Casting

Directors often say that most of directing actors is casting. The line is an exaggeration, but it contains an important truth: no amount of rehearsal or clever direction can turn the wrong actor into the right one. Casting decides who the audience will watch for every minute of the film, what kind of performance the film can contain and how characters relate to each other on screen. This lesson covers how casting works, how a director prepares for and runs auditions, how to judge what you see, and how to make casting decisions that are fair, practical and good for the film.

Casting is also where the director first meets the actors as collaborators. The way a director runs auditions, gives notes and treats people in the room sets the tone for the working relationship to come. Actors talk to each other, and a director who treats auditions with respect builds a reputation that attracts strong performers.

Who does what in casting

On most professional productions a casting director leads the process. The casting director knows the acting community, maintains relationships with agents, proposes actors, organizes auditions and negotiates or helps negotiate deals with the producers. Casting directors may have assistants and associates, and larger productions may have separate casting directors for principal roles, background performers and regional or international casting.

The director's role is to define what each role needs, to review proposed actors, to run or attend auditions and callbacks, and to make or strongly influence the final choices. Producers, financiers and, for television, broadcasters or streamers often have approval over lead roles, because the cast affects financing and marketing. On a student or low-budget film the director may do all the casting work personally, which makes a clear process even more important.

Defining what a role needs

Before seeing a single actor, the director should be able to describe each role in terms that go beyond appearance and age. What does the character want? What is their essential quality, such as warmth, danger, intelligence or fragility? What range of emotion must the actor reach? What is the character's relationship to the others, and what qualities must contrast or match? Are there practical requirements, such as a language, an accent, a skill like horse riding, or physical demands?

These descriptions become the casting breakdown, a document sent to agents describing each role. A useful breakdown is specific about the character and open about everything that does not matter to the story. Restricting a role to a particular ethnicity, body type or age range when the story does not require it narrows the field unnecessarily and can exclude excellent actors. Many productions now write breakdowns that describe the character's situation and qualities and invite submissions from performers of all backgrounds, unless the story specifically requires otherwise.

Inclusive and authentic casting

Questions of who should play whom are among the most discussed in contemporary filmmaking. Two principles are widely cited. Inclusive casting means opening roles to performers from groups that have been under-represented on screen, including racialized performers, Indigenous performers, performers with disabilities and performers of diverse gender identities. Authentic casting means casting performers who share a character's lived identity, particularly for characters defined by disability, Indigenous identity or gender identity.

Views differ about how far authentic casting should extend. Supporters argue that it corrects long histories of exclusion and caricature, gives performers from under-represented communities access to the roles written about them, and often produces more truthful work. Others argue that acting is by nature the art of playing someone you are not, and worry that strict rules could limit actors and reduce opportunities in practice. Many productions take a middle path: they seek authentic casting for roles where identity is central to the story, consult with communities and cultural advisors, and cast openly elsewhere.

In Canada, Telefilm Canada, the Canada Media Fund and broadcasters have introduced programs and data collection to support under-represented creators, and Indigenous-led bodies such as the Indigenous Screen Office have published protocols for stories involving Indigenous communities. Canadian content certification rules also matter: for a production to qualify for federal tax credits, points are awarded when key creative positions, including the highest-paid performers, are filled by Canadians, which affects casting choices on many productions.

Auditions, self-tapes and the room

Auditions take several forms. In a general audition actors perform prepared scenes, called sides, from the script. Increasingly the first round is a self-tape: the actor records the sides at home and submits the file. Self-tapes widened access for actors outside major centres and became standard during the pandemic, though they shift costs and time onto actors. Union agreements now include provisions about self-taped auditions, such as limits on the material requested, and many casting directors publish guidelines about length, framing and readers.

Sides should be chosen to show what the role needs. For a lead, choose a scene that reveals the character's core and one that shows range. Keep the material short: two scenes of one to three pages are usually enough for a first round. Long sides waste actors' time and tell you little more.

In-person or live online auditions let the director see how an actor takes direction. Typically the actor performs the scene once as prepared, the director gives an adjustment, and the actor performs again. The adjustment is the most revealing part of the audition, because it shows whether the actor listens, how flexible they are and how they respond to the kind of direction you will give on set. A common and useful approach is to give an adjustment that is different rather than better: "This time, play it as if she has already decided to leave."

Running a fair and humane audition

Auditions are stressful for actors. A well-run room helps them do their best work, which is also what the director needs to make a good choice. Start on time, introduce everyone in the room, explain briefly what the scene is and what you are looking for, and give the actor a moment to settle. Use a skilled reader who gives the actor something real to play against. Keep phones away. Thank every actor, whatever you think of their reading.

Some practices are now widely recognized as unacceptable. Auditions should never take place in private residences or hotel rooms without proper safeguards. Directors should not ask for nudity or simulated sex in a first audition; where such scenes are part of the role, union rules and best-practice guidance require advance notice, an intimacy coordinator or appropriate protocols and, often, a chaperone or representative present. Questions about an actor's private life, health or family plans are inappropriate and may be unlawful. The safest guide is to keep everything about the audition focused on the work.

Callbacks and chemistry reads

After a first round, the director and casting director narrow the field and invite the strongest actors back for callbacks. Callbacks usually go deeper: more scenes, more adjustments and often a session with producers. For roles that depend on relationships, the most valuable callback is the chemistry read, in which actors read together. Two strong actors may create no spark together, while two less obvious choices may produce something electric. For the sisters in the kitchen scene, a chemistry read would be essential.

import math
roles = {"Dana": 40, "Maya": 45, "Lawyer": 20}   # self-tapes received
first_round_rate = 0.25   # share invited to a live first round
callback_rate = 0.30      # share of first round invited to callback
slot_minutes = 15         # per actor in the first round
callback_minutes = 25
day_minutes = 7 * 60 - 60 # seven hours minus breaks
total_first = total_call = 0
for role, tapes in roles.items():
    first = math.ceil(tapes * first_round_rate)
    call = max(2, math.ceil(first * callback_rate))
    total_first += first
    total_call += call
    print(f"{role:7s} tapes {tapes:3d}  first round {first:2d}  callbacks {call}")
print(f"First-round time: {total_first * slot_minutes} min = {total_first * slot_minutes / day_minutes:.1f} days")
# chemistry reads: every Dana callback paired with every Maya callback
d = math.ceil(math.ceil(roles['Dana'] * first_round_rate) * callback_rate)
m = math.ceil(math.ceil(roles['Maya'] * first_round_rate) * callback_rate)
pairs = d * m
print(f"Chemistry pairings (Dana x Maya): {d} x {m} = {pairs}")
print(f"Callback and chemistry time: {(total_call * callback_minutes + pairs * 10) / 60:.1f} h")

Dana    tapes  40  first round 10  callbacks 3
Maya    tapes  45  first round 12  callbacks 4
Lawyer  tapes  20  first round  5  callbacks 2
First-round time: 405 min = 1.1 days
Chemistry pairings (Dana x Maya): 3 x 4 = 12
Callback and chemistry time: 5.8 h

The arithmetic shows why chemistry reads must be planned. Pairing every finalist for one role with every finalist for another grows quickly, so casting directors often schedule actors in overlapping blocks and rotate pairings. Planning also protects actors from long, unpaid waits.

Judging what you see

Judging auditions is difficult, because you are imagining a performance that does not yet exist. Several questions help. Does the actor understand the scene, especially its subtext? Do they listen and respond to the reader, or deliver lines regardless of what they receive? Do they bring something you had not imagined that feels true? How do they take an adjustment? Can you imagine watching them for the length of the film? Does the camera like them, which is hard to define but easy to see on a monitor?

Beware of some common traps. Directors sometimes cast the actor who most resembles the picture in their head, rather than the one who brings the character most fully to life. They may favour the most polished first reading over the actor who grew most with direction. They may be swayed by how much they enjoyed meeting someone. Reviewing tapes later, with fresh eyes and with the casting director, helps correct for first impressions.

Offers, name actors and deals

Not every role is cast through auditions. Established actors usually receive offers based on their previous work, sometimes after a meeting with the director. Financing often depends on attaching a recognizable name to a lead role, which can create pressure to cast for marketability. Directors must weigh this carefully: a name actor may make the film possible, but miscasting a lead damages the film permanently. Strong directors argue for the actor who serves the story, while understanding the producers' constraints.

Professional performers in Canada are usually members of ACTRA, or of UBCP/ACTRA in British Columbia, and productions engaging them work under agreements such as the Independent Production Agreement, which sets minimum fees, working conditions and rules for auditions, nudity and minors. Deals for principal performers are negotiated with agents within these minimums.

Once a choice is made, the production confirms availability, negotiates terms and issues contracts. Directors should inform actors who were not cast, or make sure the casting director does. A brief, respectful message costs little and is remembered.

Casting the whole ensemble

Casting decisions are not independent. Each actor changes what the others need to be. If Dana is cast with a quiet, contained actor, Maya might benefit from someone more volatile, or the director might want two contained actors whose restraint makes the eventual break more powerful. Supporting roles and even small speaking parts matter: a weak performance in a one-line role can break the reality of a scene.

Background performers, sometimes called extras, are usually cast by a separate background casting company. The director should brief them on what each scene needs: the kind of people, their energy, their wardrobe. A crowded funeral reception full of people who look bored or self-conscious can undo careful work in the foreground. Lesson 9 covers directing crowds.