Behind the Scenes at the SF Indie Film Festival: Our Casting Journey with Mondegreen
This past month, Aura Casting had the incredible opportunity to attend the world and hometown premiere of Mondegreen at the SF Indie Film Festival.
It was an exciting and proud moment for us to see this stunning film on the big screen, especially knowing we were brought on to help with additional casting.
So, what exactly does "additional casting" mean?
In the case of Mondegreen, director and writer Linda Mai Green had already selected her leading actor, but there was still the important task of finding the perfect fit for the role of Lili. The character of Lili was described as “sensitive, charismatic, and spiritual, but also entitled, self-righteous, and dangerous” — a complex mix that required someone truly special to bring her to life.
This is where our team came in. We knew we had to find someone who could capture all the nuance and depth of Lili’s character. To do that, we conducted major outreach within the San Francisco Bay Area to ensure we were considering every possibility. Our efforts paid off, as we ended up reviewing over 150 auditions. From those, we carefully selected our top 15 candidates and then held Zoom callbacks with five potential actors who stood out.
Each callback was an exciting opportunity to see how each actor could embody Lili’s conflicting traits, and it was a joy to witness the talent and dedication of all the performers. After thoughtful consideration, we found our Lili — a perfect match for the role and the vision Linda had for her character.
Attending the Premiere
The premiere of Mondegreen at the Roxie Theater in the Mission District was such a delight. With a packed house of excited festival-goers, it was such a thrill to see the film alongside 5 other captivating shorts. The audience reactions were a testament to the power of the work, and it was great to hear insight from the filmmakers in a Q&A after the showing.
If you haven’t yet had the chance to see Mondegreen, don’t worry! The film will be screening at the Final Girls Berlin Film Festival, where more audiences will get to experience the magic of this beautiful, thought-provoking short.
A big congratulations to Linda for bringing this film to life. We were honored to be part of this incredible journey, and it only reminds us of why we love what we do — helping talented filmmakers and storytellers bring their visions to life through casting.
If you're working on a short film or any other project and need casting assistance, we’d love to chat! Get in touch with us today to discuss how we can help bring your next project to life.
