NYWIFT Blog

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Tanis Parenteau

Welcome to NYWIFT, Tanis Parenteau! Tanis Parenteau is Métis/Cree from the Métis Nation of Alberta. She is an actor, producer, and casting director. Her work focuses on uplifting Native voices telling contemporary and futuristic Native stories. As an actor, she has appeared on Billions, House of Cards, Designated Survivor, FBI: Most Wanted, Gossip Girl, and Tribal, and she has performed at The Public Theater, Signature Theater, 59E59, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Tanis has produced eight short films, has a short form digital series in post-production, and is developing multiple Native-led features and series. She is an associate casting director at tbd casting co in NYC. Her latest project, the short film Glenburn 12 WP, is fiscally sponsored by NYWIFT.  Tanis spoke to us about her dedication to uplifting Native voices, how working in casting has influenced her performing, and the best advice she’s ever received.

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NYWIFT @ Tribeca: In Conversation with Casting Director Bess Fifer

As an independent casting director based in New York, NYWIFT member Bess Fifer has played a key role in shaping numerous careers across film and television. Her commitment to authentic, diverse, and inclusive casting has made her an in-demand collaborator, an Artios Award Winner, and an Emmy Nominee. Fifer specializes in ground-breaking independent features, such as Lingua Franca and The Light of the Moon, and hugely popular television shows, including Severance, It’s Bruno!, and Escape at Dannemora. Fifer’s latest project – The Seeding –  will be scaring up audiences at the 2023 Tribeca Festival. Fifer talked to us about her process casting the film.

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What’s in Your Toolkit: Destiny Lilly

Destiny Lilly is a casting director working across theater, film, and television. While casting is a creative job, it also requires strong admin - lists, databases, and an impeccable memory. Destiny offers a peek inside her casting toolkit.

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Cynthia’s Picks: Sarah Finn, Ava Duvernay, Olivia Wilde

Sarah Finn: Casting Director Sarah Finn may the true superhero of the Marvel Cinematic Universe – she cast more than a thousand actors in almost every single Marvel film since the first Iron Man– including all of the stars. It was a unique challenge that required thinking how the cast members might overlap in the...

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Acting Up: Interview With Casting Director Brette Goldstein

Casting director Brette Goldstein has cast over 40 independent films—many of which have won awards and been official selections at major film fests, including Sundance, Tribeca and Cannes—as well as numerous commercials and plays and several TV and digital projects. Goldstein was the resident casting director at the Folger Elizabethan Theatre in Washington, DC, for 10 seasons, and...

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