Donna Ekholdt is a former actor with a great deal of advice for those pursuing the craft. Her enthusiastically-presented ideas could fill a book – and they will – as she’s currently putting one together. “In the academic world, we train actors to work, but not to gain work,” she said, adding that she aims to fix that, by sharing what she teaches in a printed form.
As VP of Talent Development and Casting for Big Ticket Television, Ekholdt shops for actors in an attempt to assemble a delicious recipe, discovering new ingredients as she goes.
First Casting Job
Intern. Ekholdt started out with Meg Liberman and Marc Hirschfeld in 1988. “I had an inkling that casting might be interesting to me. I was an actor at the time, though,” she said.
However, Ekholdt still considers herself an actor, really. “If the aliens come and abduct me and torture me and scream, ‘What are you?!?’ I’ll answer, ‘I’m an actor!’ In my soul, my thinking is that of an actor. I am very process-oriented. I love the breaking down of the scene, the trying to make that electricity occur between two people. That’s my best access to what works in casting,” she revealed.
Road to This Position
“I went from intern to assistant at Liberman Hirschfeld. I also worked as an assistant to Tammara Billik. I worked with Gary Zuckerbrod and then did features with Karen Rea for over two years. While I was with Karen, I was just starting to do some casting on my own, doing independent films, small films, tiny films,” Ekholdt continued.
“I got an opportunity to work with Susan Bluestein. I was so taken with her love of actors. She has spectacularly fabulous taste. I knew, with her, I’d get to do amazing projects.” With Bluestein, Ekholdt cast The Oldest Living Confederate Widow, Children of the Dust, the Menendez brothers’ miniseries, and NYPD Blue, for which they received an Emmy.
“I got an offer to be Manager of Casting for NBC. I was there for about a year. Then I went on to become Director of Casting at 20th Century Fox. At that point, they began a huge investment in writers. Randy Stone and I oversaw casting on 48 pilots and five presentations in three years, in addition to the on-air programming,” Ekholdt recalled.
“In 1999, as I was wrapping up a year and a half of independent casting, I was asked if I might be interested in a job at Big Ticket. It was clear that this company was about to make a little change in its focus, and I wanted to be on board for that.”
As VP of Talent Development and Casting, Ekholdt oversees all development and series for Big Ticket Television. “I’m fortunate enough to be in a position where I am often involved from the pitch,” she said.
Key Things She Looks for in an Actor
“Training, training, training, training, training. If you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse. There’s no holding any ground. You’re like an athlete or a dancer and you must work it every day. You’re either moving forward or slipping backward at all times,” Ekholdt explained.
Ekholdt also looks for marketing savvy. “Be educated enough to know – or resourceful enough to find out – what you’re selling. After all, in what other business can someone who is brand new make $700 on their first day of work?”
Also on Ekhold’s list is a sense of humor. “I like to call it charm, but that’s really a sense of humor about yourself or a sense of irony within the role.”
When Ekholdt meets actors, she’s shopping. “[Casting directors] are gourmet shoppers. The chef hasn’t written the recipe yet and we’re out searching for ingredients. I need all A-quality ingredients. I can bring five options to the producer and director (who we’ll call the chefs),” Ekholdt clarified.
“If the script calls for cinnamon and brown sugar, I’ll bring three flat-out cinnamons, one weird-ass exotic cinnamon (just off what the script calls for), and maybe one nutmeg. Now, if the chef goes with nutmeg instead of cinnamon, I need honey instead of brown sugar. Brown sugar is no longer part of that recipe.” An actor must realize, according to Ekholdt, “Sometimes you didn’t get the callback even though you were A-quality brown sugar because I need honey now. It’s a totally impersonal choice. A specific combination of ingredients is required to balance the recipe.”
Pet Peeves
Unprepared actors. “They disrespect the profession by not keeping their tools sharp. That means they also disrespect me,” she explained.
Advice for Actors
Keep a daily journal cataloging the time you spend on acting. “This includes time spent on mailings, working on monologues, scene work. When you look at that, you’ll be surprised how little time you’re actually investing in what you’re calling your dream,” Ekholdt revealed.
Ekholdt explained the financial element of an actor’s life in terms of total opportunity cost. “If you’re spending a lot of money on clothing, other than maybe one outfit for auditions, if you’re spending a lot of money on a car or on your apartment or on anything other than your craft, it removes your ability to spend time improving your craft. You don’t have time to work out with other actors, or take a class, if you’re working all the time to pay for your car,” she summarized.
“The the single biggest weakness in actors, I think, is that they’re so won over by the look of money. The truth of the matter is, every time you spend money in one place, you can translate that into the number of hours spent away from your craft.”
Her Opinion on Alternative Submission Methods
Ekholdt acknowledges that an Internet casting database is around the corner. “There’s limited accessibility right now, but it’s growing daily. For now, actors should spend their money on class. Make sure you can audit a class before dumping all of that money on the table. Spend your money getting very good pictures,” she added.
Best Way to Get Seen by Her
“I actually do read my own mail. Every Saturday morning, I go through the stack of mail I’ve taken home. So, if you’re inviting me to see a show on a Thursday night, you’d better get that invitation to me in time for my Saturday stack the week before,” Ekholdt advised. “I do see theatre. Between Meredith Layne [Manager of Casting] and myself, we do get out there a great bit. It’s great to let us know when you’re doing theatre.”
Do not send an unsolicited demo reel to Ekholdt. “It’s like crashing an audition. It’s an unscheduled appointment with me. Send your headshot and resume with a request to send me tape. If I’m interested, I’ll ask to see it,” she said.
Most Gratifying Part of the Job
“I happen to be a casting director who relishes the business of the business. I take pride in being a creative whose left brain works very well. I am very good at finances, and I take great pride in my abilities as an executive. It has actually surprised the right brain side of me!” Ekholdt laughed. “I love the fact that there are time limits in television casting. We have to get a lot done in a short amount of time. I like the challenges and I relish the process.”
Ekholdt summarized, “I like what I do. I’m smart enough to have other options. So many people, especially actors, forget to enjoy the journey from A to Z. I say take the time to enjoy those middle 24 letters.”
This interview was conducted on June 26, 2001, and it originally appeared in Casting Qs: A Collection of Casting Director Interviews by Bonnie Gillespie, available at Amazon.