Typewriter

Diversity in Casting

(Stevenson Ranch, CA) — Writer-Director Braddon Mendelson today proposed a one-sentence notice for authors to add to their TV and film scripts regarding the casting of minorities in movies and television productions.

The proposed wording reads:

Author’s Note on Casting Diversity:
Where a specific character’s race or ethnicity are not pertinent to the story, the author encourages casting the role from a diverse selection of performers.

Mendelson said the statement could be contained on a page following the title page.

“While this won’t solve the problem of providing more roles to minority actors,” explained Mendelson, “my hope is that it will remind filmmakers to be conscious about diversity when making casting decisions.”

Mendelson has forwarded copies of the Author’s Note on Casting to the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA.