LA, California (June 30, 2021) – NALIP’s 2019 Industry Pioneer Award-Winner Carla Hool is a champion for emerging Latinx talent. Hool has cast projects such as three seasons of Netflix’s Narcos, Disney-Pixar’s iconic film Coco and major studio films such as Apocalypto and Man on Fire.
True to her mission, Hool hosted a special screening of In The Heights in partnership with NALIP and Gold House on Saturday, June 19th to continue to champion Latino films.
“Now more than ever, I have strengthened my resolve to continue to help and promote Latinos in Hollywood any way I can. I know how it feels to be type-cast into a category when Latino talent can do so much more. It is time to unite and be cooperative, not competitive, however, our voices, characters, and stories still need to be heard and seen” said Hool to the press at AMC Century City.
Award-winning Casting Director Carla Hool was born in Mexico City. She has been working in the entertainment industry for over 15 years. From a family in the arts and entertainment industry tree that branches wide, Carla is the granddaughter of legendary Mexican actress and dancer from the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema, Constanza Hool. Being a 4th generation industry insider came with no special favors, as she had to fight even harder to establish herself in the complicated and diverse Latino world.
Hool grew up in movie sets from the age of four and was often invited to act. However, she didn’t consider it her calling. It wasn’t until her father producer Conrad Hool, gave her the opportunity to supervise the casting in a movie that it became her lifelong passion.
In 2002, there were only two casting offices in Mexico City. When she opened her own, she was credited for ending the “pay per play” situation in the capital and for raising the bar for actors and performers, quickly becoming the most renowned and sought-after Casting Director in Mexico.
Her first international credit was in 2004 with the film Man on Fire, co-produced by her father Conrad Hool and Executive produced by her uncle Lance Hool. Two years later, in 2006, Carla got her first individual credit in an American film as a Casting Director with the motion picture Apocalypto directed by Mel Gibson.
After a few years, U.S. production companies stopped filming in Mexico. Therefore, casting opportunities for big Hollywood projects started to decline. In 2007, Carla moved to Los Angeles, a place familiar to her as she had lived in between Mexico and Los Angeles throughout her childhood. However, she had to start from scratch, eager to continue to work in general market films such as Apocalypto.
She soon found out that Hollywood’s typecasting was not only relegated to actors but also to Casting Directors coming from a different country. The perception was that someone from Mexico could only cast Latino roles.
In reality, it is much easier for someone like Carla Hool to cast a studio film in the general market versus a Latino movie when you consider all the differences in accents, looks, dialects, nuances, and idiosyncrasies within the diverse Latino community. She is always striving to honor and respect the identity of the characters and the culture they represent.
It was precisely this professional discrimination and ironic typecasting that pushed her to her destiny: to fight for Latino talent and open doors so they get the opportunities they deserve. Her mission: to put the spotlight on Latinos so they are seen in a different light not only for stereotypical roles but as a high-quality talent that can play any role, just as she can cast any role across all ethnic groups.
Always fighting for authenticity in casting and to open doors for Latinos in Hollywood, Hool took it upon herself to educate actors and performers on standard Hollywood employment practices. As of today, Hool has worked in more than 100 films and television series. Other awards include Three nominations from the Casting Society of America Artios Award and one win for Coco. She was invited to join the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences in 2020.
Carla enjoys reading, yoga, meditation, watching films, and traveling. Her favorite charities involve sponsoring children from Third World Countries that are a very passionate advocate for animal rights.
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