Marcia S. Ross | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | July 27, 1955 |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Spouse | Jeff Kaufman |
| Children | 1 |
| Parent(s) | Joan Flug Ross Richard C. Ross |
Marcia S. Ross (born July 27, 1955) is an American casting director and film producer. She is best known for casting such films as Clueless , 10 Things I Hate About You , and The Princess Diaries . Her production credits include the documentaries Terrence McNally: Every Act of Life and Nasrin .
Marcia Ross was born in Mount Vernon, New York, the daughter of Joan (née Flug) and Richard Ross (1927–2012); her father was a New York State Assemblyman for the 88th District. [1] [2] She attended Northwestern University (1973–1975) as a theatre major and has a B.A. from Antioch University Los Angeles (class of 2016).
Ross' first professional job was as an apprentice in summer stock theatre at the Westchester Playhouse in Yonkers, New York, followed by touring with a children's theatre company working as an assistant stage manager for producers Barry and Fran Weissler in 1976. She worked at Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City in 1976 and the Monty Silver Talent Agency in 1977. Her first casting job was at CBS Television in New York City in 1979. She then relocated to Los Angeles to work with casting director, Judith Holstra - starting as her assistant, then associate, and partner in Holstra / Ross Casting between 1980 and 1988. [3]
Ross worked as an independent casting director (Marcia Ross Casting) [4] and casting executive for motion pictures and television, working on feature films, network series, pilots, movies for television, and mini-series. She worked for 16 years as EVP for Casting for the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, [4] and for five years as SVP for Casting and Talent Development at Warner Brothers Television between 1988 and 1993. [5] [4]
As a casting director, Ross has been credited with introducing several new acting talents, [4] [6] such as Heath Ledger in 10 Things I Hate About You , [7] [8] [9] Anne Hathaway in The Princess Diaries , [10] Rachel McAdams in The Hot Chick , [11] Paul Rudd and Brittany Murphy in Clueless , [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] Chris Pine in The Princess Diaries 2 , [6] Megan Fox in Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen , [17] and Jennifer Garner in Mr. Magoo . [4]
Some of her other notable credits for casting include thirtysomething , Romy and Michele's High School Reunion , [18] [19] The Lookout , [20] The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy , [4] Parental Guidance , Small Time , [21] and Oblivion . [21]
Between 2012 and 2015, Ross co-produced the feature-length documentaries The State of Marriage , Father Joseph, and The Savoy King: Chick Webb and The Music That Changed America, with Jeff Kaufman. [22]
In 2018, Ross co-produced Every Act of Life , a documentary on the playwright and LGBT activist Terrence McNally. [23] It was broadcast as part of the American Masters series on PBS [22] [24] and received an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. [25]
In 2020, Ross and Kaufman co-produced Nasrin , which follows the life and work of the Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, up until the time of her second arrest and imprisonment in 2018. [26] The film was nominated for Best Political Documentary at the 6th Critics' Choice Documentary Awards. [27]
She is married to documentary filmmaker and business partner, Jeff Kaufman. She has one daughter, Alice, and two step-children, Anna and Daniel. [22] [1]
| Award | Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Artios Awards | 1988 | Dramatic Episodic Casting | thirtysomething | Won | [28] |
| Movie of the Week Casting | LBJ: The Early Years | Won | |||
| 1990 | Murder in Mississippi | Won | [29] | ||
| 1992 | Taking Back My Life: The Nancy Ziegenmeyer Story | Nominated | [30] | ||
| 1993 | Mini-Series Casting | Sinatra | Nominated | [31] | |
| 1999 | Feature Film Casting – Comedy | 10 Things I Hate About You | Nominated | [32] | |
| 2002 | The Princess Diaries | Nominated | [33] | ||
| 2005 | The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy | Nominated | [34] | ||
| 2007 | Feature Film Casting – Drama | The Lookout | Nominated | [35] | |
| 2008 | Feature Film Casting – Comedy | Enchanted | Nominated | [36] | |
| 2012 | The Muppets | Nominated | [37] |
| Award | Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emmy Awards | 2020 | Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series | American Masters | Nominated | [25] |
| Critics' Choice Documentary Awards | 2021 | Best Political Documentary | Nasrin | Nominated | [27] |
| Year | Accolade | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Outstanding Achievement in Casting award from the Hollywood Film Festival | [38] [39] |
| 2005 | Hoyt Bowers Award for Career Achievement in Casting by the Casting Society of America | [40] |
The Casting Society, formerly known as Casting Society of America (CSA), was founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1982 as a professional society of about 1,200 casting directors and associate casting directors for film, television, theatre, and commercials in Canada, Europe, Australia, Asia and Africa, and the United States. The nonprofit organization announced the name change from Casting Society of America to Casting Society on February 10, 2022. The society is not to be confused with an industry union. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters represent most of the major casting directors and associate casting directors in Hollywood. Members use the post-nominal letters "CSA" when credited for their work.
The San Francisco International Film Festival, organized by the San Francisco Film Society, is held each spring for two weeks, presenting around 200 films from over 50 countries. The festival highlights current trends in international film and video production with an emphasis on work that has not yet secured U.S. distribution. In 2009, it served around 82,000 patrons, with screenings held in San Francisco and Berkeley.
Sean Baker is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing independent feature films about the lives of sex workers, including Starlet (2012), Tangerine (2015), The Florida Project (2017), Red Rocket (2021), and Anora (2024), the last of which won the Palme d'Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. He is also known for creating the Fox/IFC puppet sitcom Greg the Bunny (2002–2006) and its spin-offs.
Tammara M. "Tammy" Billik is an American Hollywood casting director who has cast hundreds of roles in television. Her best-known casting decision is when she and veteran casting director Marc Hirschfeld cast Ed O'Neill as Al Bundy for Fox Broadcasting's cult hit, Married... with Children.
John Papsidera is a casting director based in Los Angeles, California, known for his work across film and television, especially his work with some of the most successful directors such as Christopher Nolan, Ruben Fleischer, Jason Reitman, Roland Emmerich, and James Gunn. He has sixteen Artios Awards' nominations and won four times. He has also been nominated for seven Primetime Emmy awards and won twice.
Avy Kaufman is an American casting director for film and television.
Casting By is a 2012 American documentary film directed by Tom Donahue. It combines over 230 interviews, extensive archival footage, animated stills and documents to tell the untold tale of the Hollywood casting director, Marion Dougherty. Dougherty died before the film's release; it is dedicated to her memory.
Terrence McNally: Every Act of Life is a 2018 documentary film about playwright Terrence McNally. It was directed, produced and written by Jeff Kaufman, and produced by Marcia S. Ross. It premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2018. It will be distributed by The Orchard in November 2018. An expanded and illustrated version of the script will be published by Smith and Kraus in October 2018. Terrence McNally: Every Act of Life aired June 14, 2019 on PBS’ “American Masters.”
The Artios Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy Pilot Casting is an award handed out annually by the Casting Society of America. It was introduced at the Art Directors Guilds' twelfth annual honors, in 1996, after first being grouped together with casting for dramatic pilot episodes for the category Outstanding Achievement in Pilot Casting, which was introduced at the seventh annual awards in 1991. It is an award that is given to casting directors for their work on television pilot episodes, or a series first episode.
Jeff Kaufman is an American film producer, director, writer, and artist. Kaufman has produced, written, and directed documentaries focusing on human rights activism and cultural icons including The State of Marriage, Every Act of Life, and Nasrin.
Jane Jenkins is an American casting director best known for her feature film work on Jurassic Park, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, A Few Good Men, Apollo 13, The Princess Bride, Ghost, and Home Alone. She has cast more than 190 film and television projects, primarily with her longtime casting partner, Janet Hirshenson.
Nasrin is a 2020 documentary film written, produced and directed by Jeff Kaufman and produced by Marcia Ross. The film includes the musical score by Tyler Strickland, an original song by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, and musical performance by Angélique Kidjo.
Robert J. Ulrich is an American casting director and producer active since the 1980s and best known for casting television shows including Glee, The Boys, Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist, Supernatural, Battlestar Galactica, CSI, Diagnosis: Murder and Matlock. He has also cast most Ryan Murphy productions since Popular in 1999. He has been nominated for eight Emmy Awards, winning a Primetime Emmy Award for casting Glee. He has been nominated for the Artios Awards 22 times and won twice, for casting Glee and Nip/Tuck.
The 39th Artios Awards, presented by the Casting Society of America, honoring the best originality, creativity and contribution of casting professionals to the overall quality of a film, television series, short form project, theatre production and commercial, were held on March 7, 2024, simultaneously at The Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles and Edison Ballroom in New York, and the White City House in London.
Susan Shopmaker is an American casting director. She is best known for her work casting for independent films. In 2024, she was awarded the BAFTA Award for Best Casting for The Holdovers.
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