Isabella Chirkis ’27
Editor in Chief
On Sunday, Oct. 18, Cinestudio will produce a screening of the documentary “Casting By.” This triple-award-winning film was recognized as Best Documentary at Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival in 2013, Outstanding Documentary at Gracie Allen Awards in 2014 and Top Five Documentaries at the National Board of Review USA in 2013. The film was also nominated as an Outstanding Arts and Culture Programming at the News & Documentary Emmy Awards in 2014.
Producer of the documentary, Joanna Colbert, was a Trinity alum and Theater & Dance major. Colbert has worked as a Casting Director and Producer on iconic 2000s films such as “Happy Gilmore,” “The Step Up” series, “No Strings Attached,” “Dear John” and “The Mummy Returns.” Colbert will be holding a talk session after the screening for Trinity students and faculty.
The event is being organized by Emma Baskin ’27 and hosted by Film Studies. The screening and talk is supported by WGRAC (Women & Gender Resource Action Center), the English Department, the Austin Arts Center and the Theater & Dance program. In an interview with Baskin, who is a Film Production and Public Policy & Law double major, she explained how she found Colbert on LinkedIn and reached out to her to network: “I think there is a need for more arts networking opportunities at Trinity” she told the Tripod. Baskin emphasized the importance of bridging the gap between arts and our more popular majors at Trinity.
“Casting By” is a 2012 documentary about how casting director Marion Dougherty discovered iconic actors such as Martin Scorsese, Al Pacino, Woody Allen, Clint Eastwood and Bette Midler. Colbert worked under Dougherty during her time at Trinity, and saw these casting decisions made first hand. “Casting changes absolutely everything,” Baskin told the Tripod. The documentary held a strong influence in opening a casting category at the Oscars in 2025. When asked about how casting the right actor shapes a performance, Baskin emphasized that the right actors can make a good script even better. “Look at ‘Goodwill Hunting’ for example, it is such a specific and unique story and there are very few people who could have brought that to life, in my opinion,” she said.
In a final comment from Baskin, “I am really excited for the event, it will be such a meaningful and entertaining conversation. Regardless of what you are interested in, it is beneficial to know how these iconic movies came to be.”