43
Liberty native is casting director for animated films
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
Lindsay Perlman occu- pies a unique niche in Hollywood.
The Liberty native is the owner of Wright Casting, which specializes in finding voice actors for animated television shows and movies.
She is also the in-house casting director for Lucasfilm Animation, where she supplies voice actors for “Star Wars: Clone Wars.” In her capacity with George Lucas’ company, she has also worked on “Strange Magic,” the animated movie that hit theaters today.
“Strange Magic” is an anthropomorphic musical with a score that uses pop hits of the past six decades. It was inspired by Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
Surfacing amidst the flurry of Oscar contenders, the film has flown under the radar. But Perlman is very excited about it.
“It’s unlike any animated movie I’ve ever seen,” she said. “It has comedy, drama and a lot of heart, a true musical fantasy that grabs an audience with recognizable music to illustrate the magic of love in the strangest places.”
The magical and the mysterious worlds interact in the tale. “It is a fantasy and an adventure, with elves, fairies, goblins, singing and sword fighting,” said Perlman. “It has high-energy music and it’s gorgeous and fun for all ages.”
It is for those reasons that casting the film became an adventure for Perlman.
“All of the actors had to perform their own songs,” she said. “The challenge for me was to find actors who could bring characters to life with their voices but who could also sing.” The cast includes Alan Cumming, Evan Rachel Wood, Elijah Kelley, Meredith Anne Bull, Sam Palladio and Kristin Chenoweth. Gary Rydstrom is the director. Lucas came up with the story.
Although she didn’t set out to be a voiceover casting director, Perlman had always been on a path to Hollywood.
As a child, she went to Akiva Academy in Youngstown for grade school. She graduated from Liberty High School and Penn State University, where she majored in film with a concentration in screen writing.
At age 20, Perlman did a summer internship with the Shoah Foundation, an educational project started by Steven Spielberg in the wake of his Holocaust film “Schindler’s List.”
She returned to Penn State to finish her degree with the promise of a job at Shoah after she graduates. But when she moved to Los Angeles after getting her degree, Shoah was in a downsizing phase and the job offer evaporated.
Undaunted, she stayed in LA and began sending out resumes. She eventually landed a job with Klasky Csupo Animation, which at the time was making a slew of successful animated series for Nickelodeon, including “Rugrats” and “The Wild Thornberries.”
It was at Klasky Csupo that she began working with Barbara Wright, who was the company’s casting director.
“I never thought I’d end up in casting,” she said. “I just fell into it. But I was doing a lot of screen writing at the time and most of it was geared toward animation.”
In 2006, Perlman and Wright started their own company, Wright Casting, and landed contracts with Warner Bros. Animation, Hallmark Channel movies, and a slew of TV commercials.
Perlman took control of the company in 2010 when Wright, whom she calls her mentor, retired.
Also that year, she became the in-house casting director for Lucasfilm Animation. Her projects there have included “Star Wars: Clone Wars,” “Star Wars: Rebels,” “Star Wars Detours” and, of course, “Strange Magic.”
As of now, she has no involvement with the highly anticipated “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” movie sequel, slated for a December release.
Still, Perlman — who is getting married in September to Michael Halper of California — knows she is in a special place in a unique corner of the film industry.
“I’ve been very lucky and blessed to work with some of the most creative, inspiring, passionate, laid-back but motivated people,” said Perlman. “There is very little ego in this world that I’m in. Actors come in dressed casually.”
George Lucas, the man who created “Star Wars” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” is nothing less than a legend in the fan-centric fantasy/sci-fi world. Perlman recalls the first time she met him. “I didn’t know what to expect, and he was such a nice guy,” she said. “He encouraged the whole team to run with passion, then he took a step back and let the directors do their job without getting in their way. But his presence was always there. We’re building his dream.”