We are casting various roles for 5 CFC projects.
CASTING DIRECTOR: Jesse Griffiths CastingCASTING ASSISTANTS: Leah Galloway and Brian MacDougallAUDITIONS: Via Zoom (or by self tape)OUTSIDE DATES: November 1st, 2026 - November 13th, 2026 (1 shoot day + up to 4hrs of unpaid rehearsal time)SHOOTING LOCATION: TorontoRATE/UNION: Unpaid as per ACTRA/CFC Agreement. Open to Union and Non-Union performers.
These one-day shoots are called “VOICE” and they are professionally produced 5 minute productions designed to showcase the writer’s voice and one of their feature length projects in development. VOICE productions are a carefully crafted moment or scene that connects an audience to what’s at the heart of the writer’s feature. These pieces will be screened at an Industry Showcase event for The Norman Jewison Film Program and will eventually be available online through the CFC’s YouTube channel for further viewing.
All booked cast will be invited to an Industry Screening in December.
Please read carefully and submit for the role that applies to you!
TITLE: YOU'RE NEXTSHOOT DATE: November 3rd, 2026REHEARSAL: TBC
[ANNA] Female, late 20s, Iranian-Canadian. A poignant middle child with a sharp tongue, Anna has been the caretaker of the family since she was fourteen. Anna was prone to expect the worst which forced her to always run-on survival mode. A tough, hard headed young woman with a strong fear of abandonment (but she’ll never admit to it). Please note that this character is a first generation Iranian-Canadian who wants to learn more about her culture because she wants to find a way to connect with her dead mom...LEAD[ELLIE] Female, early 30s, Iranian-Canadian. A tenacious older child with a heavy-ness in her eyes, Ellie never had a chance to be a child. She was always forced to be the parent until she finally had enough and left at seventeen. Ellie’s resilient at avoiding but also holds onto a lot of guilt especially, for leaving her siblings behind. Please note that this character is a first generation Iranian-Canadian who doesn’t want to learn more about her culture because it’s a source of pain for her...LEAD[SAM] Male, mid-20s, Iranian-Canadian. The youngest with a hard time expressing himself. Sam is often forced to be the mediator between his sisters. Emotionally codependent with a heart of gold, Sam struggles with figuring out who he is outside of his family. Until he becomes possessed where he’s going to make sure his sisters know exactly how he feels. Please note that this character is first generation Iranian-Canadian. The tone of this role is EVIL DEAD...LEAD
TITLE: LIFE AS A DOGSHOOT DATE: November 5th, 2026 REHEARSAL: Nov 2 or Nov 4; TBC
[ADRIAN] Female, 18+ to play younger, any ethnicity. Impulsive, sharp-tongued and desperate to escape, Adrian is self destructive and masks herfear with bravado and drinking. Beneath her tough exterior, however, she’s just a girl who wants more out of life and is fiercely protective of Tanya, even while struggling to leave her own abusive relationship...LEAD[TANYA] Female, 18+ to play younger, any ethnicity. Anxious, superstitious and deeply rooted in her small-town life, Tanya is convinced that car accidents are genetic after both her brother and father died because of separate accidents. Adrian forces Tanya to confront her irrational fears, however it’s not as much the driving she’s scared of, but rather losing Adrian...LEAD[JOHN] Male, Late 20s, any ethnicity. Adrian’s abusive, controlling older boyfriend. He’s blue collar, but likes to take care of himself, always presenting nicely. He’s filled with pent-up rage and is living an unfulfilled life, dissatisfied with himself but taking it out on others. His presence is felt in the house even when he’s not there...LEAD
TITLE: BETTER LEFT UNSAIDSHOOT DATE: November 9th, 2026REHEARSAL: November 6th[LOU] AFAB non-binary/genderqueer/gender diverse, 20s-30s, East Asian. Chinese heritage, ability to understand Mandarin is a plus. A former rebellious teenager, Lou was sent to a strict boarding school after punching a boy at an alcohol-fuelled party which caused a scandal during her father’s federal re-election campaign. She has been estranged from her father and his side of the family ever since. For Lou, part of the estrangement always felt like a rejection of her queer identity. Emotionally guarded, sharp, and self-reliant, Lou knows how to put on a smile and play nice when needed. When she learns that her cousin Sarah is marrying a woman with the family’s support, she’s not expecting her father - a former conservative cabinet minister to be there. And that’s why she decides to crash. To understand why Sarah has been granted the acceptance that Lou believes she was denied. And Lou arrives hoping to prove that she’s a different person now, someone that has rebuilt her life through her accomplishments in academia. Deep down, Lou hopes that there might finally be a place for her in the family again...LEAD **Performers from the LGBTQ+ community are strongly encouraged to submit**
[ELAINE] Female, 40-60s, Chinese. Proficiency in Mandarin required. Sarah’s mother. The founder of Kwan & Lewis LLP and older sister of Vincent, Lou and Jenn’s father. While demanding and calculating at work, she is known to be generous as a mentor and philanthropist. She has spent years helping manage her brother’s political career, learning to anticipate crises and contain it before they become out of control. Her instinct is to manage a situation before it manages her. Intimidating and imposing without ever needing to raise her voice, Elaine can be gentle and cruel at the same time. Elaine believes she is protecting the people she loves from truths they might not be ready to face. For her, control and protective lies are an act of care and love...LEAD[SARAH] Female, 20s, East Asian, Chinese or mixed-Chinese heritage. Raised by a single mother, Sarah had a close bond with her uncle Vincent and saw him as a father figure. This is why after learning about his terminal diagnosis, she moved her wedding up in the hopes that he could be there. As a kid, Sarah idolized her older cousin Lou but was too young to understand or be told about what happened with Lou. She secretly hopes that Lou will come to her wedding, not only so that they can reconnect, but because she believes her uncle Vincent wants to reconcile with Lou before it’s too late. Warm, sensitive, and often puts other people’s needs before her own, Sarah is the closest thing the family has to neutral ground...LEAD **Performers from the LGBTQ+ community are strongly encouraged to submit**
[JENN] Female, 20s-30s, East Asian. Chinese heritage, ability to understand Mandarin is a plus. Lou’s younger sister and often takes on the role as the family mediator, she continued to keep in touch with her sister even after the estrangement. Composed and pragmatic, Jenn has learned to conceal her own feelings behind a polished exterior. Per her father’s wishes, she kept his cancer diagnosis a secret from Lou even though she doesn’t necessarily believe it’s the right thing to do. Her silence has made her complicit and it’s something she grapples with every day. Currently following in her father’s footsteps and running for political office, Jenn feels burdened not just by the weight of family secrets but also in carrying on the family legacy...LEAD
TITLE: SUICIDE 21SHOOT DATE: November 11th, 2026REHEARSAL: Nov 9th or 10th; TBC[RICHARD] Male, 21, Any Ethnicity. Feels completely alone, hopeless, and emotionally numb. Sees assisted death as his only way out, but is really just desperate to connect with someone. Nervous, quietly struggling, sweet, lost...LEAD[MARILYN] Female, 21, Any Ethnicity. Lost her family in a car accident a year ago and sees assisted death as a way to reunite with them in an afterlife she is convinced exists. In anticipation of her death, she’s spent most of her time drunk, doing something really fun, or both. Sees her last day alive as a celebration. Uses humour to deflect from her pain. Impulsive, emotionally guarded...LEAD[DR. THOMPSON] Male, 50s, Any Ethnicity. Physician at an assisted death clinic. Fatherly, empathetic. Wants to help his emotionally-suffering patients more than his job allows him to...LEAD
[NURSE PRINZE] Female, 40s, Any Ethnicity. Nurse Practitioner at an assisted death clinic. Very by-the-book. Hides behind procedure to avoid the emotional toll of the job...LEAD
TITLE: THE MANY FACES OF THE MAXWELLSSHOOT DATE: November 13th, 2026REHEARSAL: Nov 10th or 12th; TBC[LENA] Female, late 20s - early 30s, any ethnicity. Lena left home at 16 years old to pursue her dream of becoming a showgirl in Manhattan. She was popular at the club, attracting the attention of many young men, including Tony and Hal in the summer of 1941, some six months before they shipped out to join the war effort. She and Tony married in a shotgun wedding shortly before he left. She never really expected to see him again but hoped a little widow’s nest egg might be the little helping hand she needed. On Tony’s return to the US, she has reluctantly has taken up the role of the perfect housewife. It’s a good thing she’s such a talented actress. Hal’s arrival unearths a fear that has lingered since Tony’s return—that the man sharing her bed is not the man she married. And that truth may be her opportunity have the life she always wanted. Performance is slightly stylized and heightened...LEAD[HAL] Male, early - mid 30s, any ethnicity. Hal always felt inferior to Tony through every aspect of their lives, right down to inheriting his second-hand clothing. He loved Lena at first sight but she couldn’t see him past Tony. Hal’s fortunes changed after the war presented him an unexpected opportunity to have the life he had always wanted. The long road back home was all worth it when he arrives to his friends’ house in Bristol. His friendship with Tony will likely never be the same, but he holds out hope that he can build something out of the history he has with Lena. Even if it means living a life in someone’s else skin...LEAD[TONY] Male, early - mid 30s, any ethnicity. From a well-off family, Tony grew up next door to his best friend, Hal. The two were inseparable. They attended college together, worked together, enlisted together—but only one of them would return home from war. Lena wasn’t quite the kind of woman his parents would have hoped for him, but he assured them that her showgirl days were nothing but a phase, and she would very different once he returned from the war. And he was right, although his parents wouldn’t live long enough to see their perfect suburban home and his perfect wife in it. Hal’s arrival is a smashing ball to the life Tony has sacrificed so much to build, and he wants nothing more than to send him on his way so he can return to it. But the only thing worse than Lena’s cooking is getting on her bad side, so he’ll play nice until the opportunity presents itself to see the back of Hal. For good, this time...LEAD
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