The Best Cast Films of 2023 – “Anatomy of a Fall”

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“Anatomy of a Fall” — Cynthia Arra

By: Heidi Levitt (“Raymond and Ray,” “The Artist”): In the last decade there has been an emphasis on “real people” casting, meaning casting people who may not be actors but instead are authentic to the story. Watching the brilliantly directed “Anatomy of Fall,” you feel like you are watching “real people” and the essence of each performance feels so true and vulnerable that it could be a documentary. I was on the edge of my couch trying to figure out the truths unfolding in the courtroom and inside their family home nestled in the French Alps. The performances are across the board authentic, and yes, they are actors! I became an observer inside the story witnessing the emotional trauma as it unfolded. 

The leading cast is led by the luminous Sandra Hüller who makes the most complex character shy away from melodrama and instead reveal an interior world that is tormented, fragile, and also sprinkled with levity and love. As I watched I wondered continually, “Could she have done this?” and at the same time I felt torn inside. Her son, played by Milo Machado Granor gives a performance so vulnerable, it reminds me of Jodie Foster’s haunting work in “Taxi Driver.” But, what really blows me away is how all the actors feel like real people, and yet they are actors — skilled actors who disappear into their characters. I only wish more American movies would allow this kind of casting, opening up the process to less recognizable stars and less Hollywood gloss.

Authentic doesn’t mean we can’t cast actors. Wonderful actors are real people too. They are actors who know how to become anyone. Sandra Hüller, who we have seen play so many different roles from comedic to dramatic, is truly that movie star who has the talent to disappear and “act” without ever flaunting it.

Read the Full Article Here:
The Best Cast Films of 2023 – IndieWire

‘RACHEL HENDRIX’ REVIEW

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THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER FULL RACHEL HENDRIX REVIEW

Director Victor Nuñez Makes Welcome Return With Poignant Drama ‘Rachel Hendrix’ starring Lori Singer. Lori Singer plays a novelist and professor still reeling from her husband’s sudden death in this Florida-set character piece from the director of ‘Ruby in Paradise’ and ‘Ulee’s Gold.’

Nuñez has not directed a film in over a decade. He returns to the screen with Rachel Hendrix and helps to revitalize the acting career of Lori Singer, still best known for her starring role opposite Kevin Bacon in 1984’s Footloose. Singer, also an accomplished classical musician, had a few other notable acting credits, in Alan Rudolph’s Trouble in Mind and Robert Altman’s Short Cuts, but she has been absent from the screen for a long time. Singer and Nuñez team up rewardingly in an affecting if imperfect domestic drama, which received its world premiere at this year’s Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

Rachel Hendrix Credits

Cast: Lori Singer, Catherine Dent, Kim Sandwich, Hugo Armstrong, Kersti Bryan, Philip Casnoff, Roxanne Hart
Director-writer-editor: Victor Nunez
Producers: Heidi Levitt, Stewart Lippe
Executive producers: Kevin Ambler, Paul E. Cohen
Director of photography: William Tanner Sampson
Production designer: Pat Garner
Costume designer: Lisa Martin
Music: Charles Engstrom
1 hour 59 minutes

CONGRATS TO THE 2023 OSCAR NOMINEES

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Actor Genie wants to congratulate all of this years Academy Award Nominees. The Oscars will be held Sunday March 12th the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The ceremony is set to begin at 8 p.m. EST and be broadcast live on ABC.

2023 ACADEMY AWARDS OFFICIAL WEBSITE

CURRENTLY CASTING “A TOURIST’S GUIDE TO LOVE” STARRING RACHAEL LEIGH COOK FOR NETFLIX

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Rachael Leigh Cook will star in the Netflix original film “A Tourist’s Guide to Love,” that Heidi Levitt is currently casting.

The film is based on an original idea of Cook’s with Eirene Donohue set to write the screenplay. In the film, after an unexpected break up, a travel executive (Cook) accepts an assignment to go undercover and learn about the tourist industry in Vietnam. Along the way she finds adventure and romance with her Vietnamese expat tour guide when they decide to hijack the tour bus in order to explore life and love off the beaten path.

Read the entire Variety Article Here

WALK WITH ME – FILM INDEPENDENT

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Walk With Me will follow Heidi Levitt’s husband Charlie Hess’s journey over the next three years living with early onset Alzheimer’s disease. We will see him as the father, the creative, the husband, the patient, and his authentic self, as he navigates life with a disease most people are afraid to talk about. Together we will dispel the stigma and shame that comes with this diagnosis.

After a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, life is not over.

Project type: Documentary Feature
Project status: Production
Co-Director/Producer: Heidi Levitt
Cinematographer: Lisa Rinzler
Producer: Vanessa Perez
Producer/Lead Subject: Charlie Hess
Executive Producer: Alex Gibney
 
Email: heidela@mac.com
Website: walkwithmedoc.com
Facebook: facebook.com/walkwithmedoc
 
Help independent filmmakers tell their stories.
Make a donation to Walk With Me today.

Continue reading the Full Article Here – Walk With Me – Film Independent

AFI Alum Heidi Levitt On Collaborating With Directors and Casting Sally Potter’s New Film

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AFI Alum Heidi Levitt (Class of 1987) has established herself as a versatile casting director and producer, crisscrossing artistic mediums from theater to television to film to commercials. Her new film, THE ROADS NOT TAKEN, recently had its World Premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival. Reuniting with director Sally Potter for the fourth time, she produced and cast the film, which stars Elle Fanning as Molly, the daughter of a man (Javier Bardem) struggling with his deteriorating health and contemplating the different lives he might have led.

Read the full article here. https://www.afi.com/news/afi-alum-heidi-levitt-on-collaborating-with-directors-and-casting-sally-potters-new-film/

2020 ARTIOS WINNERS – BEST LA THEATER

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Congrats to Heidi Levitt and Associate Marin Hope on their 2020 Artios Win for Best Theater in Los Angeles and casting the pulitzer prize winning play “Sweat. Watch their speech below.

BEST CAST FILMS OF 2019

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Why These Are the 8 Best-Cast Films of 2019.

Top casting directors break down why “Booksmart,” “Marriage Story,” “Uncut Gems,” and “Once Upon a Time…” are brilliantly cast films in Indiewire’s – Top Casting Directors Best Cast Films of 2019.

THE ART AND SCIENCE OF CASTING A MOVIE

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Heidi  wrote an article for The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences about her experiences as a Casting Director and how the industry has evolved over the last two decades. Check it out comment and like the article on the Medium website here. The Art and Science of Casting a Movie

Congrats to the 2018 Emmy Winners

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On Monday September 17th, the Primetime Emmy’s aired. We wanted to say Congrats to all the winner’s, especially the 3 actors Genie sent out newsletters for. Regina King the winner of Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for her role in Netflix’s “Seven Seconds.” Claire Foy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, for “The Crown” and Jeff Daniels for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for his role in “Godless.”

All 3 newsletters are posted below. Stay tuned for Oscar Season and more great films opening this Fall.