Casting Directors Who Would Have Been Considered For The Academy Award In 2024

It finally happened! It finally happened! The Academy Awards finally included a category for casting directors!

The best actors are only able to perform at their best alongside a stellar cast.

The best picture would rarely be the best if the whole cast wasn’t amazing.  

But the award doesn’t kick in until 2026, so, as we do every year, we have created the following list so we can tip our hats and give kudos to the casting directors whose projects were nominated for Oscars in the acting, directing, or best picture categories at the 2024 Academy Awards.  

Note: This list includes the local hire casting directors who round out the tapestry of each picture with the vital supporting cast.

96th Academy Awards™ - Honoring Movies Released in 2023 (Presented in 2024)

BEST PICTURE

Jennifer Euston, SJ Alocco (associate), Lisa Lobel (local), Melissa Morris (associate) – American Fiction | Ben LeClair, Nikos Karamigios, Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson

Cynthia Arra, Cynthia Arra (assistant), Marion Thollot (assistant) – Anatomy of the Fall | Marie-Ange Luciani, David Thion

Lucy Bevan, Allison Jones, Emily Buntyn (associate), Lucy Downes (assistant), Dann Fink (voice), Olivia Grant (associate) - Barbie | David Heyman, Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Robbie Brenner

Susan Shopmaker, Lisa Lobel (local), Randi Glass (associate), Cici Koueth (assistant), Christian Mallen (assistant), Melissa Morris (associate, Boston) – The Holdovers | Mark Johnson

Ellen Lewis, Elise Buedel (indigenous), Dann Fink (voice), Rene Haynes (indigenous), Malia Hoff (assistant, indigenous), Kate Spance (associate), Grace Ward (assistant), Bruce Winant (voice) – Killers of the Flower Moon | Dan Friedkin, Bradley Thomas, Martin Scorsese, Daniel Lupi

Shayna Markowitz, Kendall Bates (associate), Dann Fink (voice), Dayna Katz (associate), Leah Shapiro (assistant) - Maestro | Bradley Cooper, Steven Spielberg, Fred Berner, Amy Durning, Kristie Macosko Krieger

John Papsidera, Daryl Baboulis-Gyscek (assistant), Barbara Harris (adr), Kim Winther (associate) - Oppenheimer | Emma Thomas, Charles Roven, Christopher Nolan

Ellen Chenoweth, Susanne Scheel, Cherelle Cargrill (adr), Elizabeth Hay (assistant), Gail Quintos (assistant) – Past Lives | David Hinojosa, Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler

Dixie Chassey, Katalin Baranyi (Hungary), Elodie Demey (France), Lucy Jordan (assistant), Lucy Smith (assistant) – Poor Things | Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone

Simone Bär, Alexandra Montag, Jacqueline Rietz, Katrin Vorderqülbecke (German) – The Zone of Interest | James Wilson

BEST ACTOR

Shayna Markowitz, Kendall Bates (associate), Dann Fink (voice), Dayna Katz (associate), Leah Shapiro (assistant) – Maestro | Bradley Cooper

Cherelle Cargill, Avy Kaufman, Scotty Anderson (associate), Donna Belajac (regional), Missy Finnell (regional, associate), Brigitte Whitmire (associate) – Rustin | Colman Domingo

Susan Shopmaker, Lisa Lobel (local), Randi Glass (associate), Cici Koueth (assistant), Christian Mallen (assistant), Melissa Morris (associate, Boston) – The Holdovers | Paul Giamatti

John Papsidera, Daryl Baboulis-Gyscek (assistant), Barbara Harris (adr), Kim Winther (associate) – Oppenheimer | Cillian Murphy

Jennifer Euston, SJ Alocco (associate), Lisa Lobel (local), Melissa Morris (associate) – American Fiction | Jeffrey Wright

BEST ACTRESS

Valerie Daniella Oloffson, Avy Kaufman, J.D. Cabrera (assistant), Nathan Francis (assistant), Brigitte Whitmire (associate) - Nyad | Annette Bening

Ellen Lewis, Elise Buedel (indigenous), Dann Fink (voice), Rene Haynes (indigenous), Malia Hoff (assistant, indigenous), Kate Spance (associate), Grace Ward (assistant), Bruce Winant (voice) – Killers of the Flower Moon | Lily Gladstone

Cynthia Arra, Aurélia Hollart (assistant), Marion Thollart (assistant) - Anatomy of a Fall | Sandra Huller

Shayna Markowitz, Kendall Bates (associate), Dann Fink (voice), Dayna Katz (associate), Leah Shapiro (assistant) - Maestro | Carey Mulligan

Dixie Chassey, Katalin Baranyi (Hungary), Elodie Demey (France), Lucy Jordan (assistant), Lucy Smith (assistant) – Poor Things | Emma Stone

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Jennifer Euston, SJ Alocco (associate), Lisa Lobel (local), Melissa Morris (associate) – American Fiction | Sterling K Brown

Ellen Lewis, Elise Buedel (indigenous), Dann Fink (voice), Rene Haynes (indigenous), Malia Hoff (assistant, indigenous), Kate Spance (associate), Grace Ward (assistant), Bruce Winant (voice) – Killers of the Flower Moon| Robert De Niro

John Papsidera, Daryl Baboulis-Gyscek (assistant), Barbara Harris (adr), Kim Winther (associate) - Oppenheimer | Robert Downey Jr.

Lucy Bevan, Allison Jones, Emily Buntyn (associate), Lucy Downes (assistant), Dann Fink (voice), Olivia Grant (associate) - Barbie | Ryan Gosling

Dixie Chassey, Katalin Baranyi (Hungary), Elodie Demey (France), Lucy Jordan (assistant), Lucy Smith (assistant) - Poor Things – Mark Ruffalo

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

John Papsidera, Daryl Baboulis-Gyscek (assistant), Barbara Harris (adr), Kim Winther (associate) - Oppenheimer | Emily Blunt

Tiffany Little Canfield, Destiny Lilly, Bernard Telsey, Jade Hardy (assistant), Barbara Harris (voice), Amanda Lockhart (assistant) - The Color Purple | Dannielle Brooks

Lucy Bevan, Allison Jones, Emily Buntyn (associate), Lucy Downes (assistant), Dann Fink (voice), Olivia Grant (associate) - Barbie | America Ferrera

Valerie Daniella Oloffson, Avy Kaufman, J.D. Cabrera (assistant), Nathan Francis (assistant), Brigitte Whitmire (associate) - Nyad | Jodie Foster

Susan Shopmaker, Lisa Lobel (local), Randi Glass (associate), Cici Koueth (assistant), Christian Mallen (assistant), Melissa Morris (associate, Boston) – The Holdovers | Da’Vine Joy Randolph

BEST DIRECTOR

Simone Bär, Alexandra Montag, Jacqueline Rietz, Katrin Vorderqülbecke (German) - The Zone of Interest | Jonathan Glazer

Dixie Chassey, Katalin Baranyi (Hungary), Elodie Demey (France), Lucy Jordan (assistant), Lucy Smith (assistant) – Poor Things | Yorgos Lanthimos

John Papsidera, Daryl Baboulis-Gyscek (assistant), Barbara Harris (adr), Kim Winther (associate) - Oppenheimer | Christopher Nolan

Pauline Hansson, Antoinette Boulat (France), Jessie Frost (UK), Nina Haun (Germany), Patti Lapus (Philippines), Jake Macapagal (Philippines), Dianca Palbuena (Philippines), Ellen Lewis, Elise Buedel (indigenous), Dann Fink (voice), Rene Haynes (indigenous), Malia Hoff (assistant, indigenous), Kate Spance (associate), Grace Ward (assistant), Bruce Winant (voice) – Killers of the Flower Moon | Martin Scorsese

Cynthia Arra, Aurélia Hollart (assistant), Marion Thollart (assistant) – Anatomy of a Fall | Justine Triet

We invite you to watch our free Casting Director Conversation Series with the CDs of many Emmy and Academy Award nominated films & TV series.

Watch our free classes:

How To Become an Actor

and (for the more experienced artists)

How To Revitalize Your Acting Career

Casting Directors Who Would Have Been Considered For The Academy Award In 2023

Wouldn’t it be great if the Academy Awards finally included a category for casting directors?  

The best actors are only able to perform at their best alongside a stellar cast.

The best picture would rarely be the best if the whole cast wasn’t amazing.  

Hence, as we do every year, we have created the following list so we can tip our hats and give kudos to the casting directors whose projects were nominated for Oscars in the acting, directing, or best picture categories at the 2023 Academy Awards.  

Note: This list includes the local hire casting directors who round out the tapestry of each picture with the vital supporting cast.

95th Academy Awards™ - Honoring Movies Released in 2022 (Presented in 2023)

BEST PICTURE

Simon Bar, Constance, Demontoy (France), Arwa Salmanova (Czech Republic) - All Quiet On The Western Front | Malte Grunert

Margery Simkin, Louise Kiely (Ireland) - Avatar: The Way of Water | James Cameron, Jon Landau

Louise Kiely - The Banshees of Inisherin | Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Martin McDonagh

Nikki Barrett, Denise Chamian, Beth Day, Liz Ludwitzke - Elvis | Baz Luhrman, Catherine Martin, Gail Berman, Patrick McCormick, Schuyler Weiss

Sarah Finn - Everything Everywhere All At Once | Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Jonathan Wang

Cindy Tolan, Nanw Rolands (UK) - The Fabelmans | Kristie Macosko Krieger, Steven Spielberg, Tony Kushner

Avy Kaufman, Jeremy Zimmerman, Alexandra Montag, Thitiya Tongbai (Southeast Asia), Katrin Vorderqülbecke (for Petra), Jeremy Zimmerman (location) - Tár | Todd Field, Alexandra Milchan, Scott Lambert

Denise Chamian - Top Gun: Maverick | Tom Cruise, Christopher McQuarrie, David Ellison, Jeremy Bruckheimer

Pauline Hansson, Antoinette Boulat (France), Jessie Frost (UK), Nina Haun (Germany), Patti Lapus (Philippines), Jake Macapagal (Philippines), Dianca Palbuena (Philippines), Marta Wojciechowki (Poland), Stefani Tymkiv (Russia) - Triangle of Sadness | Erik Hemmendorff, Phillippe Bober

John Buchan, Jason Knight - Women Talking | Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Frances McDormand

BEST ACTOR

Nikki Barrett, Denise Chamain, Beth Day, Liz Ludwitzke – Elvis | Austin Butler

Louise Kiely - The Banshees of Inisherin | Colin Farrell

Lindsay Graham, Mary Vernieu – The Whale | Brendan Fraser

Lucy Pardee – Aftersun | Paul Mescal

Kahleen Crawford - Living | Bill Nighy

BEST ACTRESS

Avy Kaufman, Jeremy Zimmerman, Alexandra Montag, Thitiya Tongbai (Southeast Asia), Katrin Vorderqülbecke (for Petra), Jeremy Zimmerman (location) - Tár | Cate Blanchett

Victoria Thomas – Blonde | Ana De Armas

Arlie Day - To Leslie | Andrea Riseborough

Cindy Tolan, Nanw Rolands (UK) - The Fabelmans | Michelle Williams

Sarah Finn - Everything Everywhere All At Once | Michelle Yeoh

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Louise Kiely - The Banshees of Inisherin | Brendan Gleeson

Ellen Chenoweth, Tracy Kilpatrick (location) - Causeway | Brian Tyree Henry

Cindy Tolan, Nanw Rolands (UK) - The Fabelmans | Judd Hirsch

Louise Kiely - The Banshees of Inisherin | Barry Keoghan

Sarah Finn - Everything Everywhere All At Once – Ke Huy Quan

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Sarah Fin, Chase Paris (Atlanta) - Wakanda Forever | Angela Bassett

Lindsay Graham, Mary Vernieu – The Whale | Hong Chau

Louise Kiely - The Banshees of Inisherin | Kerry Condon

Sarah Finn - Everything Everywhere All At Once | Jamie Lee Curtis

Sarah Finn - Everything Everywhere All At Once | Stephanie Hsu

BEST DIRECTOR

Louise Kiely - The Banshees of Inisherin | Martin Mcdonagh

Sarah Finn - Everything Everywhere All At Once | Daniel Kwan + Daniel Scheinert

Cindy Tolan, Nanw Rolands (UK) - The Fabelmans | Steven Spielberg

Avy Kaufman, Jeremy Zimmerman, Alexandra Montag, Thitiya Tongbai (Southeast Asia), Katrin Vorderqülbecke (for Petra), Jeremy Zimmerman (location) - Tár | Todd Field

Pauline Hansson, Antoinette Boulat (France), Jessie Frost (UK), Nina Haun (Germany), Patti Lapus (Philippines), Jake Macapagal (Philippines), Dianca Palbuena (Philippines), Marta Wojciechowki (Poland), Stefani Tymkiv (Russia) - Triangle of Sadness | Ruben Östlund

We invite you to watch our free Casting Director Conversation Series with the CDs of many Emmy and Academy Award nominated films & TV series.

This is the second year we get to congratulate one of our previous interview guests, Kahleen Crawford, who cast Living in 2023 with Bill Nighy and the Lost Daughter, in 2022!

Watch our free classes:

How To Become an Actor

and (for the more experienced artists)

How To Revitalize Your Acting Career

Casting Directors Who Would Have Been Considered For The Academy Award In 2022

Wouldn’t it be great if the Academy Awards finally included a category for casting directors?  

The best actors are only able to perform at their best alongside a stellar cast.

The best picture would rarely be the best if the whole cast wasn’t amazing.  

Hence, as we do every year, we have created the following list so we can tip our hats and give kudos to the casting directors whose projects were nominated for Oscars in the acting, directing, or best picture categories at the 2022 Academy Awards.  

Note: This list includes the local hire casting directors who often round out the tapestry of each picture with much of the supporting cast.

94th Academy Awards™ - Honoring Movies Released in 2021 (Presented in 2022)

BEST PICTURE

Lucy Bevan, Emily Brockmann, Carla Stronge (CD, N Ireland) (Belfast – Nominees: Lauren Berwick, Kenneth Branagh, Becca Kovacik, Tamara Thomas)

Deborah Aquila, Tricia Wood, Lisa Zagoria (Coda – Nominees: Philippe Rousselet, Fabrice Gianfermi, Patrick Wachsberger)

Francine Maisler, Matt Bouldry (local) (Don’t Look Up - Nominees: Adam McKay, Kevin J Messick)

Akiyoshi Imazeki (casting cooperation), Sang-You Lee (korea), Annie Liao (cooperation), Ryoichi Sugiyama (cooperation) (Drive My Car – Nominees: Teruhisa Yamamoto)

Jina Jay, Francine Maisler (Dune – Nominees: Mary Parent, Denis Villeneuve, Cale Boyter)

Rich Delia, Avy Kaufman (King Richard – Nominees: Tim White, Trevor White, Will Smith)

Cassandra Kulukundis (Licorice Pizza – Nominees: Sara Murphy, Adam Somner, Paul Thomas Anderson)

Robin D. Cook (Nightmare Alley – Nominees: Guillermo del Toro, J. Miles Dale, Bradley Cooper)

Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba (consultant), Nina Gold, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (Power of the Dog – Nominees: Jane Campion, Tanya Seghatchian, Emile Sherman, Iain Canning, Roger Frappier)

Cindy Tolan, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (West Side Story – Nominees: Steven Spielberg, Kristie Macosko Krieger)

BEST ACTOR

Kathy Driscoll, Francine Maisler (Being the Ricardos – Nominee: Javier Bardem)

Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba (consultant), Nina Gold, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (Power of the Dog – Nominee: Benedict Cumberbatch)

Kristian Charbonier, Bernard Telsey  (TICK, TICK… BOOM! – Nominee: Andrew Garfield)

Rich Delia, Avy Kaufman (King Richard – Nominee: Will Smith)

Ellen Chenoweth (The Tragedy of Macbeth – Nominee: Denzel Washington)

BEST ACTRESS

Avy Kaufman, Chase Paris (casting, Atlanta) (The Eyes of Tammy Faye – Nominee: Jessica Chastain)

Kahleen Crawford, Makis Gazis (casting, Greece) (The Lost Daughter – Nominee: Olivia Coleman)

Unlisted (Parallel Mothers – Nominee: Penelope Cruz)

Kathy Driscoll, Francine Maisler (Being the Ricardos – Nominee: Nicole Kidman)

Amy Hubbard, Nina Haun (casting, Germany) (Spencer – Nominee: Kristen Stewart)

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Kahleen Crawford, Makis Gazis (casting, Greece) (The Lost Daughter – Nominee: Jessie Buckley)

Cindy Tolan, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (West Side Story – Nominee: Ariana DeBose)

Lucy Bevan, Emily Brockmann, Carla Stronge (CD, N Ireland) (Belfast – Nominee: Judi Dench)

Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba (consultant), Nina Gold, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (Power of the Dog – Nominee: Kristen Dunst)

Rich Delia, Avy Kaufman (King Richard – Nominee: Aunjanue Ellis)

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Lucy Bevan, Emily Brockmann, Carla Stronge (CD, N Ireland) (Belfast – Nominee: Ciaran Hinds)

Deborah Aquila, Tricia Wood, Lisa Zagoria, Carla Stronge (CD, N Ireland) (Coda – Nominee: Troy Kotsur)

Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba (consultant), Nina Gold, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (Power of the Dog – Nominee: Jesse Plemons)

Kathy Driscoll, Francine Maisler (Being the Ricardos – Nominee: J.K. Simmons)

Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba (consultant), Nina Gold, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (Power of the Dog – Nominee: Kodi Smit-McPhee)

BEST DIRECTOR

Lucy Bevan, Emily Brockmann, Carla Stronge (CD, N Ireland) (Belfast – Nominee: Kenneth Branagh)

Akiyoshi Imazeki (casting cooperation), Sang-You Lee (korea), Annie Liao (cooperation), Ryoichi Sugiyama (cooperation) (Drive My Car – Nominee: Ryusuke Hamaguchi)

Cassandra Kulukundis (Licorice Pizza – Nominee: Paul Thomas Anderson)

Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba (consultant), Nina Gold, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (Power of the Dog – Nominee: Jane Campion)

Cindy Tolan, Zoraida Sanjurjo Lopez (casting, Puerto Rico) (West Side Story – Nominee: Steven Spielberg)



This list was compiled by the Secret Actor Society

We invite you to watch our free Casting Director Conversation Series with the CDs of many Emmy and Academy Award nominated films & TV series.

This year, we congratulate one of our previous guests, Kahleen Crawford, who cast the Lost Daughter, starring 2022 Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress nominees Olivia Coleman and Jesse Buckley!

Creating Your Own Content

I recently worked with a phenomenal comedic actor who had been faced with a problem. A couple of years ago, Rob Schneider was the star of the CBS sitcom ‘Rob’. For any other network, 10-13 million viewers per episode would be huge, but CBS has high expectations of their sitcoms, and they pulled the show after one season due to ‘low ratings’.

After having a TV show cancelled, almost every other lead actor in the history of television has simply walked away and waited for the next job. It would be easy for Rob to have justified doing just this, or becoming a victim, or even, as many do, falling into a ‘woe is me’ depression.

As an actor, it’s easy to fall into the victim mentality with your career. “they’re only hiring names”, “my agent isn’t getting me out” “we shouldn’t have to pay to meet casting directors”. Many actors talk as though the industry is against them and often refer to how ‘unfair’ it all is.

And those actors are completely correct. The film and TV industry IS unfair! Yes, producers will often hire a bankable name if it will make them more money than hiring you. Yes, your agent could probably be doing more for you. And yes, it does suck that most actors have to spend thousands of dollars a year to meet casting directors.

So, now we’ve cleared that up, you have two choices:

1. Sit around with your actor friends and complain about it, validating your plight with evidence and examples of why you aren’t being given a fair go.

Or:

2. Accept it, and fight your way forward anyway.

Your complaints are 100% valid. The question is: how are you going to make sure you succeed in spite of all these challenges?

When faced with the challenge of having his show cancelled, Rob Schneider gathered his strength, gathered his friends, gathered the finance, and put everything he had into creating and producing his own newer, funnier, better ‘Rob’-centric sitcom than the CBS show.

Not producing the show with a big TV network meant more freedom with dirty, silly jokes and inappropriate references that could make the show even more hilarious. Creating it himself meant cutting huge costs because he was the most expensive line item in the budget. It meant he could ask his actor friends to help out with their time, and his industry friends to connect him to myriad other resources.

Rob Schneiders’ new show ‘Real Rob’ premiered on Netflix worldwide December 1st, and it is hilarious (I personally mimed some things no person should ever mime). He took what could have been a career blow, and turned it into a massive accomplishment and himself into a TV show creator.

It sounds scary, taking things into your own hands… You’re not a filmmaker (yet), how could you possibly make a web series, or write a TV show, or create a film? Well, I have some news for you…

You are a storyteller. We all are. Our job is to make people laugh… to perform for them… to enhance the human experience by allowing the viewer to live vicariously through our tales, our characters, our life lessons we feel compelled to share.

You are an entrepreneur. You are already running (producing) your own business. You know dialogue and character, which can come in handy when writing a screenplay. Think of how many cast and crew you already know who can guide you, help out, and introduce you to any number of the right people along the way.

You already have the resources and basic skills to write a killer script and to gather a team to create something imperfectly beautiful. It doesn’t have to be perfect… A funny or die skit, a short film, a series of vine videos, or even a new web series!

You have it in you to take your career into your own hands and create your own work. So, do something right now… the second you finish reading this post. Pick up a pen, take out your laptop, send that email or make a phone call and get started creating your own project – this minute. Don’t think fifty steps ahead to how you’ll end up making it… those answers will come in time. Just start now.

Tina Fey did it, Ed Burns did it, Rob Schneider did it, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck did it… they were all just like you. Sure they weren’t ready… scared to get started… scared to write that first word or show their script to anyone.

The only difference is they did it anyway…

And I promise, my creative, amazing, actor friend…

I promise you can too.

By Kym Jackson

www.hollywoodsguide.com