Casting Director Ricki Maslar & Friends
A 4-week Intensive for Professional Actors
There is no greater champion of actors and the art of acting than Ricki Maslar. With a completely refreshing approach, Ricki will work with you to sharpen your audition skills, refresh your love for the craft and to take back your power as an artist.
WEEK 1 - Actors will be given sides to read cold and will work with Ricki and James to hone in on the best way for them to really set themselves apart in an audition.
WEEK 2 - Actors will be send full feature-length scripts over the course of the next week. They will familiarize themselves with the project, get to dig in and do some serious acting work and prepare sides from the script for class. Now, Ricki and James will work on a deeper level to bring each actors unique talent to the surface.
WEEK 3 - On Camera. Actors will perform their chosen scenes with the previous adjustments and work on the technical aspect of acting for camera.
SCHEDULE:
Monday evenings, 7pm-10pm
Oct 26 and Nov 9, 16, 23
Cost: $250/4-week session
ABOUT THE COACHES:
RICKI MASLAR - casting director, producer
Ricki G. Maslar is a successful casting director, manager and producer with over thirty years experience in the entertainment industry. She has held a variety of positions as an agent, casting director, manager, teacher, and producer. As a casting director Maslar has had the opportunity to work on studio and independent features with credits that include Twister, La Linea, The Devil’s Tomb, Tuskegee Airmen, Brother to Brother, and Dahmer. Her actor-friendly philosophy has earned her high praise from actors and colleagues alike, yet Maslar says she is simply living and working by the 'golden rule.'
Maslar was born in Chicago and grew up in Oklahoma City. At age ten she began working as a model in local runway, print and commercials with dreams of becoming an actress. She went on to attend St. Gregory's College in Shawnee, Oklahoma where she shifted her focus from acting to a career behind the scenes.
She married out of college and became involved in the local entertainment community. Maslar was active in bringing filming to Oklahoma. She made strong connections to Hollywood and it was casting directors Janet Hirshenson and Mary Jo Slater, who encouraged her to move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in entertainment.
Maslar began representing actors under her own management company called RGM Entertainment. It was a natural role for Maslar who acted as manager, mentor, watchdog and creative partner. Her clients have included Reggie Lee and Jason Connery. Maslar and Connery produced 2 films together that established Connery as a director.
When Maslar is not casting or producing, she is mentoring up and coming talent through her workshops. Teaching has always been a passion for Maslar who has been doing so for over ten years in Canada and North America. Her workshop presentation offers actors valuable insight about the entertainment industry - yet another extension of her commitment to actors.
Above all of her accomplishments, Maslar is most proud of her two children - Samantha Anne and Scott Aaron. Watching her children grow up into wonderful people who work in careers that help others has been her greatest reward. She is dedicated to helping others and believes everyone can make a difference - one person at a time.
Ricki G. Maslar is a respected entertainment executive, dedicated mother, and she looks forward to making films that change lives and make a difference in the world - if only for a moment.
Maslar was born in Chicago and grew up in Oklahoma City. At age ten she began working as a model in local runway, print and commercials with dreams of becoming an actress. She went on to attend St. Gregory's College in Shawnee, Oklahoma where she shifted her focus from acting to a career behind the scenes.
She married out of college and became involved in the local entertainment community. Maslar was active in bringing filming to Oklahoma. She made strong connections to Hollywood and it was casting directors Janet Hirshenson and Mary Jo Slater, who encouraged her to move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in entertainment.
Maslar began representing actors under her own management company called RGM Entertainment. It was a natural role for Maslar who acted as manager, mentor, watchdog and creative partner. Her clients have included Reggie Lee and Jason Connery. Maslar and Connery produced 2 films together that established Connery as a director.
When Maslar is not casting or producing, she is mentoring up and coming talent through her workshops. Teaching has always been a passion for Maslar who has been doing so for over ten years in Canada and North America. Her workshop presentation offers actors valuable insight about the entertainment industry - yet another extension of her commitment to actors.
Above all of her accomplishments, Maslar is most proud of her two children - Samantha Anne and Scott Aaron. Watching her children grow up into wonderful people who work in careers that help others has been her greatest reward. She is dedicated to helping others and believes everyone can make a difference - one person at a time.
Ricki G. Maslar is a respected entertainment executive, dedicated mother, and she looks forward to making films that change lives and make a difference in the world - if only for a moment.
JAMES COTTEN - director, writer, actor, producer
While obtaining his degree in mass communications, James worked in local television in Ft. Smith, Arkansas, his home town. Then HBO entered, filming their movie Tuskeegee Airmen. James was cast as a bomber pilot and “got the bug.” He studied and taught acting for five years before truly realizing how much he enjoyed the entire process of storytelling.
To fully understand his craft, James traveled to England, where he attended The London International Film School. The school had produced one of his favorite filmmakers, Michael Mann (Miami Vice, Heat, Collateral). There he studied production design with Gavin Bouqet (Star Wars Prequels). During his time overseas, James wrote and directed his first short, Lifeless.
James returned to the states, and after some consideration, finished his schooling at The Los Angeles Film School. There he studied with many working professionals, such a Cinematography with Rex Metz (Jaws, SWAT, I Spy), David Klein (Chasing Amy, Clerks II) and Michael Barrett (CSI, Bobby, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang); Production Design with Lawrence Paull (Blade Runner, Escape from LA, Unlawful Entry), and Directing with Paul Verhoven (Robocop, Starship Troopers), Donald Petrie (How to lose a guy in 10 days, Miss Congeniality), Danielle Suissa (Pocahontas, Neowolf), Brad Battersby (Red Letters, Jesus the Driver).
This wealth of knowledge prepared James for the chance of a lifetime when Roger Corman entered the doors, looking to use alumni in a co-production with the school. James was selected to direct.
With only an $80,000 budget, it was important to secure as many favors as possible. James enlisted Panavision and received free HD cameras which had only been used by George Lucas at that time. He also enlisted the computer animation school, Gnoman, to make a class centered around the film. James was praised by press and the industry for bringing Corman into new technologies, and produced a film the looked much better than its budget.
Demon Slayer has been in international distribution since 2002 and can still be seen occasionally on the Sci-Fi Network.
While James prepared for his next project he has learned many facets of the business. He has worked at Regent Entertainment in both legal and distribution, as well as a script reader for development. He was in post management for HomeRun Entertainment. He has also worked as a casting director for Joey Lauren Adam’s Come Early Morning, where he can be seen acting alongside Ashley Judd.
James returned home, where he spent a year and a half raising funds to accomplish his ultimate goal of producing a film that he had control of, a film he believed in.
Sugar Creek is a western fairytale, a sleepy hollow story set in rural Arkansas 30 years after the Civil War. The screenplay was recongnized at Sundance. Once again, James was able to turn very little into a lot. With the help of Arkansas re-in actors bringing Civil War memorabilia and costumes, donated goods and services, and friends’ sweat, he was able to make the film for $300,000.
The film was nominated for Best Film at both the Bare Bones and Little Rock Film Festivals, and released by Quantum Entertainment. It was released in July of 2006.
James went on to direct his first larger budget film, La Linea, starring Andy Garcia, Ray Liotta, Bruce Davison, Esai Morales, and Danny Trejo, along with many others. It is the story of an assassin, played by Liotta, travelling into Tijauna, Mexico to take down a drug cartel. La Linea was released in 2009.
