gotten to see his work from all angles. And as a casting director, it feeds my soul to get to go through the whole collaborative process of finding that person who just pops in a role. Thats why you guys are so successful and all the shows you do, which are fantastic. AD: I imagine one of the more interesting challenges of that character is finding someone who can believably portray someone who has both dated Ana (Diana-Maria Riva) and Judy. In Season 1, says Keller, Harvey Guilln, who costars as Guillermo, familiar to one of the vampires, starts talking to this other familiar at a party, and it was a very nondescript part. Thats what it is all about. Casting just felt right for me. Then he was totally game to be in the last episode in front of the camera., After co-creator and executive producer Mindy Kaling tweeted an open casting call for series lead Devi Vishwakumar, the casting directors discovered newcomer Ramakrishnan. Hes not afraid to try things. We really needed someone for that role who would be able to come in and immediately keep up with Linda, Christina, and James who had already gelled. Sharon Bialy: Right. But I dont think that it is ever more important than having the right person. Of course, the greatest discovery of this musical comedy is its lead, Jane Levy, best known to viewers for her comedic skills on the ABC series Suburgatory. Burrows eventually recommended Thomas for her first paying job in the industry, working as an assistant to the location casting director the person charged with hiring extras for movie and TV . I think we all miss being in the room with actors and I think a lot of the actors miss it as well, because theres something that you just get from being in the room with someone and the ability to play. There was somebody we just couldnt hire recently that is absolutely not known for comedy. Kay says, I met with [showrunners Jemaine Clement and Paul Simms] in the beginning, and they were like, You know, just bring us good faces. So, theres time to do a little bit of research and we tried to educate people as much as possible that this was based on the podcast based on a true story. Hes being very humble right now, but it took a lot of strategizing and basically producing. What are some self-tape tips that you have? Sherry Thomas: Theres an energy. Sharon and I have been business partners for 25 years, and were very inserted in each others lives at this point. It was fun to be able to draw on somebody that I had thought was so talented for so long.. And also, it was shot in LA, in Los Angeles, so everything is large and on a big scale. I think we will all be more mindful of that process, but I also dont want to be in a room with an actor with a giant piece of plexiglass between us. And also sometimes not having all the producers in the room gives the actor, even on a zoom call back with us, we can play with them more and theyre not trying to please everybody, theyre just concentrating on the work. But even with such a rsum, the highly sought-after casting director came across as nothing short of a grounded, down-to-earth individual when she sat down with Casting Networks via Zoom. In the case of Lawrence Gilliard, that role was. Disclaimer: Daily Actor at times uses affiliate links to sites like Amazon.com, streaming services, and others. DEAD TO ME - Sherry Thomas, Russell Scott, Sharon Bialy, Alyssa Morris (Associate) It was really sort of a meeting of the minds and people coming together on the choices. I love her performances and everything she does, and Luca felt the same way., Jack has a lot of experience in movies and TV, so he had a flexibility as far as craft goes, Cuba says. They met and he loved him, and that was that., There is no shortage of star wattage in the dark origin story of the legendary defense lawyer, but there is an art to combining such talent. AD: Before we jump into the new characters of the second season, I wanted to talk about the shocking twist at the beginning of the season; the return of James Marsden with a new character. He is fantastic. But Cornell Womack, hes a pro, we know him. Thats me, Thomas says. As a freelance writer for me at Modern Luxury, NS magazine, Sherry pitched and wrote creative . And sometimes the sides are fake. Join Facebook to connect with Sherry Thomas Lane and others you may know. We have been very lucky on this show. I personally just do my best to be as organized as possible and stay present in the moment, taking it one day at a time. I get on the phone with agents, and the casting process goes on from there. We dont get the opportunity to give immediate feedback and really do the other part of our title which is direct. And if an actor does the wrong choice and they come in the room, you can easily give them direction and play with it and get them more relaxed and support them. So we can say, No, this is the Bob Odenkirk character youre reading with. And its like, oh, a light bulb goes off, but we cant in email.

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