BEVERLY HILLS—The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Board of Governors announced Tuesday that they were creating a Casting Directors Branch.
Casting directors were invited as members of the Academy more than 30 years ago, with many of them admitted as Members-at-Large, according to a press release by the Academy.
“Casting directors play an essential role in the filmmaking process,” said Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Academy president, in the release. “Their inclusion on our board will only broaden our perspective and help ensure that the Academy continues to accurately reflect the state of filmmaking today.”
With the addition of the Casting Directors branch, there are now 17 branches of the Academy, with each represented by three members on the Board of Governors. A special election will be held in the fall to determine who the three representatives will be for this newest branch.
Richard Hicks, president of the Casting Society of America, commended the decision to add the Casting Directors Branch.
“The Casting Society of America is tremendously grateful to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for acknowledging the vital contributions made by casting directors to film,” said Hicks in a statement. “To be recognized with the creation of a Casting Branch is something the CSA has long worked for, and to be seen on a par with the other filmmaking crafts is both humbling and gratifying. Thank you, Academy.”
The announcement came the same night the Academy named Cheryl Boone Isaacs as the new president. Boone Isaacs has been part of the Academy Board of Governors for 21 years as a representative for the Public Relations Branch, according to a release.
She served as first vice president of the Academy during the last year and also produced the 2012 Governors Award. She is succeeding Hawk Koch, who served a one-year term.
By Melissa Simon
