Child actors have often played instrumental parts in the natural progression of many stories. However, in Bangladesh, child actors have never had the appropriate opportunities to train themselves properly, leaving room for professionalism in the field.
The situation has changed a lot nowadays, with many acting schools emerging to facilitate the craft, and Casting Cat has been at the forefront in this regard.
Casting Cat is a casting agency that trains children between the ages of 5-17. Casting Cat, which started as an online initiative, became a fully-fledged acting school for children after August 2022. It is also open for talents of all ages, but their casting of children is what makes them stand out.
Hasan Mamun, Head of Operations at Casting Cat, told the writer that Casting Cat was created to optimise children's social well-being and become a source of self-expression.
The motto of the casting agency is "Explore your inner talent with your act."
Talent management has been the agency's speciality for quite some time now, with the acting school for children being a recent addition. Renowned actor Fazlul Haque is the academic head of the Casting cat academy training school.
In the words of Mr Hasan Mamun, "Casting Cat builds bridges between brands and talent by fostering fresh faces, voices, and perspectives. We are dedicated to nourishing our children's creativity, collaboration, and self-expression."
"The Casting Cat is the perfect place for ambitious talents who seek to learn, grow, and contribute to our culture."
He also added that, as it is quite difficult for young children to get work, Casting Cat aims to create a casting management system for the country with a talent web where talents can easily be found and appropriately placed. The agency's focus is to create a casting management system first, which will automatically translate to the growth of the casting industry.
According to Mr Hasan, the acting classes at The Casting Cat will equip the children with the skills necessary to thrive in the industry, which many would have otherwise wasted.
Casting Cat already has a few alumni in the acting industry who have made their mark.
Mughdhota Morshed Wriddhi, an alumnus of the casting agency, got nationwide recognition for the movie 'Gondi' in 2021. They also have other students bagging national awards and anticipate that more alums will go forward and earn national-level recognition.
There are also many actors in the country's current television and film industries who got catapulted to the stage due to the acting agency.
Mr Hasan, while talking to The Financial Express, also expressed his frustration about the lack of a casting management system in the media culture of Bangladesh.
"Honestly speaking, our country has no real casting agency practice. No such casting management system is available in our media culture. That's really a bad sign for our future in the media industry. For every creative talent, there needs to be a strong casting management system."
To get rid of the problem, Casting Cat is trying hard to create a casting management system in the country, which, according to him, is instrumental to the industry's growth.
Acting groups for children have a huge potential for the future, as children-focused content has been abundant in recent years and the rise of OTT platforms where most shows more often than not require child actors.
Duronto TV, a television channel created solely to focus on children, has also broadened the horizon, along with the country's film industry, which is in dire need of child actors.
Casting Cat has already come a long way and can be a perfect role model for other organisations looking forward to facilitating the cause.
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