Deborah Barylski Visits SIUE

 Tuesday, SIUE theater alum Deborah Barylski returned to her alma matter to pass on some of the wisdom from her twenty five plus years as an LA casting director.

Graduating from SIUE in 1971, Barylski went on to get her masters at Illinois state. After spending several years teaching, she moved to Alaska to work in public relations. From there, Barylski moved to Los Angeles where she has been working ever since.

Getting her start withMTM studios Barylski decided to pursue a career as a casting director racking up an impressive resume including Just Shoot me, Arrested Development, Home improvement, and The Middle.

During her talk, Barylski commented on how the casting process has changed over the years with tighter studio control over the process, increased access to information, and the more common practice of video taping auditions. She also discussed some of the successful strategies she’s seen actors follow in building a career, as well as some of the pitfalls.

“There’s no step by step checklist for being a professional actor in LA.” Barylski explained.

Some of the topics included the pros and cons of joining the screen actors guild, how sharpen one’s craft while looking for work, and pet peeves of casting agents. Barylski also found time to sit down and critique students who presented their recent head shots.

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