“I just grew up at a time where I couldn’t name one female director…or not a single woman would get on stage to accept a producer award at the Oscars…representation matters because if you don’t see it, you don’t know that you can do it. Being a woman on the other side of the camera was not something that I ever saw.”
-Ellyn Jameson
“Then the desperation went away and I had an ease in audition rooms that I’d never had before because I had a life outside of wanting someone to pick me.”
-Dominic Burgess
“It happened entirely because I was following the path that was put in front of me without a tremendous amount of judgment around it. And I’m a judgy motherfucker…if I can do this, anyone can.”
-Johnathan McClain
“Walk into every room, and everything you ever write, and everything you create, and just make it you, just authentically you. And most of the time, the people who’ll respond to it will love it because you’re being yourself and there’s only one of you in the world. And it feels amazing when you put yourself forward and people reward you for it.”
-Caroline Lindy
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The Acting Podcast
Ep 62: Casting Virtual Roundtable: CDs tell it like it is
Show Notes: Season 1!
Show Notes: Season 2!
Show Notes: Season 3!
Casting Virtual Roundtable: CDs tell it like it is
~A conversation with 6 brilliant Casting Artists~ with (in alphabetical order) Juel Bestrop, Randi Hiller, Billy Hopkins, Hedi Levitt, Bernie Telsey, Mary Vernieu & Risa!
I sat down on Zoom with a few of my favorite people/artists/Casting Directors to talk about our world of Casting. This group is connected to each other in having established their careers working with me and my former casting partner, Billy Hopkins, starting decades ago. They are forever family. And they have become the most formidable Casting Artists in the world.
We assembled. We reminisced about the good old days of Casting, when it felt like art. We complained (just for a bit) about the current state of the Industry, its radically changing financial structures, the reliance on Zoom and self-tapes dominating how we work, and disconnecting us from our collaborators, especially from actors. We acknowledged what we miss, what we love, and what we crave. We talked about what we want from actors and how all Casting Directors ferociously combat the obstacles that are in the way of doing our best work. In the end, we are all fighting the good fight…for the work, for art, for actors…every day!
Listen in, and let us know what resonates for you. Most of all, I hope that this reminds you that we are all in this dance, this fight, this art…together. And that we must all be accountable to protect it.
Watch the video version; it’s fun!
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Your words will help connect us all and bring these valuable conversations to even more actors- and other artists- around the world.
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If you’ve missed any episodes, catch up now!
Guests & Resources:
Learn more about each Casting Director below!
Juel Bestrop
Juel Bestrop is the Queen of Comedy Casting. She’s taken her place as one of the most significant comedy casting directors in the world. Juel’s casting credits include feature films such as The Cable Guy, Sweet Home Alabama, Starsky & Hutch, Zoolander, DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Blades of Glory, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, Austin Powers: Goldmember, and The Hangover. On television, she has contributed significantly to comedy series, including Community, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Night Court, Eastbound & Down, and Shifting Gears.
Check out Juel’s IMDb HERE.
Randi Hiller
Randi Hiller is an award-winning casting director with over 100 credits across independent and major studio productions. Her work includes Academy Award winner Crash, Academy Award-nominated In the Bedroom, Warrior, Thor, Iron Man, Avengers, Miracle, Blue Crush, Crazy/Beautiful, The Fast and the Furious, Coach Carter, Terminator 3, In the Valley of Elah, Life as a House, Five, Don't Mess with the Zohan, The One and Only Ivan, and Cinema Verite for HBO.
From 2011 to 2020, Randi served as Head of Casting for Walt Disney Motion Picture Studios, and from 2020 to 2026 as Executive Vice President of Casting for Walt Disney Motion Picture Studios, 20th Century Studios, and Searchlight Pictures. During her tenure, she oversaw casting on more than 100 additional films, including Cinderella, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Beauty and the Beast, Rogue One, Mary Poppins Returns, Aladdin, Lilo & Stitch, The Lion King, Cruella, Alien: Romulus, Send Help, The Devil Wears Prada 2, and many others.
Randi is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, the British Academy of Film and Television, the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Casting Society of America (CSA). She has received two Emmy nominations, 16 CSA Artios Award nominations, and three Artios Award wins.
Check out Randi’s IMDb HERE.
Billy Hopkins
Billy Hopkins is a casting director of film, television, and theatre. His first job was as a casting intern at the off-Broadway Ensemble Studio Theatre, where he met Risa Bramon Garcia. They were hired by Susan Seidelman to cast their first film, DESPERATELY SEEKING SUSAN. They went on to cast many of the most notable films of the 80s and 90s, including Adrian Lyne’s FATAL ATTRACTION, and several films for Oliver Stone, including BORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY and JFK, as well as John Hughes CHRISTMAS VACATION. Their first television credit was ROSEANNE. Billy has gone on to cast over 200 films. He received an Emmy for his work on Ava DuVernay’s limited television series, WHEN THEY SEE US. He lives in NYC and continues casting to this day.
Check out Billy’s IMDb HERE.
Heidi Levitt
Heidi Levitt is an acclaimed casting director whose career spans over 100 feature films, from the Academy Award-winning The Artist to Michael Bay’s The Rock. Widely respected for her discerning eye and deep commitment to independent cinema, she has collaborated with a diverse slate of visionary filmmakers, including Oliver Stone, Wayne Wang, Sally Potter, Wim Wenders, Rodrigo García, Haifaa Al-Mansour, Kim Nguyen, and Victor Nuñez, among many others.
In addition to her celebrated work in casting, Heidi completed her directorial debut, the documentary Walk With Me. The film premiered at the Hamptons International Film Festival in October 2024, and received a Special Jury Prize for Directing. The film has screened in festivals across the US and abroad in 2025 and is in theatrical release now with Outsider Pictures touring North America. It will be broadcast in the fall of 2026 on PBS with details to be announced shortly. A profoundly personal and lyrical portrait, Walk With Me follows her husband, Charlie, who was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease at 57 and shows us the evolution of her marriage and life. Filmed over four years, the documentary is an exploration of memory, identity, and the quiet strength of enduring love. Heidi is a graduate of Barnard College and The American Film Institute. For information on film release visit: www.walkwithmedoc.com
@heidela @walkwithmedoc
Check out Heidi’s IMDb HERE.
Bernard Telsey
Bernard Telsey, along with his team at The Telsey Office, has cast such films as Wicked For
Good, Wicked, Oh What Fun, Kiss of the Spider-Woman, Plainclothes, The Idea of You, The Color Purple, Mean Girls: The Musical, In the Heights, Tick, Tick...BOOM, The Little Mermaid Live Action, Mary Poppins Returns, The Greatest Showman, Into the Woods, and the upcoming Moana Live Action, The Man With The Bag, Verity, Best of the Best, Honey Moon With Harry, Octet, and Being Heumann.
Some recent television credits include The Gilded Age, Only Murders In The Building, Paradise, Not Suitable For Work, Beauty, American Classic, And Just Like That, All’s Fair, This Is Us, and the upcoming Count My Lies.
Some theatre credits include Ragtime, Schmigadoon, The Lost Boys, Titanique, Dog Day Afternoon, Maybe Happy Ending, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, Sweeney Todd, Kimberly Akimbo, Parade, Some Like It Hot, Into the Woods, MJ: The Musical, Hamilton, Wicked, Kinky Boots, Hairspray, In the Heights, and Rent.
He is one of the co-Artistic Directors of MCC Theater, and he was the 2016 recipient of the Casting Society of America’s Hoyt Bowers Award for his contributions to the profession. He is a member of AMPAS, BAFTA, and CSA, and served on the Academy Board of Governors, representing the Casting Branch.
Check out Bernard’s IMDb HERE.
Mary Vernieu
Mary Vernieu has been a passionate and groundbreaking leader in the casting industry for over 30 years. With a keen eye for talent in actors and filmmakers alike, Mary is so grateful to have worked on countless amazing projects and developed long-standing working relationships with many acclaimed artists over her career. Mary has been nominated for three Emmys for The Last of Us, Euphoria, and Pam & Tommy. Nurturing the next generation of casting creatives at her company, Betty Mae, named in a loving homage to her mother and grandmother, Mary is a committed proponent of collaboration and dynamism from early concepts and throughout every step of the process. Mary would like to thank Risa Bramon Garcia for her incredible mentorship and for inviting her to participate in this podcast among such talented peers.
Check out Mary’s IMDb HERE.
And here is Risa’s Bio and IMDb as a reminder.
Listen to other related The Acting Podcast episodes:
Episode 23: Mary Queen of Casting: A Candid Conversation w/ Mary Vernieu
Episode 12: Bernie Telsey: The King of Casting
Episode 20: Sarah Finn: Superhero of Casting
Episode 18: Talking Shop w/ Our BGB Casting Family: Risa, Leah, & Billy
Episode 38: Richard Hicks, CD: We’re All In This Together
Episode 40: Opening the Door to Commercial Casting: with Danielle Eskinazi & Renita Gale
Credits:
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