Casting Director Bonnie Timmermann Chooses Her Actors by Looking Deeper into the Individual
November 21, 2023
Casting director/producer Bonnie Timmermann has an understated manner about her, but she’s certainly a powerhouse. Throughout her 44-year career, she’s cast about 100 films including Heat, Black Hawk Down, Armageddon and Amadeus.
With her open heart and hard work, she’s cast countless talents who would go on to great fame including Meryl Streep, Christopher Walken, Bruce Willis, Liam Neeson and Scarlett Johansson.
Timmermann has talked about the way her mind works when connecting talent to roles. “A lot of times, I’ll carry actors in my head while I’m reading a script,” she says.
Although her casting process is instinctual, she relies heavily on her visual sense as well as her imagination.
“I kind of view the casting job almost as if I’m painting a picture… When the right actor comes in, the room sort of changes color. You know it.”
Timmermann’s always on the lookout for ways an actor will fit into the industry, even if it seems like she’s daydreaming.
“In terms of casting, there’ll be times where I’ll be sitting opposite an actor, and I’ll see a big screen behind this actor or actress,” she says. “And I’ll imagine them on the screen right while they’re sitting in front of me. And I’ll just get the sense that they will be in the movie somehow–or in a movie.”
In a 2018 interview with Forbes, Timmermann gave insights on her logic in what she looks for from actors.
“As a casting director, if I’m going to put my camera on you, I’m going to look to see what is inside the person as opposed to the physical,” she said. “The camera reads what we go through in our lives. And I hope that I am like a camera, that I can read the interior.”
When reflecting on her career, the casting director revealed that she seeks actors with characteristics that are distinct and layered.
“Trust your instincts. When I cast radio plays for the BBC and National Public Radio, I went to the theater, closed my eyes and listened to the voices. Working in radio and theater prepared me for film and television. When I cast for television, I didn’t want to use the same people that you often see on TV,” she said.
“I love people who have unique faces and think differently. I look for that. I don’t just look for just the standard I-am-beautiful kind of person. I look for character inside and out. It’s not about what we look like on the outside. It’s what we project.”
Timmerman is quick to reach out to others, build relationships and forge creative bonds. Very much a risk taker in this regard, she encourages others telling them to do what’s in their heart.
“If you don’t ask, you don’t receive,” she says. “You need to get out and try. It doesn’t matter what the result is. The most important thing is that you tried.”
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