Casting director Robert Sterne is one of the United Kingdom’s top casting directors. He works closely with Nina Gold, his casting partner in the acclaimed series “The Crown.” Sterne’s many awards include five Emmys — three for casting “Game of Thrones” (2015, 2016, 2019) and two for “The Crown” (2018, 2021). Sterne has launched many actors’ careers, some of which he selected for “Game of Thrones.” “When we started on that [series], it wasn’t full of famous people. We were able to have that fun of exploring and finding new people to do roles that we knew would have a massive impact on the show,” he told Awards Daily.

So what does this busy casting director look for in the audition room? Here are some insights he has shared over the years. 

Find an approach that You find interesting.

Sterne does not want actors to make creative choices tailored to please the casting executives in the audition room. He explains, “I started off as an actor and one thing that somebody said to me was, ‘When you go in for an audition, and you’re reading a scene, always make choices that you find are interesting. Because if you find them interesting and they switch you on, it’s likely that they will for the people watching you. You don’t want to necessarily read a script and say, ‘Oh, what they’re after is A, B, and C. That’s straightforward; I’ll just give them what I think that they’re after.’ I think it’s better to see what your reaction is to [the material] and what you find interesting about it and bring that to the table rather than kind of preempt or pre-understand or pre-read the situation. I think you get the most interesting readings that way.” However, he clarifies, “I’m not suggesting somebody make eccentric, quirky choices, but whatever choices you make as an actor, I just think it’s good to make them that you are switched on by and engaged in and that you find interesting because then you can commit to it, and then [casting] gets a better sense of the instincts of that person.”

How to be memorable during auditions: “Fly with it!”

Sterne advises actors to use their own unique personalities, experiences, temperaments, and interests to put a personalized stamp on their choices. He’s delighted to see the way numerous actors can receive the same material and yet they all have their own take on it. “I mean, with really genius responses to things that you haven’t thought of!” he marvels. “Emma [Corrin] comes in, and the ways that she’s thought about the character, her innate response to the [script] is what’s the most fascinating thing. So you don’t want to bring a whole kind of set of dos and don’ts that’s going to squash that [energy] or restrict that in any way. It’s about trying to let people fly with it!” 

Specificity is key when portraying real people.

Sterne certainly had his work cut out for him when it came to casting “The Crown.” Each batch of actors required a replacement every two seasons, capturing the various life stages of actual people in the royal family. “We knew from the start that everybody would do two years, and then they’re going to go. You set up this whole world and this ensemble of people and their relationships and watch what happens with it. And then you’ve got to do it all over again,” he told Awards Daily.  

Sterne explained what he was looking for from actors in the audition room. 

“You want people who can disappear into their characters and do the detailed work. You don’t want big, broad sweeps, [or] impersonations of these people. It’s very important that they’re really sophisticated actors who can do a 360-degree version of it. … Just to have a complexity when they’re approaching their characters and do it in great detail. There’s a wealth of research there. These [characters] are real-life people in all their complexity, and there’s a lot to dive into and get hold of there. And you want somebody who you believe is going to run with all that and make the most of it,” he told the Gold Derby.

Auditions are about being supportive of each actor.

Sterne emphasizes that auditions are an actor’s time and opportunity to do what most speaks to them. When it comes to the casting executives gathered in the room, he believes they should support the actor to do their best work. He tells actors, “Give the performance you want to give, and exhibit confidence [to speak up] if you need anything from casting.”

“Everybody approaches [acting] in their own way … What you’re dealing with is people coming in and bringing their talent and their creativity, and you need to provide them with an environment in which they can do that and share that in a way that’s easiest for them and the most comfortable way for them to share what they bring for it.… I think we’ve got to be open to whatever’s unique and remarkable about what people are bringing into the room and just facilitate that.”

What Sterne wishes more aspiring actors knew about casting directors

As a child, Sterne acted a lot and went on to attend drama school. Then he acted for a couple of years before becoming a casting director. “I’ve had a very clear understanding of what it’s like on the other side because I was, you know, on the other side of the table and know how that feels and what that does. So I mean that does inform what I do now,” he told the SAG-AFTRA Foundation.

He vividly remembers the pressures associated with being an actor as well as the nerves. But now that he’s a casting director, he wishes actors understood just how much he wants them to do well. “I think it’s that thing that you’re so praying for somebody to come in and be brilliant and land a part. And you want them to do good.” Looking back at his acting days, he says, “I wish I’d known the extent to which [casting directors] really want something great to happen for that person in the room and for something exciting to happen and for some connections to be made and for stuff to happen. I mean, the [actor] wouldn’t be in the room with you unless [the casting director] believed that that was the case.”