At the Artios Awards with Patrick Wilson

Patrick Wilson

On Monday night, some of today’s hottest actors came to the new Times Center in New York City to honor the industry’s top casting directors at the 25th Annual Artios Awards. I spoke with actor Patrick Wilson (“All My Sons,” “Watchmen,” “Little Children”) at the pre-ceremony reception, before the lights dimmed and he presented several of the night’s awards — and he actually seemed excited to see us!

Does this mean you used to read the Back Stage casting notices when you began your acting career?

Patrick Wilson: I started pre-internet! Absolutely, my first job was from Back Stage, though.

Do you remember what that first gig was?

I used to get Back Stage when I was in college – well, I had friends who got it and would tell me about it, and my friends and I would drive up from Pittsburgh [to auditions in New York]. I auditioned for so many things then, let me think… My first job was “Miss Saigon,” which I got out of Back Stage West.

But even though I had an agent, I would still go to open calls or EPAs, you know. It’s what I tell young actors now: Just because you get an agent doesn’t mean the work stops, or the pursuit stops. A couple times you’ll get cross-referenced, like “Yeah, so I got you an appointment,” and you’re like “Oh yeah, I already went in for that.” And they’re like, “What?”

Casting Directors Feted at Artios Awards

Michael Shannon and Elizabeth Reaser congratulate the winners at the Artios Awards.

Casting directors came out from behind the curtain to be honored by their peers last night at the 25th Annual Artios Awards.

The bi-coastal awards, which were held simultaneously at the new Times Center in New York City and the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, are presented yearly for outstanding achievement in casting in theater, film, and television categories on the criteria of originality, creativity, and contribution of casting to the overall quality of a project.

Celebrity awards presenters in New York were Patrick Wilson (“Little Children,” “Angels in America”), Carrie Preston (“True Blood”), Michael Shannon (“Revolutionary Road”), Jennifer Morrison (“House”), Bill Pullman (“Oleanna”), Christine Ebersole (“Grey Gardens”), Vincent Kartheiser (“Mad Men”), and Elizabeth Reaser (“Twilight”). Stanley Tucci and producer Daryl Roth presented the New York Big Apple Award to Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron, whose “Love, Loss and What I Wore” recently opened Off-Broadway to rave reviews.

The event was hosted in New York by comedian Janeane Garofalo, who admitted the stakes are a little higher when you’re responsible for honoring your potential employers. “One would hope I don’t fail,” Garofalo said before the ceremony. “I can’t imagine it would be helpful if I do poorly tonight — unless they were casting for somebody who was failing at something. So hopefully I will not embarrass myself.”

But on this night, the actors were happy to step out of the spotlight, as they were given a rare opportunity to celebrate many of the behind-the-scenes heroes who have secretly shaped their careers. These A-listers seemed genuinely thrilled to attend and show their support for the CSA members being recognized.

“The director’s not going to know everybody out there,” Shannon said while speaking with Pullman and Artios Award-nominated casting director Ellen Lewis (“Revolutionary Road”) before the ceremony. “I mean, they’re very busy doing all the things they have to do, so it’s up to the casting directors to bring in the stack of photos and say, ‘Think about it.’ Without casting directors like Ellen, I’d just be sitting at home. It’s a big deal.”