May 23, 1996

We cast most of the small roles in the movie today, using actors who auditioned for the leads. As usual, I am bothered disproportionately by having to reject actors. But this time I am somewhat shielded from the consequences of my decisions, thanks to the producers.

One of yesterday's auditioners called Alex today, asking for feedback. I liked him better than anyone else did, so I called him back and said nice things about his reading. He was so incredibly appreciative. Acting is a tough business.

Edith came up with a few more possibilities for the lead male role, so the word-of-mouth recommendations haven't dried up yet. But we're planning to put an ad in next week's Back Stage anyway.

We finished a rough outline of the shooting schedule tonight. It needs work, but I'm glad to have something to refer to. We still haven't plugged numbers into the budget yet--we're probably being way too lackadaisical about that.

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