sherry thomas lane casting director sherry thomas lane casting director

As a freelance writer for me at Modern Luxury, NS magazine, Sherry pitched and wrote creative . AD: This wasnt your only nomination this year. [Laughs] Sharon always says that she spends a lot of money to get her hair done for special events like the Emmys, only to ultimately wind up at my house so I can fix it. . This cast is definitely a combination of people who Luca knew hed have to shepherd along. Of Seamn, whose outwardly confident Caitlin struggles with gender identity, Cuba adds, But its funny, because we thought this going in, and then Jordan turned out to somehow be a savant and know how to do everything, even though shed had no experience., I have auditioned [Scott] over the years for various things. Sherry Thomas: They called him, pitched him and Sharon says, huh. Shes just someone Ive been watching. You are known for bringing in people who are looked at one way, and then you sort of have given this whole new sort of light, this new career almost to them. Bialy, Thomas and Russell Scott are nominated twice this year, for Dead to Me along with Handmaids Tale. Another of their shows, Better Call Saul, now has 11 acting nominations. If someone made a series about your life story, which actor would you cast to play the role of Sherry Thomas? I get told all the time that I remind people of Melissa McCarthy. But who to play the enigmatic Dr. Manhattan? "I've known and worked with Sherry in different capacities over the past 7 years. Well, Russell was able to work with production to make it happen, adds Thomas. With Tyler as Diamond, when you see him experience that, you dont question whether or not thats his truth., We all loved [Harriett] from the beginning. We started back in February of 2020, right before everything shut down, so Covid added some new challenges and parameters that we had to work within. We checked in on her, and the challenging part was convincing producers to take a chance on an actor that youre very familiar with but they might not be. I think in this particular project that Georgia [Pritchetts] writing was incredible, and the tone was on the page, but still it helped. Sometimes the casting session is slammed, and you have several actors in the waiting room. I really hope the industry is changing to be better in that area, especially for women who want to work and also be moms. Primetime Emmy Awards. But oddly enough, on this show, because on others, we have done producer callbacks over Zoom, we didnt do any. Sharon Bialy: What a nice way to start the day. So find somebody who really is going to, give you a little bit of something to play off of, but not try to sort of make it about them, because thats not what theyre there for. He doesnt necessarily work with people twice in a row, so we didnt immediately go to Regina, says Thomas. 2021 Nominee Primetime Emmy: Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series . She had a feeling I was going to end up in casting, but I wasnt so sure at the time. Her role in "Barry" came about thanks to its casting director, nine-time Emmy nominee Sherry Thomas, as well as the Hollywood satire's dedication to meta humor. AD: Im sure you cant say anything about the final season, but Im curious if you have a dream guest actor that you think would fit perfectly into the world of the show? It was fun to be able to draw on somebody that I had thought was so talented for so long.. Luckily he did. SB: It will change, but we are hoping once this is over to be able to go back to that mixture of in-person and self-tapes. His instinct was that she was the perfect fit for the part, and he didnt give up. Our job is to connect with people to bring out the best performance. Sharon and I have been business partners for 25 years, and were very inserted in each others lives at this point. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. But this is definitely a collaboration between Jack and Luca, and who teenagers are today, in this moment., [The character of Sam Pratchett] was really about mixing and matching with whoever [would be playing his girlfriend] Caitlin. She cites the scenes with Mark Proksch as energy vampire Colin Robinson in his workplace. Twitter Icon Sharon Bialy: Sometimes well know somebody really well and have them read and literally in two lines, Im like, thats it, shes the one. Type above and press Enter to search. Were just gonna have a great time.. And thanks for sharing about the magic of working with the person who not only co-created the show, but who also produces, writes, directs, and stars in it. A naturalistic performance, I think, is what was required in The Shrink Next Door. Actors often think casting directors hardly even pay attention during their auditions. When people used to ask us, I used to say, Oh, our reward is working with Vince Gilligan every day, which we continue to do and thats still true, Bialy told Gold Derby during our recent webchat (watch below). The thing that Luca seemed to be connecting to is a real combination of, could they do the material, but also could he engage in real dialogue with them about what it means to be their age in this moment and incorporate that into the vision that he had., Jordan didnt even have an agent. Fuck yeah!. It was the soul of the actor and what [showrunner Bruce Miller] was looking for.. Weve been able to give multiple women over a certain age really complex material. My partner Sherry Thomas, who casts the show with me, and I have a history of colorblind casting, so we're always looking for the best actor. Oh my God, this is completely the wrong actor that was in my head., And everybody was so nice and so lovely because hes a wonderful actor. Its great to virtually meet you, Sherry, and lets kick things off right at the beginning of your career. I had the highest hopes and no idea that he could sing as well as he could sing. Everything was requested self-tapes, so we would discuss ideas with them for the series regulars, our main players in the piece. And then they would audition and then we would present the people that we really felt were the most right for it. Its hard to pick just a handful of credits that cover the breadth and depth of Sherry Thomas casting rsum. Keep reading for a window into everything from how she works including her Emmy-nominated casting of Barrys third season to what shed be doing if her chosen profession werent an option. AD: What character in the second season proved to be the most challenging? ST: We hadnt discussed the idea in general, probably because of the previous relationship with Christina, and we didnt want to pull anybody out of it. Now in the show's second season, casting directors Sherry Thomas and Russell Scott were tasked with the challenge of expanding on that world and filling out an ensemble that were able to keep up with Applegate and Cardellini. Luca was intrigued [by Alice] and it seemed like a great match. Casting Networks acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land throughout Australia. When you guys watch a self-tape, how long do you spend on it until you move on. The Emmys may be in September but its never too early to look out for potential nominees, including Succession, Schitts Creek and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. The Envelope spoke with some of TVs top casting directors about their part in helping stories get told and actors get Emmy nominated. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, The 2020 Emmys are closer than you think. Sherry Thomas: Ive been a longtime fan of Casey. So, I knew Id have a paycheck once I arrived and took my two weeks vacation to make the trip over and get settled. Sherry Lansing. And sometimes the sides are fake. You learn what you want to change moving forward. So, to be able to support her in a role like this, where she really gets to show what she can do as an actress and the layers and the levels that she has and that she is nuanced, is its exciting. gofund.me/2fffe14f Posts Reels Videos Tagged Search Log In Sign Up And at that time, there were not vaccination mandates in place. 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. Luca is a director whos interested in the rawness and the grounding of truth., Because of City of God, [Alice] is somebody Ive always looked at and always been really curious about, says Cuba of the actress, who plays one of protagonist Frasers mothers, both in the military. We rely so heavily on the loudness, and the shoutiness, and the calling out ideas and really kind of collaborating in that way. Sign up to get must-read entertainment headlines and audition advice delivered to your inbox every weekday. 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. Casting Director Casting Department Producer IMDbPro Starmeter See rank Sharon Bialy is known for Rudy (1993), The Handmaid's Tale (2017) and Barry (2018). Instagram Icon 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. Five seasoned entertainment journalists predict the shows and performances the Television Academy will honor with Emmys; do you agree with their picks? The age had to be appropriate so there would be chemistry with Linda. So, there you have it. We went back to our theatre brains, and Laila Robins is someone I had seen over 25 years ago doing The Real Thing opposite Jeremy Irons. What kind of challenges are there for a show like that where you are three seasons in already? Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter. RT: Can we just put Rhea Seehorn in here? What can you tell us about the process of assembling the cast for its long-awaited third season? Sign Up. Luca was definitely familiar with his music [as Kid Cudi] and loves it. Bradley Whitford @BradleyWhitford 10 months ago. A lot of casting people their choices have shifted to self-tapes and some of them only self-tapes, but for us our choice will always to be in the room with actors. It sounds like you didnt look back after the job found you. We have been very lucky on this show. But if it is a more substantial role with several scenes, two is fine to send to us. By Vinnie Mancuso 12/30/15 10:00am. And I said, Yeah, I think its going to be really cool and really interesting. Often times we are reading more people for those roles than anything else. Sharon Bialy: I think thats a really good note. It was a surprise to us. You were also nominated for your work on the third season of The Handmaids Tale. Through conversation and through hearing about what the role is about in detail and where it will go, the list gets smaller and smaller. I dont think it took an hour for every creative to say, Shes perfect. , The most exciting thing is taking that actor everybody sees one way and flipping expectations, Bialy says. She even officiated when my husband and I were married. Sharon Bialy: I mean, I watch the whole thing. Do you guys prefer two takes on the self-tape? Our job is to hopefully bring her people that she doesnt know yet. You can see a number of actors for an audition before that one person comes in, and everything just clicks. Awards. There would be years where people would be like, Where did you get all these drug addicts? . 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. Your email address will not be published. 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. And he even said, coming in, I dont really know why Im here. Big titles like Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, and The Handmaid's Tale may first come to mind. We would give a little context of the tone. She gave so much more than was even on the page [in the role of Mercedes mom], Ingram says. We wanted to see her because we were such huge fans from all the things that shes done, especially The Night Of. All rights reserved. And he even was like, Im not right for this, but Im here. Actors often think casting directors hardly even pay attention during their auditions. Closing out the conversation we were joined by their casting partner Sharon Bialy to discuss their second nomination of the year for their work on The Handmaids Tale. Despite the mega success of Breaking Bad at the Emmys including three acting wins for Bryan Cranston, a pair for Aaron Paul and one for Anna Gunn casting directors Sharon Bialy and Sherry Thomas have been mysteriously overlooked by the TV Academy year after year. Casting Yvonne Strahovskis mother, we needed someone who could be formidable. So, you give each actor more of an opportunity to really get the role in some ways. Im just blown away with how Bill can be in a scene, fully connected to it as an actor, even when I know his eye as the director and ear as the writer are simultaneously at work. Find out if Bialy and Thomas can win their very first Emmy for Breaking Bad when the Creative Arts Emmys are announced August 16. 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. We can be a force of nature in our career and still want to spend more than an hour and a half with our newborn baby. If its a co-star role and its one scene, a few lines, two takes. Did you experience a lot of actors who struggled to nail the specific tone and how did you help them get there in the audition room? Sherry Thomas: Yep. So, I didnt necessarily find casting it found me. It seems that reboots are a dime a dozen these days. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. And then, Sherry, you redirected me to do something. After first meeting the Massachusetts native a Masshole as she calls it you may feel as if youve known her for much longer. 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. Its going to be hard for us because we love to be in the room with them. How did you end up finding her for the role? Was that hard at all? We actually hit the limit of how many emails Gmail can accept in a day. After Kaling posted the open call on her social media and more than 13,000 submissions poured in, the duo discovered Toronto-based, then-17-year-old Maitreyi Ramakrishnan. Sometimes our job is basically that of a casting director/producer. Thomas says, His agent called me: Oh my God, Vicky, we just learned who he was! and they screamed. We ended up moving the schedule around a little bit for her through communication with her reps and our production team. We all miss it. Natalie [Morales] was someone [showrunner Liz Feldman] had in mind from the beginning, but she was working on a movie. We dont get the opportunity to give immediate feedback and really do the other part of our title which is direct. He fell in love with doing the show. And Sherry was like, Shes so smart. 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. And say, Lets try them for this.. After appearing in two films, Loving (1970) and Rio Lobo (1970), Sherry decided to leave the acting field. You do a drama and they say you can only do drama. I appreciate that insight into collaborating with such a talented multi-hyphenate. How did you guys bring her on? One of their latest shows, the wonderful The Shrink Next Door, just finished its run on Apple+ and the pair took some time out of their busy schedule to talk about casting the show, their thoughts and advice on self-tapes and much more! Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day. However, theres a great deal of team Read More, Two in five Australians between the ages of 16 and 85 experience a mental disorder at some time in Read More, From college basketball tournaments to St. Pattys Day, the new month is synonymous with more than a few events. Read More, I believe there is some anxiety in the air over the expectations for commercial self tapes. He was the heart of the show the first season., Andrew is absolutely hilarious. We put out the offer, and he was on board. Photo Credit: Deanna Baldwin Boyd, courtesy of Sherry Thomas. Sharon Bialy: I think actors often think, Oh, they only think of me for this. Daisy Jones & the Six becomes the first fictional band to hit No. Send it to the producers. The second it became Alex, I ran with it, pushed it, said its a way to really enlighten the world. Thats a fantastic pick! We are very passionate about not pigeonholing actors. I think actors dont think it happens, and it does. In 1974, Sherry joined Talent Associates, as an executive in charge of development. And it worked! As part of our inaugural BackstageFest, longtime casting directors Theo Park ("Ted Lasso," "Master of None"), Sharon Bialy and Sherry Thomas ("Perry Mason," "The Comey Rule," "The. And it happens. Once I opened that door, though, there was no going back. In 1975 she joined MGM as an executive story editor. (photo: Mark Seliger/FOX) Welcome to tvDownload's " Ask a Casting Director ," a new series in which we talk to the men and women . You might look at the character of Lil Murda and think you know this person, but you dont. But Cornell Womack, hes a pro, we know him. That is such a skill, and one I wish I had. That has been nice because so many of these shows are aged for younger women. When we started out, I was her associate for about two years, and then we became partners. Instead its all of the supporting players, the day players, because you have to have great actors, the majority of who are in scenes with Christina and Linda. Sharon Bialy: And it was the hardest thing in the world to not be hysterical, laughing when she wrote, I meant Michael Imperioli. And then we had to go through the audition and Im biting my lip so that I laugh. Back in 2019, Jones played. I dont see it. She created a book this big between her read with casting and her read with Bruce, of her story as the character. 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. He is fantastic. He goes right to the edge, and it works. Press Esc to cancel. The driving force was that this world felt real, [that] we could see these people living here, Ingram says. Everybody knows he is a wonderful actor. You also have to believe that that actor is capable of things you havent seen them do before. Lets try it. Sherry Thomas: Yeah. I would own my own version of a Drybar. Kids is the movie that made me recognize that this was something I could do, and the first movie I did on my own as a casting director was a movie called Bully, which was by the same director as Kids [Larry Clark]. Id actually liken it to the audition process. She was shooting a movie here in LA. With Will Ferrell and Paul Rudd attached to it, if I went in for an audition, Id automatically think, this was like a more comedic sort of thing. Speaking with Awards Daily, the 2020 Emmy nominees walked us through the challenges of the second season from chasing down Natalie Morales as the second seasons biggest addition to a number of high-profile cameos. Murdoch has survived scandal after scandal. Oscars 2023: Preview and Predictions + Contest! That was a really nice way to come back into the second season. casting director Casts for Film, TV, Theatre, New Media California About Sharon Bialy Sharon Bialy is an award winning Casting Director for television, film and theater. And I write on something next to me, I had Michael Imperioli in my head. We needed him to feel younger than the other boys, other than Jack.