Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/51766
CELEBRATING THE CRAFT same players. Good ensemble; the people have worked together a lot." Laray Mayfield, casting director for The Social Network, underscored the importance of listening during an audition. "That certainly is something we look for a lot, [which] is how people listen. If you're having an everyday conversation with somebody, you're listening to what they say," Mayfield said. "Sometimes [actors] only engage when it's their time for dialogue, but the rest of the time that the scene is going on there is interaction." WORKING WELL WITH OTHERS Without actors listening to one another, there won't be that elusive quality of who plays Margaret Schroeder. "I think that Kelly Macdonald is an amazing actress and really compliments Steve," Lewis said. "They both raise a very high bar. There's something about them that fits with each other." A period piece like Boardwalk brings an "There must be mutual responsibility… collective creative effort is the root of our kind of art. " "chemistry," the most important ingredient for any ensemble cast. It's not just The Social Network's accolades, critical praise and SAG Award nomination for the cast that tells Mayfield she got it right — many of the actors ended up becoming real-life friends with each other. Ellen Lewis, whose past work includes the films Goodfellas, Forrest Gump and The Gangs of New York, was looking to capture that kind of chemistry when casting Boardwalk's pilot episode. Buscemi was cast first, so when assembling the ensemble, Lewis looked to actors who would create a synergy with the lead, and was happy to find Kelly Macdonald, 51 SCREEN ACTOR - Special Issue 2012 additional layer of complexity to the casting and auditioning process. Lewis doesn't expect actors to have mastered 1920s slang or come in with an armful of props, but she feels it's important for them to demonstrate an awareness of the period-nature of the show by donning clothes that aren't too modern-looking or jeans-and-T- shirt casual. When casting the loves of Barney Panofsky, the character played by Paul Giamatti in Barney's Version, casting director Pam Dixon, who is also president of the Casting Society of America, wanted to make sure the actors' performances would complement each other. "Just because someone's a good actor doesn't mean they have a spark with him," she said. So she set up what might be considered the auditioning equivalent of speed dating. She called Giamatti to read with actresses auditioning for a role in the film so she could observe their interaction, and was surprised to hear the veteran actor say he had never done so before. Once at the audition, however, Giamatti's acting instincts — and listening skills — took over, and it became obvious who SAG.org