Brand
Casting

Casting Is A Craft, Not A Search Bar

Any brand can scroll a database. What a casting actually requires is judgment: understanding what a collection is trying to say, knowing which face carries that message, and confirming that the face is available, affordable and reliable before anyone falls in love with a photo. The Brand Casting desk at Barnett Ellman does that work for fashion houses, beauty brands, e-commerce operations, editorial teams and film and video productions. Some clients come to us for a single lookbook; others have run every seasonal casting through this desk for over a decade.

Our advantage is structural. Because B|E is a full agency with Women, Men and New Faces boards of its own, we cast with an insider's knowledge of rates, conflicts and contracts — and when a brief calls for talent beyond our roster, we source from partner agencies in 28 markets or run street castings without prejudice about where the right face comes from.

How An Engagement Runs

• Brief: we translate your creative direction into a concrete casting spec — look, range, budget, usage, dates — usually in one call.
• Options: a curated package of genuinely available talent, not a wishlist. Digitals current, measurements verified, rates pre-checked.
• Casting: in-person or self-tape sessions organized and directed by our team, with same-day shortlists.
• Contracts: booking agreements, usage and territory rights, exclusivity and renewal terms negotiated and papered.
• Production support: schedules, travel, on-set coordination and a phone that answers when something changes at 6 a.m.

Street Casting And Real People

A growing share of briefs ask for faces that do not look like models — real customers, real athletes, real families, characters with texture. Our scouts, the same team that feeds the New Faces division, run dedicated street castings for these projects and handle the parts that trip up in-house teams: releases, minors' permissions, payment logistics and the duty of care owed to people who have never stood on a set before.

Usage Rights, Handled Properly

The most expensive casting mistake is not the day rate; it is discovering mid-campaign that you never licensed the billboard, the territory or the second year. Every contract we paper defines media, territory and term explicitly, and we diary every expiry so renewals are negotiated before the deadline creates leverage against you. It is unglamorous work, and it is precisely why production companies keep our number.

Start A Casting

Send the brief — even a rough one — through the contact page, selecting "I want to book talent". For time-sensitive productions, call the office directly at +1 (212) 555-0148. First options typically land in your inbox within two business days, and for returning clients often within hours.