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Empowerment and Collaboration: Insights from Casting Director Shakyra Dowling
Emily Maguire- Jun 13, 2024
- 6 min read
Updated: Apr 25
In episode 7 of the Inside Entertainment Industry Podcast, casting director Shakyra Dowling shares her career journey and insights into the casting world. Passionate about empowering women and championing emerging and diverse talent, Shakyra paints a vivid picture of a typical casting director's day and offers invaluable advice for those considering a career in casting.
Shakyra Dowling, a casting director, shares her career journey and insights into the casting world. She started as an actor and transitioned into casting after a negative audition experience. She emphasises the importance of balance in understanding the script and the director's vision to find actors while also serving the producer's budget and goals.
Shakyra highlights the collaborative nature of casting and the need to find the right fit for each role. She advises aspiring casting directors to gain work experience in various areas of the industry and develop negotiation skills. She also encourages finding joy and balance in the work and taking time for oneself and personal well-being.
Listen to Podcast: Episode 7 with Shakyra Dowling
Shakyra Dowling's Journey: From Actor to Casting Director
Shakyra Dowling began her career as an actor before transitioning into casting after a negative audition experience. She emphasises the importance of balance in understanding the script and the director's vision while also serving the producer's budget and goals.
"I had no idea what I wanted to do when I was younger. So I toyed with an art degree, dropped out of that, and then came to the UK and started auditioning for drama schools."
"I had a theatre production company in the 1990s. It was innovative in its own way because we developed new female writers and had an all-female cast in everything we did."
"Riverside Studios helped us along by giving us free space to rehearse and create, and we took a show to Edinburgh to the assembly rooms, which was actually funded by Riverside Studios at the time."
The Art and Science of Casting
Shakyra highlights the collaborative nature of casting and the need to find the right fit for each role. She advises aspiring casting directors to gain work experience in various areas of the industry and develop negotiation skills.
"I love working with actors, I have to say. And being in the room is just the best experience."
"Now we have so many self-tapes, as I'm sure you all know, that we're only really doing callbacks or chemistry reads in the room, which is a sad thing in one way, but it does let us cast the net a bit wider than just the London area or just the UK, in fact."
"It's definitely changed for the better. It's better for the actor as well. If you're going to meet a director and a casting director, you can access what they've done, what they've cast, and what their taste is in terms of the director's work."
Balancing Creativity with Business Acumen
Shakyra discusses the importance of balancing creativity with business acumen in casting.
"Casting is 50% creative and 50% business. Deal-making and understanding contracts are quite business-related."
"Creatively talking to the director, understanding their vision and putting the exciting people before them to see their vision appear in real life."
Collaboration in Casting: Building a Family
Shakyra shares her love for the projects she works on and the collaborative nature of casting.
"Honestly, it's always the project I'm working on at the time. I fall in love with all the projects that I work on."
"It's more like a family I've created, and then they've gone off and made a film."
A Day in the Life of a Casting Director
Shakyra describes a typical day in her life as a casting director, filled with emails, negotiations, and creative brainstorming.
"On a Monday morning, you can wake up to about 300 emails in my inbox, let alone my two assistants."
"This morning, I was doing two deals for actors who are shooting next week, which involves a lot of paperwork and a lot of negotiations."
"If you've got a call with LA, it tends to be late, 7:30 pm or 8 pm at night. So, it varies depending on the project and who you're working with."
Advice for Aspiring Casting Directors
Shakyra offers advice for those looking to enter the industry and become casting directors.
"Work experience is always good. I may sometimes take on work experience and internships."
"Finding your taste as a casting director is quite key. I don't cast in the same way as any other casting director."
"Choosing people you want, seeing who gets chosen, understanding why they got chosen, watching loads of showreels. Finding your taste as a casting director is quite key."
Practical Tips for Aspiring Casting Directors
Shakyra provides practical tips for those aspiring to become casting directors:
Gain Work Experience: Internships and work experience in various areas of the industry are invaluable. Shakyra mentions,
"Even agents have internships, and actually, that's useful. That really does shape the business experience side of things."
Understand the Business Side: Casting is not just about creativity; it's also about understanding contracts and deal-making.
"Casting is 50% creative and 50% business."
Develop Negotiation Skills: Negotiation is a crucial part of casting. Shakyra advises,
"I've learned negotiation skills along the way, and I'm unsure if you can learn that without experience."
Find Your Taste: Every casting director has their unique taste.
"Finding your taste as a casting director is quite key. I don't cast in the same way as any other casting director."
Watch Showreels: Watching showreels helps in understanding why certain actors are chosen and developing your taste.
"Choosing people you want, seeing who gets chosen, understanding why they got chosen, watching loads of showreels."
Understand the Script: It's essential to understand the script and the director's vision.
"The main challenge is understanding the script. Yet still serve the producer, who has whatever limited budget they have."
Overcoming Common Challenges in Casting
Shakyra discusses some of the common challenges faced by casting directors and how to handle them.
"The main challenge is understanding the script. So, read lots of scripts and understand the director's vision for that role, that script, that story."
"You have to serve the producer, who has whatever limited budget they have, and still hit the key points of being able to sell this film."
"It's managing expectations, I think; it's very collaborative. It's not one person's decision who gets cast."
"For those extra roles, you're creating the world that that film is in. I always say to actors, when you're going for those day player roles, it's not about how good you are; it's about whether you fit with the rest of the jigsaw puzzle."
Mastering Negotiation Skills in Casting
Shakyra emphasises the importance of negotiation skills in casting.
"The main challenge is understanding the script. Yet still serve the producer, who has whatever limited budget they have."
"It's managing expectations, I think; it's very collaborative. It's not one person's decision who gets cast."
Finding Joy and Balance in Casting
Shakyra shares her tips for finding joy and balance in the demanding world of casting.
"I've learned negotiation skills along the way, and I'm unsure if you can learn that without experience."
"Have fun. That's the main thing. I mean, I love what I do. I feel totally privileged to have the career I have."
"I walk the dog, I put on a podcast, funnily enough, and I walk the dog every morning, and that's my time on my own."
Success Stories and Highlights
"The first time we saw Florence Pugh was in a very small film called The Falling, a very low-budget independent film, and she was in a secondary role, but I think the whole industry went, who is that girl?"
"Shakyra cast Sasha Nathwani's Last Swim, starring Narges Rashidi and ‘Screen International Star of Tomorrow 2022’ Solly McLeod, premiered at Berlinale 2024, winning a Crystal Bear."
Final Words and Inspirational Message
Finally, Shakyra offers this advice to anyone choosing a career path.
"Have fun. That's the main thing. I mean, I love what I do. I feel totally privileged to have the career I have." "Don't sacrifice your own life for anything."
Short Biography
Shakyra is a fierce champion of emerging and diverse talent. Past projects have included nominations at the BAFTAS, BIFAS, Berlinale, Sundance, and TIFF. Working across film, television, and commercials, Shakyra has been nominated for several casting awards, including the Artios Casting Society of America Awards.
Recent casting includes the Swedish biopic Hammerskjold directed by Per Fly (Bogen) with Mikael Persbrandt in the lead role, BFI backed The Occupant, Hugo Keijzer’s directorial debut, with Ella Balinska and Nathalie Biancheri’s Wolf with George MacKay, Lily Rose-Depp and Paddy Considine.
Shakyra is currently working on Peter Greenaway's Lucca Mortis with Dustin Hoffman and Helen Hunt, and Desperate Journey, directed by Annabel Jankel (Tell it to the Bees) and starring Til Schweiger, Steven Berkoff, and Sienna Guillory.
Shakyra cast Sasha Nathwani's Last Swim, starring Narges Rashidi and ‘Screen International Star of Tomorrow 2022’ Solly McLeod, premiered at Berlinale 2024, winning a Crystal Bear.
