Penny Perry has cast over one hundred television and feature films. For Carl Reiner, she cast All of Me, Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid and The Jerk. She also cast Robert Redford’s Academy Award-winning Ordinary People and Alan Parker’s Midnight Express. Other prominent credits include: Cocoon, The Neverending Story, *batteries not included, Shoot to Kill, Local Hero, Time Cop, Stranger in the Kingdom, Breastmen, The Relic and Reuben, Reuben. For television, Perry cast the series Brimstone, Kojak and Heartbeat and the movies Zelda and The Man with Three Wives, among many others. She has held executive positions at various studios and production companies, including a stint as vice president of talent for Columbia Pictures. During her tenure there, she was instrumental in shaping the casting of such projects as Boyz N the Hood and My Girl.
During pre-reads, I take the time to talk to the actors in order to get to know who they are as people. When you make somebody comfortable and get to know a little about them, they become more relaxed when they read for you. As a result, the whole process becomes much less tense. I also try not to make the actors wait too long; and I don’t schedule actors back to back for the same role, because I don’t want awkwardness in the waiting room. Actors are sensitive and fragile beings, and I try my best to make them comfortable when they come to my office.
Once, without divulging my profession as a casting director, I went in for an audition as an actress. I wanted to do it to personally experience what it’s like to be on the other side. My daughter drove me to the audition. While I was waiting to go in, another actress came in. I leaned over to my daughter and said, “She’s more right for this role.” My daughter said, “Mom, get yourself together, don’t sabotage yourself before you go in.” So finally, I went in and my hands were shaking. I was a nervous wreck. As a casting director, I have read with actors thousands of times, but in this situation, my naturalness went down the drain. I started reading with this casting director, and after I finished, this person said, “Do it bigger.” So I did it a lot bigger and I was awful. I felt so uncomfortable being put on the spot. And the person reading with me didn’t give me a lot. All of a sudden, I realized how difficult it is to audition. The actor is actually selling who he is as a human being. Now, when someone comes to read for me and is nervous and uptight, I generally will read with them again and again, until they feel more comfortable. Perhaps every casting director should go through the experience of auditioning.
I will always allow it, but if you have a producer and director in the room, they may not allow it for a multitude of reasons. In any case, they have probably made up their mind four lines into the reading and already decided if you are right for the role. Unless they are interested in you, they don’t want to see you do it again. So I suggest that if you start a reading and it’s not going well, stop early on and start the whole scene again. If you read the whole thing, it may be too late.
We send them the script, which they break down by doing a story synopsis and role analysis. Then they send their analysis to us to see if we want any changes. I generally give that report to the director to see if he wants to make changes. Then the report goes back to Breakdown Services and from there, is released to the agencies who read it and submit clients appropriately. Often, however, the description in the Breakdown pigeon-holes a character by saying they look a certain way - for example, describing a woman as “a forty-five year old housewife.” You can go many different ways with a forty-five year old housewife. Actors shouldn’t be afraid to have their agents ask if we could go a different way on a role. Always ask, unless the description is explicit.
I believe that competitiveness in a place where you’re learning is not a good thing. Everybody has to grow at his or her own pace. You have to be validated for what you can do, and not be compared to what someone else can do. Often, when you get into a class and you’re a beginner, you’re torn down. I don’t believe you have to tear down in order to build up. I don’t think an actor can be ripped apart by certain teachers and leave the class feeling good about themselves. Many actors go directly from class to therapy. When actors ask me about teachers, I’m very careful about the names I give out. I try to recommend acting teachers who don’t mess with the psyche. I have audited many acting classes, and I find some of them to be very destructive. They mean well, but the human soul is very delicate. Therefore, when you teach, it has to be done in a very, very loving way. Acting class should be a sanctuary, a haven for growth and creativity.
I loved working with them both. Carl Reiner trusted my judgment as a casting director, and naturally, you do your best work when somebody trusts you. Sometimes, I showed him just a few actors for each role and he made his decisions quickly. Reiner is very generous to actors; he laughs with them and he has fun with them.
With Redford, the actors who came in initially were intimidated because of who he is. But he makes people very much at home. He knows the whole process. Before readings, he talked to each actor and made them comfortable. After readings, he gave specific adjustments. He is very articulate. He knew what he wanted and was extremely decisive. With some directors, you bring in ten good people but they still can’t make up their minds. Mostly because they don’t know what they want and they’re waiting for it to walk in through the door. But Redford always knew, both intellectually and in his guts. So when Elizabeth McGovern came in—BAM! He knew she was the one. She had the right quality.
You have to let yourself come out when you do your work. I find that the biggest mistake actors make is that they prepare and come in and try to “be” the part. They forget who they are and lose their own unique personality and perspective. Another thing, as you get older, the parts may start to dwindle—especially for women. Have some other avenue you can pursue in the arts; whether it’s painting, sculpting or writing. Something that really fulfills your need to create. Actors are extremely sensitive and need an emotional outlet. Many find audition rejections a difficult thing to handle. Actors must remember that the reason people do not get parts has very little to do with their talent. It’s a look, it’s how they fit in with another actor who has already been cast. Or a producer might like a certain look and not another. There is no rhyme or reason as to why people get parts. So you do your best, keep learning - but most of all, you just keep on going.
Penny Reece Casting
310.889.1660
500 Sepulveda Blvd. Ste 600. Los Angeles, CA 90049