awards season

The Big Short, Straight Outta Compton, and Room Win Big at Casting Society’s Artios Awards

Straight Outta Compton and The Big Short. Photo: Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures

Did watching Casting By on Netflix give you a newfound curiosity about the professional lives of casting directors? Are you likewise outraged that there is no Oscar for casting? And are you plugged so deep into the Oscars conversation that you’ll take every omen from the tea leaves you can? If so, you may be interested in the results of this year’s Artios Awards, the Casting Society of America’s annual bicoastal celebration of casting in film and TV. Though casting directors are only a recent addition to the Oscar voting pool, the Artios have managed to honor the eventual Best Picture winner at every ceremony since 2009. (Though admittedly, the Artios voters get more cracks at it, dividing their winners between drama and comedy, and various budget levels.) Which Oscar hopefuls got the coveted Artios boost this year? That would be The Big Short, which won in Big Budget Comedy; Room, which triumphed in Studio or Independent Drama; and Straight Outta Compton, which came out on top of the crowded Big Budget Drama field, possibly for the brilliant decision to cast Ice Cube’s actual son to play Ice Cube. Every biopic should do that!

The full winners, which were announced in simultaneous ceremonies in New York and L.A., are below. (To be eligible, films had to come out in 2015; all other works of art needed to be released between June 1, 2014, and May 31, 2015.)

Feature Film Big Budget Comedy
The Big Short — Francine Maisler, Meagan Lewis (Location Casting)

Feature Film Big Budget Drama
Straight Outta Compton — Cindy Tolan, Victoria Thomas, Meagan Lewis (Location Casting), Beth Sepko (Location Casting), Carolyn Pickman (Location Casting), Lucinda Syson (Location Casting), Pat Moran (Location Casting), Judith Sunga (Associate)

Feature Film Studio or Independent Comedy
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl — Angela Demo, Nancy Mosser (Location Casting), Katie Shenot (Location Casting)

Feature Film Studio or Independent Drama
Room — Fiona Weir, Robin D. Cook, Kathleen Chopin (Location Casting), Jonathan Oliveira (Associate)

Feature Film Low Budget Comedy
Dope — Kim Coleman

Feature Film Low Budget Drama
The Stanford Prison Experiment — Angela Demo

Feature Film Animation
Inside Out — Kevin Reher, Natalie Lyon

Television Pilot Comedy
Transparent — Eyde Belasco

Television Pilot Drama
Empire — Leah Daniels-Butler, Claire Simon (Location Casting), Shelby Cherniet (Associate)

Television Series Comedy
Transparent — Eyde Belasco

Television Series Drama
Game of Thrones — Nina Gold

Television Movie or Mini-Series
Olive Kitteridge — Laura Rosenthal, Carolyn Pickman (Location Casting), Maribeth Fox (Associate), Jodi Angstreich (Associate)

Children’s Pilot and Series (Live Action)
Girl Meets World — Sally Stiner, Barbie Block, Brett Greenstein, Collin Daniel, Howard Meltzer, Sherie Hernandez (Associate)

Television Animation (Adult)
Bob’s Burgers — Julie Ashton-Barson

Television Animation (Children)
Bubble Guppies — Michelle Levitt, Gene Vassilaros, Shondre Austin (Associate), Danielle Pretsfelder (Associate)

Web Series
Deadbeat — Jessica Daniels

Short Film
Muted — Robin Lippin

New York Broadway Theatre – Comedy
You Can’t Take It With You — Jim Carnahan, Jillian Cimini (Associate)

New York Broadway Theatre – Drama
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time — Daniel Swee, Cindy Tolan, Adam Caldwell (Associate)

New York Broadway Theatre – Musical
The King and I — Abbie Brady-Dalton

New York Theatre – Comedy
A Month in the Country — James Calleri, Paul Davis

New York Theatre – Drama
Between Riverside and Crazy — William Cantler, Karyn Casl (Associate)

New York Theatre – Musical
Clinton the Musical — Tara Rubin, Kaitlin Shaw

Regional Theatre East
Carousel — Jay Binder, Claire Simon (Location Casting), Becca McCracken (Associate)

Regional Theatre West
Othello — Tara Rubin

Los Angeles Theatre
Spring Awakening — Beth Lipari, Bruce H. Newberg

Special Theatrical Performance East
Parade — Craig Burns

Special Theatrical Performance West
Unscreened Summer Series — Meg Morman, Sunday Boling

Theatre Tours
Matilda the Musical — Jim Carnahan, Nora Brennan, Jillian Cimini

Big Short and Compton Win Big at Casting Awards