Casting Call

Gonna make you big stah

by Robert von Stein Redick

An independent Hollywood casting agent with over 150 made-for-television movies and series to his credit will be sharing his talents in Portland later this month. Dick Dinman, a veteran Tinseltown agent, will conduct a one-day film, video, and television auditioning workshop in Portland on September 30 at the Acorn School for the Performing Arts.

Dinman has cast the likes of Jack Lemmon, Anne Margarette, Sidney Poitier and Charleton Heston in some of their best known roles. His move to Maine from the nation's opposite corner (in more than just a geographical sense) was prompted by a simple motive: quality of life. Hollywood's charms had worn thin, and Dinman concluded that he was well known enough to do his casting work at a distance from Smog Central. An enthusiastic teacher, he has already found time to connect with students of the performing arts at the University of Southern Maine and Bates and Bowdoin Colleges. It was through a mutual friend at the latter school that Dinman met Mike Levine, founder and director of the Acorn School.

"I've been really amazed that he wants to do this," Levine says, adding that at $50 a head for a total of 14 students, the job hardly compares to Dinman's usual compensation. "It's clear what's in it for us, though," Levine hastens to add.

True enough. With more films -- large and small, commercial and independent -- being shot in Maine all the time, demand for actors is steadily increasing. Auditioning for these roles is something of an art in itself, demanding skills related but not identical to those of stage auditions. Sporadic workshops and college classes address some of this need, but few are geared specifically for the screen, and few if any are taught by professionals with Dinman's experience.

His course will employ the same tool used in actual casting processes: the cold reading. Students will be handed an unfamiliar script (from Dinman's collection of some 3500 screenplays) and left alone with it for five minutes or so. To create a more realistic pressure-situation, Levine plans to have a small audience of performing arts professionals on hand. After first impressions, Dinman will coach the students collectively and individually, focusing on ways to sharpen impact and delivery.

Aspiring types should contact the Acorn School at 761-0617. Slots in the workshop go to the first 14 enrolled, regardless of experience or the size of one's dreams.