TV shows 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,' 'Game of Thrones' and 'When They See Us' received trophies at ceremonies in New York, Los Angeles and London.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Knives Out, Jojo Rabbit and Marriage Story were among the feature films honored by the Casting Society of America at the 2020 Artios Awards on Thursday night.

The 35th annual ceremony honored excellence in casting across film, TV and theater at ceremonies in New York, Los Angeles and London, hosted by Michelle Buteau, Ron Funches and Jason Isaacs, respectively.

Other film honorees included Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (the Zeitgeist Award), The Last Black Man in San Francisco (low budget - comedy or drama) and, tied for best animation, The Lion King and Toy Story 4.

TV winners included The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (comedy series), Game of Thrones (drama series), When They See Us (limited series) and Queer Eye (reality series), with the pilot and first seasons of Pose and Russian Doll also recognized. Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear's "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons" won for live TV performance, variety or sketch comedy, while To All The Boys I've Loved Before won for best non-theatrical film.

The Artios Awards also honored Geena Davis with the Lynn Stalmaster Award for Career Achievement, Audra McDonald with the Marion Dougherty New York Apple Award, Deborah Aquila with the Hoyt Bowers Award and Andrew Femenella with the Rosalie Joseph Humanitarian Award.

In London, at an event hosted in conjunction with the British Independent Film Awards, Working Title heads Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner were honored with the Artios Award for Creative Collaboration, Andy Pryor received the Excellence in Casting Award and Pippa Markham, Kate Buckley and Gillian Hawser received special recognition for their work in furthering casting honors with the creation of the BAFTA Casting Awards for TV and film.

Davis — who was cast in her first movie (a supporting role in Tootsie) by the award’s namesake, Stalmaster — praised casting directors for their hand in increasing diversity among film and television projects. 

“I’m so grateful for everything you guys do, and especially for the work that you are doing toward inclusion. The needle is actually moving,” she said. 

Davis also mentioned a study done by her organization, the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, which found that children’s programming reached gender parity among lead characters. “It gives me tremendous hope for what we can all accomplish moving forward.”

She continued, urging casting directors to acknowledge the power they have in choosing who is represented on screen: “I always suggest to studios that an easy way to reach parity is to just go through a script and change the first names of a bunch of characters, and suddenly you have some gender equality.”

In New York, McDonald joked in her Marion Dougherty Award acceptance speech, "I'm so grateful for each time that I'm cast in a show cause you know, rent and all that stuff. It doesn't matter if you've got six Tonys or zero, it's due every month."

"I'm also grateful to the casting directors who took a chance on me and the ones who thought they were looking for something different but then saw something valuable in me," she added.

McDonald continued by saying all the influential people at the awards on Thursday night should use the power they have to encourage people to take chances in their work and open their minds to different ways of looking at things. 

"In doing so, we need to make sure that we're bringing everybody to the table — women, people of color, members of the LGBTQIA community," she concluded. 

On the red carpet before the awards, McDonald told The Hollywood Reporter that casting directors are the ones on the front lines, the ones who go to showcases and find new, hidden talent and bring them in. She added that she respects them and the Casting Society so much and that she was beyond honored to be receiving her award, especially because New York is her home. It's all she ever wanted, McDonald said. 

Michael Shannon and Brian Stokes Mitchell introduced the six-time Tony winner and shared their memories of working with the long-time actress. Shannon and McDonald starred alongside each other in the recent Broadway revival of Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune. 

"I've never been on stage with someone where night after night, I'd look over at them and I would just think, 'Damn, I can't do that. I can't do what they're doing. Thank god they're doing that cause I can't," Shannon said of his work with McDonald in the two-character play. 

The honorees in Los Angeles were joined by a host of actors who were ready to pay tribute to the people who had helped them land some of their most coveted roles.

“I grew up in a time when women like me weren’t necessarily thought of for a lot of roles,” actress Camryn Manheim told THR, “and if it weren’t for a few amazing casting directors who knew my power, knew my strength, knew that I could transform into these characters, I probably wouldn’t be here right now.”

Other attendees at the L.A. ceremony included Billie Lourd, Jared Harris and Marin Hinkle. Each shared stories about casting directors who helped them during the formative years of their career. 

“When I got out of grad school, the whole thing seemed so daunting, and they hadn’t taught us anything really about auditioning,” Hinkle said on the red carpet before the ceremony. “It was the care and the inspiration of [casting directors], and the trust that they were gonna give us some time in the room to fail and actually make a lot of mistakes. It was [having] people who were there to say, ‘I see something in you, and I can tell you’re nervous, but I’m here to help guide.’” 

On the carpet in New York, attendees said casting is the second most important thing in a project after the script. 

"Can you imagine some of your favorite shows and plays and movies with different people in the room? They would be completely different, and some of the most iconic characters and ensembles of all time might not have come to be," Rachel Brosnahan told THR. "Casting directors are the too often unsung heroes of all the films and television we make."

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel casting directors, Cindy Tolan and her associates, took home the award for best casting in a comedy television series. Brosnahan said she was so grateful for her casting directors, who addressed the loss of Brian Tarantina in their acceptance speech. 

"There are no assholes on our show," Brosnahan said. "We love each other, and we love working together, and we have chemistry that feels unparalleled. It's such a rare experience to feel like you have genuine chemistry with every single person in an ensemble, and that's our casting directors." 

Brosnahan's Maisel co-stars, Luke Kirby and Tony Shalhoub, echoed her sentiment on the importance of casting directors and how they are they key to a TV, movie or play's success. Kirby and Shalhoub also pointed out that without Brosnahan, the show wouldn't be the same. 

"Our casting director had this innate sense that [casting Rachel] was the right thing, sent her in to meet [showrunners] Amy and Dan [Palladino], and everything just clicked," Shalhoub told THR. "I'm convinced that without that, without Rachel, I'm not sure this show would have the strength and the gravitas and the following that it has." 

In honor of casting directors' biggest night of the year, Casting Society of America New York president Bernie Telsey shared what he and other directors look for when they're casting someone for any particular role. He compared it to a blind date because the directors are looking for someone who they want to hear more from. 

"You look for an actor to move you," Telsey told THR. "You're looking for someone who makes a choice, who feels connected to the character." 

A full list of this year's Artios Awards winners follows.

• Animation

  WINNER (TIE) - The Lion King - Sarah Halley Finn, Jason B. Stamey (Associate)
  WINNER (TIE) - Toy Story 4 - Kevin Reher, Natalie Lyon
  Abominable - Christi Soper Hilt
  Frozen 2 - Jamie Sparer Roberts, Sarah Raoufpur (Associate)
  How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World - Christi Soper Hilt

• Big Budget - Comedy

  WINNER - Knives Out - Mary Vernieu, Angela Peri (Location Casting), Brett Howe (Associate)
  Dolemite Is My Name - Mary Vernieu, Lindsay Graham Ahanonu
  Hustlers - Gayle Keller
  Rocketman - Reginald Poerscot-Edgerton
  Uncut Gems - Francine Maisler

• Big Budget - Drama

  WINNER - Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - Victoria Thomas
  1917 - Nina Gold
  The Irishman - Ellen Lewis, Kate Sprance (Associate)
  Joker - Shayna Markowitz
  Little Women - Francine Maisler, Kathy Driscoll-Mohler, Douglas Aibel (Location Casting), Carolyn Pickman (Location Casting)
• Studio or Independent - Comedy

  WINNER - Jojo Rabbit - Des Hamilton
  Brittany Runs a Marathon - Laura Rosenthal, Maribeth Fox
  The Dead Don't Die - Ellen Lewis, Kate Sprance (Associate)
  The Farewell - Leslie Woo
  Late Night - Laura Rosenthal, Maribeth Fox, Kimberly Ostroy (Associate)
  Poms - Mary Vernieu, Marisol Roncali, Meagan Lewis (Location Casting)

   

• Studio or Independent - Drama

  WINNER - Marriage Story – Francine Maisler, Douglas Aibel, Kathy Driscoll-Mohler (Associate)
  Harriet - Kim Coleman, Erica Arvold (Location Casting), Anne Chapman (Location Casting), Meghan Apostoles (Associate)
  Honey Boy - Chelsea Ellis Bloch, John Papsidera
  Judy - Fiona Weir, Alice Searby
  Waves – Avy Kaufman, Mark Mullen (Location Casting)

• Low Budget - Comedy or Drama

  WINNER - The Last Black Man in San Francisco - Julia Kim, Nina Henninger (Location Casting)
  Clemency - Kerry Barden, Paul Schnee, Roya Semnanian (Associate)
  Diane - Jodi Angstreich
  Skin - Jodi Angstreich, Laura Rosenthal, Maribeth Fox
  Them That Follow - John McAlary, Orly Sitowitz
• Micro Budget - Comedy or Drama

  WINNER - Skin in the Game - Matthew Lessall
  Low Tide - Susan Shopmaker, Lois Drabkin
  Mickey and the Bear - Avy Kaufman
  The True Don Quixote - Stephanie Holbrook, Ryan Glorioso (Location Casting), Justin Coulter (Associate)
  The Wind - Meg Morman, Sunday Boling

• The Zeitgeist Award

  WINNER - Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - Nina Gold, April Webster, Alyssa Weisberg, Angela Young (Associate)
  Avengers: Endgame - Sarah Halley Finn, Chase Paris (Location Casting), Tara Feldstein Bennett (Location Casting), Jason B. Stamey (Associate)
  It: Chapter Two - Rich Delia, Stephanie Gorin (Location Casting), Coco Kleppinger (Associate)

• Television Pilot & First Season — Comedy

  WINNER - Russian Doll – Christine Kromer, Andrew Femenella (Associate)
  Dead to Me – Sherry Thomas, Sharon Bialy, Russell Scott,
  PEN15 – Melissa DeLizia
  The Kominsky Method – Nikki Valko, Ken Miller, Tara Treacy
  Shrill – Collin Daniel, Brett Greenstein
• Television Pilot & First Season — Drama

  WINNER - Pose – Alexa L. Fogel, Kathryn Zamora-Benson (Associate), Caitlin D. Jones (Associate)
  Narcos: Mexico – Carla Hool
  Succession – Francine Maisler, Douglas Aibel, Henry Russell Bergstein
  The Umbrella Academy – Junie Lowry Johnson, Libby Goldstein, April Webster, Robin D. Cook (Location Casting), Samantha Garrabrant (Associate), Josh Ropiequet (Associate), Jonathan Oliveira (Associate)
  You - David H. Rapaport, Lyndsey Baldasare, Beth Bowling (Location Casting), Kim Miscia (Location Casting)

• Television Series — Comedy

  WINNER - The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel – Cindy Tolan, Juliette Ménager (Location Casting), Anne Davison (Associate)
  Barry – Sherry Thomas, Sharon Bialy, Stacia Kimler (Associate)
  Better Things – Felicia Fasano, Samantha Rood (Associate)
  GLOW – Jennifer Euston, Elizabeth Barnes, Seth Caskey (Associate)
  Veep – Dorian Frankel, Sibby Kirchgessner, Marlise Gunzenhauser (Associate)

• Television Series — Drama

  WINNER - Game of Thrones – Nina Gold, Robert Sterne, Carla Stronge (Location Casting)
  The Deuce – Alexa L. Fogel, Kathryn Zamora-Benson (Associate), Elizabeth Berra (Associate)
  The Handmaid's Tale – Sharon Bialy, Sherry Thomas, Russell Scott, Robin D. Cook (Location Casting), Stacia Kimler (Associate), Jonathan Oliveira (Associate)
  Ozark – Alexa L. Fogel, Chase Paris (Location Casting), Tara Feldstein Bennett (Location Casting), Kathryn Zamora-Benson (Associate)
  This Is Us – Tiffany Little Canfield, Josh Einsohn, Bernie Telsey
• Limited Series

  WINNER - When They See Us – Aisha Coley, Billy Hopkins (Location Casting), Ashley Ingram (Location Casting)
  The Act – Sharon Bialy, Sherry Thomas, Lisa Mae Fincannon (Location Casting), Craig Fincannon (Location Casting), Kimberly Wistedt (Associate)
  Chernobyl – Nina Gold, Robert Sterne
  Escape at Dannemora – Rachel Tenner, Nancy Mosser (Location Casting), Katie Shenot (Location Casting), Bess Fifer (Associate), Charlene Lee (Associate)
  Fosse/Verdon – Bernard Telsey, Tiffany Little Canfield, Amelia Rasche McCarthy (Associate)
  Sharp Objects – David Rubin, Chase Paris (Location Casting), Tara Feldstein Bennett (Location Casting), Andrea Bunker (Associate)

• Film — Nontheatrical Release

  WINNER - To All the Boys I've Loved Before – Tamara-Lee Notcutt, Tiffany Mak (Location Casting), Alexis Allen (Associate)
  Bird Box – Mary Vernieu, Michelle Wade Byrd, Jina Jay
  Black Mirror: Bandersnatch – Jina Jay
  Deadwood – Junie Lowry Johnson, Libby Goldstein, Josh Ropiequet (Associate)
  King Lear – Nina Gold

• Live Television Performance — Variety or Sketch Comedy

  WINNER - Live in Front of a Studio Audience: All in the Family and The Jeffersons – Marc Hirschfeld, Geralyn Flood, Katrina Wandel George (Associate)
  After After Party – Jessica Daniels
  Drunk History – Melissa DeLizia
  Random Acts of Flyness – Susan Shopmaker, Emily Fleischer (Associate)
  Rent: Live – Bernie Telsey, Tiffany Little Canfield, Ryan Bernard Tymensky (Associate)
• Children's Pilot and Series (Live Action)

  WINNER - Andi Mack – Amber Horn, Danielle Aufiero, Steven Tylor O’Connor (Associate)
  Alexa & Katie – Sally Stiner, Barbie Block
  Bunk’d – Howard Meltzer, Salvatore Schiavone (Associate)
  Fuller House – Alexis Frank Koczara, Christine Smith Shevchenko, Gianna Butler (Associate)
  Henry Danger – Krisha Bullock, Jamie Snow
  Raven's Home – Danielle Aufiero, Amber Horn

• Television — Animation

  WINNER - Big Mouth – Julie Ashton-Barson
  Bob's Burgers – Julie Ashton-Barson
  BoJack Horseman – Linda Lamontagne
  She-Ra and the Princess of Power – Ania O’Hare
  Spongebob Squarepants – Shannon Reed, Shiondre Austin

• Reality Series

  WINNER - Queer Eye – Gretchen Palek, Danielle Gervais, Ally Capriotti Grant, Quinn Fegan
  Born This Way – Sasha Alpert, Megan Sleeper
  Intervention – Kim Swanson, Haley Blaine Weinstein (Associate)
  RuPaul's Drag Race – Ethan Petersen, Goloka Bolte
  The Voice – Michelle McNultY
• Short Film

  WINNER - Skin – Jessica Sherman
  Evelyn x Evelyn – Sara Isaacson
  Miller & Son – Russell Boast
  Mr. Malcom's List – Tamara-Lee Notcutt
  The Neighbor's Window - Henry Russell Bergstein

• Short Form Series

  WINNER - It's Bruno! – Bess Fifer
  The Dead Girl's Detective Agency – Sunday Boling, Meg Morman
  The Donors – Nickole Doro, Shayna Sherwood
  Love, Death & Robots – Ivy Isenberg, Kristina Erdely (Location Casting)
  Mr. Student Body President – Nickole Doro, Shayna Sherwood, Romy Stutman
  The Real Bros of Simi Valley – Gianna Butler

• New York Broadway Theater — Comedy or Drama

  WINNER - To Kill a Mockingbird – Daniel Swee
  Choir Boy – Nancy Piccione, Kelly Gillespie
  The Ferryman – Jim Carnahan, Jillian Cimini
  Hillary and Clinton – David Caparelliotis
  Network – Bernie Telsey, Karyn Casl
• New York Broadway Theater — Musical

  WINNER - Hadestown – Duncan Stewart, Benton Whitley
  Ain't Too Proud – The Life and Times of The Temptations – Tara Rubin, Merri Sugarman, Claire Burke (Associate)
  The Cher Show – Bernie Telsey, Patrick Goodwin
  The Prom – Bethany Knox
  Tootsie – Jim Carnahan

• New York Broadway Theater — Revival, Comedy or Drama

  WINNER - The Waverly Gallery – David Caparelliotis, Lauren Port
  All My Sons – Jim Carnahan, Carrie Gardner
  Burn This – Jim Carnahan, James Calleri, Erica Jensen
  King Lear – David Caparelliotis
  Torch Song – Adam Caldwell

• New York Broadway Theater — Revival, Musical

  WINNER - Oklahoma! – Adam Caldwell, Will Cantler
  Kiss Me, Kate – Jim Carnahan, Stephen Kopel
• New York Theater — Comedy or Musical

  WINNER - Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish (Fidler Afn Dakh) – Jamibeth Margolis
  Alice By Heart – Bernie Telsey, Rebecca Scholl
  BLKS – Will Cantler, Karyn Casl
  Carmen Jones – Rebecca Scholl
  Clueless, The Musical – Tara Rubin, Merri Sugarman, Xavier Rubiano (Associate)
  Usual Girls – Carrie Gardner, Jillian Cimini

• New York Theater — Drama

  WINNER - Daddy – Judy Henderson, Nick Peciaro (Associate)
  Blue Ridge – Karyn Casl
  Days of Rage – Adam Caldwell
  Good Grief – Henry Russell Bergstein
  Mary Page Marlowe – Karyn Casl
  The True – Judy Henderson, Nick Peciaro (Associate)

• Regional Theater

  WINNER - In the Heights – Tara Rubin, Claire Burke
  A Doll's House, Part 2 – Paul Davis
  Barefoot in the Park – David Caparelliotis, Lauren Port
  Clybourne Park – Michael Donovan, Richie Ferris (Associate)
  Dangerous House – Will Cantler, Karyn Casl
  Fun Home – Chad Eric Murnane
• Los Angeles Theater

  WINNER - Sweat – Heidi Levitt, Billy Hopkins (NY Casting), Ashley Ingram (NY Casting), Marin Hope (Associate)
  Love, Actually Live – Duncan Stewart, Benton Whitley
  Ragtime – Ryan Bernard Tymensky
  Sweet Charity – Michael Donovan, Richie Ferris (Associate)
  Tiny Beautiful Things – Nicole Arbusto, Jordan Thaler, Heidi Griffiths
  The 26th Annual Young Playwright's Festival – Erica Silverman Bream, Cara Chute Rosenbaum

• Special Theatrical Performance

  WINNER - Annie – Margery Simkin, Michael Donovan, Beth Lipari, Richie Ferris (Associate)
  A Chorus Line – Jay Binder, Justin Bohon
  Antigone in Ferguson at Harlem Stage – Eyde Belasco
  Pride Plays – James Calleri, Paul Davis, Erica Jensen
  Songs for a New World – Carrie Gardner, Stephen Kopel
  The Wiz – Megan Larche Dominick

   

• Theater Tours

  WINNER - Hamilton – Bethany Knox, Lauren Harris (Associate)
  Come From Away – Rachel Hoffman
  Dear Evan Hansen – Tara Rubin, Lindsey Levine, Xavier Rubiano (Associate)
  Falsettos – Tara Rubin, Eric Woodall, Kaitlin Shaw
  Hello Dolly! – Bernie Telsey, Craig Burns, Lauren Harris (Associate)