For producers and directors

How do casting directors find new actors?

Short answer

By looking outside the usual lists. Catherine Willis finds new actors in small theatres and at fringe festivals, in school plays, on Instagram and TikTok, at open auditions and through street casting. Around 40% of the actors in her casts are people she had never met before. Oliver Savell was chosen from over 700 auditions to play the young Alan Carr in Changing Ends.

What are the main methods?

  • Open auditions. Two days in Bolton for the Alma's Not Normal pilot, the same approach in Liverpool for The Gathering, and open casting for The Full Monty.
  • Street casting. Playgrounds in Hackney and Homerton for the first series of Top Boy, which Catherine Willis co-cast.
  • Wide searches. More than 300 children seen for The Duchess, and over 700 auditions for Changing Ends.
  • A long memory. An actor who is not right for one part is kept in mind. People first seen for one role have been cast years later in another.

What happened to the actors found this way?

ActorProductionWhat happened
Oliver SavellChanging EndsWon Comedy Performance (Male) at the RTS Programme Awards 2025, with BAFTA nominations in 2025 and 2026
Lewis GribbenSomewhere BoyWon Actor (Television) at the BAFTA Scotland Awards 2023
Eva MorganThe GatheringCast in her first television role. Won the Golden Nymph for Best Actress at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival in 2024
Emma MyersA Good Girl's Guide to MurderCast as Pip after a very wide search. The rest of the cast was built around her
The Bolton ensembleAlma's Not NormalCast from the pilot, including local open auditions. The series won the BAFTA for Scripted Comedy in 2025

Last checked 11 October 2026. Answered by CW Casting. Tell us if something here is out of date.