In a June 2015 interview, casting director Jennifer Starr chats with Into The Gloss about Bruce Weber, social media, and offers some advice definitely applicable to models.
The casting element of the work was just super huge. It sort of took over. I’d go to Argentina, England, and all around America to college campuses to find people because, at that time, Bruce loved new models. That was his thing. So if Versace was wanting to do a shoot in Argentina, they’d send me a month or six weeks ahead of time to find the cast. Now that I look back—I was 22 years old, alone with a Polaroid camera and a suitcase full of film—dream job!
I’ve always tried to understand who my client is. Who am I casting for? What is the brand? As much as I’m being hired for my aesthetic, I’m being hired for my aesthetic to fit within the brand. Sometimes you want to lead them in a different direction and give them advice, but I think it’s important to be versatile. Bruce Weber’s aesthetic and Steven Meisel’s aesthetic were very different. You have to do your research and you have to understand who you’re working for—but also know that they are hiring you for your opinion and your aesthetic.
Almost more than half of the jobs I get asked to cast, they’re asking what a model’s Instagram following is, and I’m casting based on—but not solely—their Instagram following. It’s sort of crazy that in 2015 an Instagram following has become a standard of beauty. So the game has changed. Instagram is definitely a game-changer, and I think that you have to get on board with it. I want there to be a backlash, but I don’t think it will happen because I think it’s a tremendous opportunity to cross-brand. I think the one good thing that comes out of it is that it’s teaching people and models today that they have to develop a sense of self and a unique point of view, whereas maybe that wasn’t super-important in the past. Personality is very important. And I knew that from the beginning!
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