Casting director is a bridge between the talent and the producer: Nancy Bishop

Nancy Bishop, Casting Director member Casting Society of America said that in America Casting Director works for production while talent agents represent actors. “I understand casting process in India is different” she added. Nancy was addressing a press conference at IFFI, 2015 here today. About a question on casting couch, she admitted with reservation, it does exist at some level. Regarding places looking for talent, she said she takes workshops in various countries and also goes for street casting when a totally unknown face is required. Neither producer nor cast director but it is the financer who has final say in deciding cast in most of the cases. Casting being a creative process, time taken in finalising the cast depends on the project, she replied to another question. She will also take the Master Class on Wednesday at ongoing IFFI, 2015.

Nancy Bishop, C.S.A. is an Emmy nominated casting director, who works internationally with offices in London and Prague. With nearly one hundred major feature films and television projects among her credits, Nancy has cast hundreds of actors throughout Europe, the U.K. and the U.S. Nancy has been retained as casting director by dozens of major screen producers and directors, including Brad Bird (Mission Impossible IV), Roman Polanski (Oliver), and Ridley Scott (Child 44). She also was nominated for an Emmy Award for her casting work on Anne Frank: The Whole Story, ABC/ Disney Studios.

Nancy is a native of New England and trained as an actor and director at the University of Michigan and the National Theatre Institute. She earned a Master’s of Arts degree in theatre at Northwestern University. Nancy began her career as an actor, director and acting teacher in Chicago. In the 1990s, she helped to found two cutting-edge theatre companies that are still going strong today: Strawdog Theatre and Theatre Oobleck.

In the early 90’s, Black Box Theatre lured Nancy to Prague, where she produced and directed a number of plays, and launched touring productions throughout Europe. This time period is ironically portrayed in Rex-Patriates, a mock-documentary film that Nancy produced and directed. Now in addition to casting Nancy continues to guest lecture internationally, offering on-camera master classes and seminars to develop actors’ on-camera skill and career marketing.

In 2009 she founded the Acting For Film Program, at the Prague Film School, which offers an intensive, conservatory style training (half year of full year) program for actors in English. She is also very active on the International film Festival Circuit, where she regularly produces and partakes in panel discussions and symposiums on the casting process. She is a member of the Casting Society of America and the International Casting Directors Network.

Courtesy: pib.nic,in