In The Envelope: An Awards Podcast

Julianne Nicholson’s impressive Hollywood career is the result of both magnetic on-camera charisma and a commitment to only playing roles that speak to her on a deeper level. In this insightful interview, Julianne reminisces about early auditions, pulls back the curtain on the many acting techniques she puts to use, and walks the line between optimism and realism that being a working actor requires. “Experience goes a long way,” she tells Backstage. “And life! Life gives you more things to draw from. And I expect that will keep happening as I go.” Hailing from Massachusetts, Julianne spent her young adult years modeling and waitressing in New York City, eventually finding the right acting class and committing to a life in the arts. A feature film debut in “Curtain Call” led to TV characters on “Ally McBeal,” “Masters of Sex,” “Boardwalk Empire,” and a lead role on “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.” On the big screen, she’s starred in “Kinsey,” “Tully,” “Black Mass,” “Novitiate,” “I, Tonya,” “Togo,” and “August:

Giancarlo Esposito can speak at length about his strategy for navigating a career in the arts, but what it all boils down to is quite simple: “Do what means something, and then don’t be exclusive.” As first a child actor doing musical theater, then a voiceover and radio artist (Backstage magazine in hand), then as an award-winning scene-stealer onscreen, Giancarlo has pursued every role with the kind of passion required to persevere in such a fickle industry. “Your intention is proved out over time,” he tells his fellow artists. “If you feel like you’re connected to that gift, then pursue that, whatever that is.” Born in Copenhagen and raised in Manhattan, Giancarlo spent his teenage years in Broadway musicals, then turned a radio and television communications degree at Elizabeth Seton College into a screen career. His Hollywood breakout came courtesy of Spike Lee in “School Daze,” then “Do the Right Thing,” “Mo’ Better Blues,” and “Malcolm X,” as well as “Taps,” “The Usual Suspects,” “Ali,” “Once Upon a Tim

What should actors know about a casting director’s job? And what is pursuing a career in casting like? Today’s episode, featuring an intro from Jack and Christine and two interviews with award-winning CDs, pulls back the curtain on the gut-based and logistical processes involved in, as Emmy nominee Ellen Lewis puts it, the “creative collaboration with a director and/or writer to cast actors that will fill the world that they are envisioning.” And there’s plenty of advice for auditioners, as fellow 2021 Emmy-contending CD Avy Kaufman reiterates her empathy and respect for actors: “It’s gotta be so hard to walk into a room with a stranger, give one take or maybe two takes.... Know your material, do the best you can. And good luck.” Avy Kaufman has cast some of your favorite films and TV shows, from “Brokeback Mountain,” “The Sixth Sense,” “Garden State,” “Lincoln,” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” to “Billions,” “The Alienist,” “High Fidelity,” and “The Stand.” She’s earned Primetime Emmy Awards for casting “Da

You may be surprised to learn the confident, charismatic Rosie Perez still gets nervous on set. “Everybody gets nervous,” says the actor, dancer-choreographer, and activist. “Not everyone admits it.” As she explains in great detail to her fellow artists, persevering in the entertainment industry means taking one’s craft seriously, overpreparing yet staying flexible, and learning how to rise above or even use nervousness—“finding the champion spirit within those butterflies.” Rosie has become an icon in her hometown of Brooklyn and beyond, since dancing on “Soul Train,” breaking out in Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing,” and earning Emmy nominations for directing and choreographing “In Living Color.” She’s starred on Broadway, scored an Academy Award nomination for “Fearless,” and turned in memorable onscreen roles over the years: from “White Men Can’t Jump,” “Untamed Heart,” and “The Counselor” to “The Take,” “Pineapple Express,” “Bounty Hunters,” “Rise,” “Birds of Prey,” and more. She’s now up for her first P

Actor, writer, and comedian Brett Goldstein has made, by his own admission, “loads of stuff that no one’s watched.” As he explains to Backstage, breakthrough successes in the biz are always the result of unseen projects, rejections, and persistent hard work. Now that his latest, “Ted Lasso,” is an Emmy-dominating hit, Brett is reminding himself of what truly matters and passing that onto his fellow artists. “The fame and success and awards should never be the aim. The aim should be: Are you enjoying the making of the thing?” Brett got his start in fringe theater shows and stand-up stages in his native England, starring on “Derek,” “Hoff the Record,” and “Adult Life Skills,” for which he won a British Independent Film Award. He created shorts that became the film “SuperBob,” the AMC series “Soulmates,” and more, and ended up collaborating with Catherine Tate on “Catherine Tate’s Nan” and with Bill Lawrence on a pilot, the latter leading him to “Ted Lasso.” The hit Apple TV+ comedy, co-created by and starring

Jeff Bergman is a legend in the voiceover industry, particularly when it comes to cartoon animation. The first actor to replace Mel Blanc as the voice of Bugs Bunny and other Hanna-Barbera characters, Jeff has tips for fellow actors on recreating iconic animated characters—“I’m trying to capture the essence of the memory that I have, and maybe it’s the memory that you have,” he reveals—plus getting your foot in the industry’s door, keeping your voice healthy, and paying attention to what ignites your passion as an artist. In addition to Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, and many other Looney Tunes, Jeff has also lent his voice to “The Flintstones,” “The Jetsons,” “JellyStone,” “Despicable Me” and “Batman” films, and Showtime’s animated satire “Our Cartoon President” as Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Alongside LeBron James, he now stars as Bugs and other voices in “Space Jam: A New Legacy” from Warner Bros and HBO Max. If you’re looking for “Space Jam”–inspired acting gigs now casting on Backstage, here’s your

Like many of today’s hardworking actor-writer-comedians, Cecily Strong knows how to give the exact creative advice that aspiring artists need to hear. The longtime “Saturday Night Live” cast member has thoughts on telling inclusive stories in Hollywood today, being in the moment on set, and embracing the ups and downs of the biz. “How easy is it to just feel bad about yourself and just feel so beaten up?” she points out. “Keep your chin up and know that your path may look different—your path should look different.” Raised in Chicago and a student of theater before comedy, Cecily has been Emmy Award–nominated two years in a row for helping make NBC’s “SNL” must-see TV. A scene stealer in “Ghostbusters,” “The Boss,” and many animated and sketch series, Cecily is now paying homage to classic movie musicals as producer and star of Apple TV+’s new original musical series from Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio, “Schmigadoon!” Tune in also for a recap of the 2021 Emmy nominations, and read up on them here: https://bit.ly/

It was a rejection, following a promising audition, that pushed Charlotte Nicdao to pursue the life of an actor. “I was devastated,” she remembers. “I was like, how am I this upset about this thing that’s not even my job?” In her native Australia and stateside, she has committed to the highs and lows of an on-camera career: weathering auditions of all kinds, growing her skillset as a comedic performer, and holding onto that early passion. After starring in “A gURLs wURLd” as a teenager, Charlotte appeared on the series “Camp,” “Please Like Me,” “Content,” and in short films, voiceover animation, and “Thor: Ragnarok.” The actor-musician-podcaster now stars as video game engineer Poppy Li opposite Rob McElhenney on his hit Apple TV+ workplace comedy “Mythic Quest.” Watch our recent panel featuring the cast of “Mythic Quest,” part of the first-ever BackstageFest, here: https://bit.ly/3ywejkr Stay tuned for tips and leads for Australian actors looking to break through, and check out advice on backstage.com by s

Riley Keough could be considered an authority on how actors can avoid judging their characters. The indie film star, who has held onto a lifelong dream of playing fascinating, liberated women on camera, reveals the different creative processes she uses to connect with such roles: “I don’t know if you need to love your character.” But, she adds, “When you’re playing somebody, you have to try and find empathy for them.” Growing up in Los Angeles surrounded by entertainers (including her mother Lisa Marie Presley), Riley worked as a model before debuting in “The Runaways” and breaking out in “Mad Max: Fury Road.” She’s starred in “It Comes at Night,” “The Lodge,” “The Devil All the Time,” worked with Steven Soderbergh in “Magic Mike,” “Logan Lucky,” and Season 1 of “The Girlfriend Experience,” and earned a Spirit Award nomination for “American Honey.” Riley now plays Stefani, a chaotic stripper, in A24’s Sundance hit “Zola,” adapted by writer-director Janicza Bravo and writer Jeremy O. Harris from an infamous T

How has Neil Patrick Harris been able to thrive in so many areas of the entertainment biz? “I don’t like resting on my laurels,” he tells Backstage, detailing the twists and turns of a career that has enabled him to consistently surprise audiences. Those hoping to avoid pigeonholing and play a variety of roles should listen closely to Neil’s advice, both practical and philosophical. “Being able to challenge myself, and keep growing in different ways.... It’s a long game.” Since his early breakout as a child actor in “Clara’s Heart” and leading the medical dramedy “Doogie Howser, M.D.,” Neil has become a producer, author, awards ceremony host, and activist (and magician!). The New Mexico native has nailed comedies including the “Harold & Kumar” films, “How I Met Your Mother,” and “A Series of Unfortunate Events,” musicals including “Rent,” “Company,” and “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” and darker fare including “Gone Girl” and Russell T. Davies’ recent Channel 4 and HBO Max limited series “It’s a Sin.” He’s

Someone as prolific and consistently stellar as Queen Latifah needs no introduction. At every surprising turn of her career as an actor, musician, and producer, she’s used an exacting work ethic and irrepressible enthusiasm to inspire women like her. “There were no blueprints for a lot of what I was doing,” she says of her beginnings in the music and filmmaking industries. How has she persevered for so long? “You have to fail,” she advises. “I, luckily, was thrown out there in enough things to fail and cry and get up and fail and cry.” After blazing trails as one of the first women in jazz-rap at age 17, Queen Latifah refused pigeonholing in the biz, getting her start onscreen in Spike Lee’s “Jungle Fever” and Will Smith’s “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” She’s since starred in “Living Single,” “Set It Off,” “Bringing Down the House,” “Chicago,” “Last Holiday,” “Hairspray,” “Bessie,” “The Wiz Live,” “Girls Trip,” “Star,” “Flint,” “The Little Mermaid Live,” and “Hollywood,” earning an Emmy Award, three SAG Awar

Despite their distinct training backgrounds and character construction techniques, “Bridgerton” stars Nicola Coughlan and Phoebe Dynevor agree on plenty when it comes to acting. It’s a fickle business, for one, and no matter where an actor is in their career trajectory, self-doubt remains part of the journey. “You have that fear where you go, I don’t think I know how to act anymore!” says Nicola of each new job. “You’ve got to make bold, interesting choices,” advises Phoebe. “Be bold!” Nicola studied at drama and improv schools in England and her native Ireland before getting her big break onstage in “Jess and Joe Forever,” followed by ITV Encore and Hulu’s drama “Harlots” and the hit Channel 4 and Netflix comedy “Derry Girls.” Phoebe began as a child actor on the drama “Waterloo Road,” then starred on “Dickensian,” “Snatch,” and now TV Land and Paramount+’s “Younger.” As Penelope Featherington and Daphne Bridgerton, respectively, Nicola and Phoebe are part of the SAG Award–nominated ensemble of Netflix’s pe

Writer-actors always make for insightful interviews, but that’s particularly true for Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle, who write, produce, edit, and star as middle school–aged versions of themselves on Hulu’s Emmy-nominated cringe comedy “Pen15.” Together they shed light on their “creative ESP” as collaborators, their distinct page-to-screen process alongside director Sam Zvibleman, and how to overcome the self-doubt inherent in a Hollywood career—especially for women onscreen. “I have permission to be free and wild and sort of unapologetic,” says Maya of playing a 13-year-old. Anna agrees: “I’m so grateful that we got the opportunity to just be characters with zero sex appeal. Zero!” After meeting at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, Maya and Anna set out to create their own opportunities in the biz, starting with the web series “Project Reality.” Maya also stars in ""Plus One,"" “Betas,” “Casual,” “Wine Country,” and the upcoming “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” while Anna has appeared in “Rosewood,” “Baskets,

What makes for an ideal collaboration between actors and behind-the-camera talent? Misha Green and Jurnee Smollett, the respective creator-showrunner and star of HBO’s “Lovecraft Country,” have plenty of insights into maximizing creativity and trust on set. “You gotta have an environment in which the ‘captain’ has created a level of safety, a level for you to fail big,” says Jurnee. “We’re going towards the same goal, which is the truth of this character,” adds Misha. “And we’re both fearless in that.” Before “Lovecraft Country,” the supernatural horror drama adapted from novelist Matt Ruff’s riff on H. P. Lovecraft, Misha and Jurnee worked together on the hit WGN thriller “Underground.” As a writer-director-producer, Misha is also the creative force behind “Helix” and the upcoming “Cleopatra Jones” and “Tomb Raider 2.” For more insight into her craft, check out Misha’s Meet the Maker feature: https://bit.ly/3hSEXiE Jurnee began her career as a child actor, on “On Our Own” and “Full House,” then broke out i

Ryan O’Connell and Punam Patel join the podcast together this week to discuss advocating for oneself as an artist, giving voice to communities underrepresented in entertainment, and their hit Netflix comedy, “Special,” which just premiered its second season. The two Emmy-nominated actors provide relatable advice to performers and writers looking to make their mark in Hollywood—confidently. “You can trust your own instincts no matter where you are in your career,” says Punam. “Just [believe] that you deserve to be there,” adds Ryan. Chasing a childhood dream of becoming a TV writer, the California-born Ryan turned the blog writing of his 20s into a memoir, “I’m Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves,” which Jim Parsons optioned through That’s Wonderful Productions. “Special,” which premiered as a 15-minute Emmy-nominated sitcom inspired by Ryan’s life as a gay man with mild cerebral palsy, made its way through development as Ryan wrote for the series “Awkward,” “Daytime Divas,” and “Will & Grace.” Punam, w

Actor, writer, director, and all-around storyteller Ethan Hawke is an advocate for truthfulness in both art and life. Although wary of giving advice, he provides plenty in his thoughtful “In the Envelope” interview: get out of your head and into your gut, study the work of artists you admire, use auditions as opportunities to exceed your comfort zone, and more. The more holistically one approaches a career in the arts, he says, the better. “But more essential to that is, most of us are only as good as our opportunities. And when the opportunities aren’t there, you have to search for ways to articulate your love...to make your imagination manifest.” Born in Texas and raised in New York and New Jersey, Ethan has been producing intensely honest work since his teenaged breakout roles in “Explorers” and “Dead Poets Society.” He’s appeared before or behind the camera in “Reality Bites,” “Gattaca,” “The Hottest State,” Blumhouse Productions films, “First Reformed,” “Blaze,” and “Tesla,” to name a few. One of the fe

While best known for her Tony Award–winning Angelica Schuyler in the Broadway musical “Hamilton” and its Disney+ filmed version, Renée Elise Goldsberry has played a significant array of roles across screen, stage, and music industries. “I’ve been around long enough to have had so many versions of my career,” she tells Backstage, providing key advice on how artists—particularly women—can truly have it all. “You just have to have the audacity to show up and try some of these things.” Raised in Texas and Michigan and trained in first theater at Carnegie Mellon University, then in jazz studies at USC’s Thornton School of Music, Renée got her start in the biz on “Ally McBeal” and as musician-star of the film “All About You,” followed by a two-time Daytime Emmy–nominated run on “One Life to Live.” Since landing on Broadway in “The Lion King,” she’s lived in New York City, working onstage in Shakespeare productions, “The Color Purple,” “Rent,” “Good People,” and “Hamilton,” onscreen in indie films, “The Good Wife,”

Today’s “In the Envelope” episode takes an in-depth look at safety and parity in the entertainment industry, and in particular an organization leading that conversation. We’re honored to be joined by Tina Tchen, president and CEO of TIME’S UP: https://timesupnow.org Created in 2018 partly in response to sexual assault allegations in Hollywood and its resulting #MeToo movement, TIME’S UP Now and the TIME’S UP Foundation advocate for “a society free of gender-based discrimination in the workplace and beyond.” Amid our country’s ongoing reckoning of discrimination and systemic inequity within multiple industries, TIME’S UP has partnered with other causes and charities to dismantle what are essentially interconnected issues: workplace harassment and abuse, pay disparities, employee rights, and more. Donate or get involved here: https://timesupnow.org/take-action “The real goal here is to create workplaces where [sexual harrassment or discrimination] doesn’t happen in the first place...to really work for safe, f

Now is a particularly exciting time to talk to Amber Ruffin, an improvisation-trained comedy performer and writer whose talent, perseverance, and upbeat charm have led to her own late night variety series. Peacock’s “The Amber Ruffin Show” allows the multihyphenate host to both indulge in the silliest comedic premises and cover current events with a refreshing directness otherwise rare in late night television. Her advice to fellow creators and comedians is to take risks, have no shame, and be prolific. “You have to have a pile of work that you can point to and go, ‘I can do this and here’s the proof.’ ” Amber grew up a theater kid in Omaha, Nebraska, before training in improv and sketch comedy at Boom Chicago Amsterdam, the iO Theater, and the Second City. She’s appeared on Comedy Central’s “Drunk History,” written for awards show specials and series including “A Black Lady Sketch Show,” and in 2014 became the first Black woman to write for a network talk show on NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers,” which h

As this year’s film awards season nears its conclusion, we’re diving deep into one of its most fabulous, and essential, ceremonies: the Film Independent Spirit Awards! Founded in the 1980s as the Independent Feature Project/West by producers looking to foster cinematic visions outside of Hollywood’s traditional studio system, Film Independent offers year-round resources, programming, and events—all for filmmakers, by filmmakers. The Spirit Awards honoring small-budget indie artistry, usually held each year just before the Oscars on the beach at Santa Monica, will air its 34th ceremony April 22 in a special virtual presentation hosted by Melissa Villaseñor: https://bit.ly/3sm8UsL “Our mission is quite simple,” Film Independent president Josh Welsh tells Backstage. “We champion creative independence in visual storytelling. We support a community of artists who embody diversity, innovation, and uniqueness of vision.” A former actor who began at the organization as a volunteer, Josh is the perfect guide to all t