Casting

For her first television film - a remake of Fassbinder's Die bitteren Tränen der Petra von Kant - director Vera wants the perfect cast. But the first day of shooting is fast approaching and the numerous casting sessions have yet to find a suitable actress to play the leading role. Although the producer and crew are getting ever more exasperated with Vera, Gerwin is happy about the extra work, as he earns his money as an audition reader, delivering the lines of dialogue to the starry candidates at the various castings. When the male lead suddenly has to back out, Gerwin thinks that this might just be his chance.

Director Nicolas Wackerbarth captures the complex essence of Fassbinder's film and simultaneously creates a profound work of his own. Casting takes an unflinching look at the murky depths of human relationships driven by power, passion and desperation. Yet Wackerbarth also brings bitter truths to light about power relations and dependencies in the German television industry almost in passing. Casting is both intelligent and entertaining, marked by exciting turning points, humour and the breathtaking acting performances by a truly virtuoso ensemble.

Nicolas Wackerbarth was born in Munich in 1973. He studied acting at the Bavarian Theatre Academy in Munich from 1992 to 1996. After his first theatre job at the Schauspiel Frankfurt, he was a member of the ensemble of the Städtische Bühnen Cologne from 1997 to 2000. He then studied directing at the German Film and Television Academy Berlin (DFFB). Nicolas Wackerbarth has been co-editor of the film magazine Revolver since 2004. As well as working as a director, writer, and actor, Nicolas Wackerbarth teaches at various art schools and curates film programmes and panel discussions. He lives in Berlin.