Susan Shopmaker

Susan Shopmaker is an American casting director.^[1][2] She is best known for her work casting for independent films.^[3] In 2024, she was awarded the BAFTA Award for Best Casting for The Holdovers.^[4]

Susan Shopmaker
Alma mater	Kirkland College
Occupation(s)	Casting director, lecturer at State University of New York at Purchase

Early life and education

Shopmaker received a bachelor's degree from Kirkland College in 1978, prior to the institution's absorption into Hamilton College.^[5][6]

Career

In addition to her work as a casting director, Shopmaker serves as a lecturer at State University of New York at Purchase.^[5][7]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Notes
1987	Salvation!	Extras casting
1988	Stars and Bars	Extras casting, New York
	Call Me	Extras casting
	Vampire's Kiss	Extras casting
1990	Alligator Eyes	—
1991	Liebestraum	Casting associate
	Night on Earth	Extras casting, New York
1992	Das war der wilde Osten	New York casting
1993	Three of Hearts	Extras casting, New York
1994	Dead Funny	—
1996	Ed's Next Move	—
1997	Hurricane Streets	—
	L'amico di Wang	—
	Ties to Rachel	—
	Obsession	New York casting
1998	Desert Blue	—
	Shadrach	New York casting
	Undercurrent	New York casting
1999	Trick	—
	The Waiting Game	—
	Speed of Life	—
	Story of a Bad Boy	—
2000	Crime + Punishment in Suburbia	—
	The Magic of Marciano	—
	75 Degrees in July	—
	João Mata Sete	—
2001	Diary of a City Priest	—
	Hedwig and the Angry Inch	—
	Double Whammy	—
	Series 7: The Contenders	—
	Acts of Worship	—
	Relative Evil	—
2002	Garmento	—
	The Other Brother	—
2003	Party Monster	—
	Happy End	—
	In Search of an Impotent Man	United States casting
	Something's Gotta Give	New York casting
2004	Evergreen	—
	Duane Incarnate	—
	Mean Girls	New York casting
	Invitation to a Suicide	Casting consultant
2005	The Motel	—
	Red Doors	—
	Lenny the Wonder Dog	—
	Road	—
	Mouth to Mouth	United States casting
2006	The Last Romantic	—
	Full Grown Men	—
	Just Like the Son	—
	Shortbus	—
	Trapped Ashes	—
	Sisters	—
	Glory Road	New York casting
	The Holiday	New York casting
2007	Great World of Sound	—
	West 32nd	—
	Walk the Talk	—
	Neal Cassady	—
	Enchanted	New York casting
2008	Henry May Long	—
	Afterschool	—
	Make Yourself at Home	—
	American Violet	—
	Santa Mesa	Additional casting
2009	Children of Invention	—
	The Exploding Girl	—
	Year of the Carnivore	—
	The Undying	—
	Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience	Extras casting
	The Maiden Heist	New York casting
2010	Beware the Gonzo	—
	Two Gates of Sleep	—
2011	Martha Marcy May Marlene	—
2012	Simon Killer	—
	King Kelly	—
	The Magic of Belle Isle	—
	Not Waving But Drowning	—
	Petunia	—
2013	Deep Powder	—
	Teenage	—
	The Happy Sad	—
	Stand Clear of the Closing Doors	—
	Finding Neighbors	—
	Haunter	Additional casting
2014	God's Pocket	—
	Listen Up Philip	—
	That Awkward Moment	—
	Rivers of Fundament	—
	The Heart Machine	—
	Hunter&Game	—
	Buttercup Bill	New York casting
2015	James White	—
	Don't Worry Baby	—
	Those People	—
	Chronic	—
2016	Goat	—
	Frank & Lola	—
	Punk's Dead: SLC Punk 2	—
	Approaching the Unknown	—
	Imperium	—
	Tramps	—
2017	Where is Kyra?	—
	Beach Rats	—
	Super Dark Times	—
	Maya Dardel	—
	After Louie	—
	Mobile Homes	—
	First Reformed	—
2018	Family Games	—
	Beach House	—
	Siberia	—
	Rosy	—
	Life Itself	New York casting
2019	Blood Bound	—
	Low Tide	—
	Sound of Metal	—
	Angelfish	—
	Blood Bound	—
	Wallflower	—
2020	The Nest	—
	Minyan	—
	The Big Ugly	—
	Lost Girls and Love Hotels	—
	Reunion	—
2021	Superior	—
	The Card Counter	—
	Sundown	—
	Bashira	—
	I Am Mortal	—
2023	Maggie Moore(s)	—
	The Holdovers	—
	Memory	—
	The Iron Claw	—
	Outrage	—
2024	What We Find on the Road	—
	La Cocina	—

Television

Year	Title	Notes
1997	Smoke Alarm: The Unfiltered Truth About Cigarettes	TV movie
1998	World War Three	TV movie, New York casting
2004	Tanner on Tanner	—
2009	We Are New York	1 episode
2011	Skins	10 episodes
	Who Killed Chandra Levy?	TV movie
2013 – 2018	A Crime to Remember	37 episodes
2014	Gun Hill	TV movie
2015	Film U	Miniseries
2017	I, Witness	3 episodes
2018 – 2022	Random Acts of Flyness	12 episodes
2020	Grand Army	9 episodes
2023	Dead Ringers	6 episodes

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2005	CineVegas International Film Festival	Special Jury Prize, Ensemble Acting	Red Doors	Won[a]	[8]
2008	Casting Society of America	Outstanding Achievement in Casting - Studio Feature - Comedy	Enchanted	Nominated[b]	[9]
2010		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Short Film	Mary Last Seen	Nominated
		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Low Budget Feature – Comedy or Drama	Afterschool	Nominated
	Black Reel Awards	Black Reel Award for Best Ensemble	American Violet	Nominated	[10]
2012	Casting Society of America	Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Low Budget Feature – Comedy or Drama	Martha Marcy May Marlene	Won	[9]
2016		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Low Budget Feature – Drama	James White	Nominated
2017		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Low Budget Feature – Comedy or Drama	Goat	Nominated[c]
2018		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Low Budget Feature – Comedy or Drama	Beach Rats	Won
2020		Outstanding Achievement in Casting - Live Television - Variety or Sketch Comedy	Random Acts of Flyness	Nominated[d]
		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Micro Budget Feature – Comedy or Drama	Low Tide	Nominated[a]	[11]
2021	Semiramis Award for Excellence in Casting	Excellence in Casting	Sound of Metal	Nominated[e]	[9]
	Casting Society of America	Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Low Budget Feature		Nominated	[9]
2024		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Low Budget Feature	Memory	Won
		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Studio or Independent Feature – Drama	The Iron Claw	Nominated[f]
		Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Studio or Independent Feature – Comedy	The Holdovers	Won
	Alliance of Women Film Journalists	Best Ensemble Cast		Nominated	[12]
	Astra Creative Arts Awards	Best Casting		Nominated	[13]
	BAFTA Awards	Best Casting		Won	[4]
	Chicago Indie Critics	Best Ensemble		Nominated	[14]
	Online Film & Television Association	Best Casting		Nominated	[15]
	Seattle Film Critics Society	Best Ensemble Cast		Won	[16]

Notes

1. Shared with Lois Drabkin.
2. Shared with John Papsidera and Marcia Ross
3. Shared with D. Lynn Meyers.
4. Shared with Emily Fleischer.
5. Shared with Lisa Lobel and Angela Peri.
6. Shared with Brent Caballero.