Bonnie Timmerman, the pioneering American casting director known for changing the face of Hollywood film and television by imposing diversity and discovering talent in abundance, will be honored at Italy’s Biograph Festival, a unique event dedicated to celebrating human life on film.
In the mid-1980s, Timmermann broke new ground by playing a diverse actor in Michael Mann’s television series “Miami Vice,” and later co-starred with Mann in “Manhunter,” “Heat,” and “The Insider.” Her long casting list includes “Trading Places,” “The Best Kid,” “Dirty Dancing,” “Bull Durham,” “Armageddon,” “Black Hawk Down,” and most recently, “The Roofman,” directed by Derek Cianfrance.
In a joint statement, Biography Festival artistic directors Chiara Liberti and Massimo Benvenu called Timmermann a “visionary talent scout” and noted that she has discovered stars such as Natalie Portman, Kate Winslet, Scarlett Johansson, Bruce Willis, Steve Buscemi, Viggo Mortensen, Benicio del Toro and Mark Ruffalo.
“For more than 40 years, Bonnie Timmerman has been taking leaps of faith. She watched today’s icons in rehearsal rooms when they were unknown, long before the world knew their names,” they said.
“By presenting Bonnie with the Celebration of Lives Award, we are not only honoring an extraordinary career, but also the intuition, courage and deep relationships that go into the casting process that transforms a screenplay into an unforgettable film,” added the director of Biograph Film Festival.
They also noted that Timmerman’s Biographical Film Award arrives at a “historic turning point in the industry,” as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences officially introduces a new competitive category to honor top achievements in casting, the culmination of a decades-long recognition campaign.
To celebrate, the festival will host a screening of director Simon Wallon’s 2022 documentary Bonnie, in which Timmermann reflects on her profession in footage of her first audition for the global superstar.
Previous Celebration of Lives Award winners include Werner Herzog, Francis Ford Coppola, Radu Jude, and Olivier Assayas.
The 22nd Biografilm Festival will be held in Bologna from June 5th to 15th.
