Panel of casting directors from the 2013 Spirit Award nominations.

With the Spirit Awards this weekend, the LifeRaft program wants to celebrate the hard working independent casting directors whose films have been nominated. Come hear these casting directors talk about what makes these films special, how they chose these projects and why they enjoy working with the independent film community. This panel will provide a treasure trove of well-earned advice for actors from superstar independent casting directors.

Danielle Aufiero & Amber Horn (Sounds of My Voice, Best First Feature Nomination) started their own company in 2010 when working on Zal Batmanglij's "sound of my voice". The film premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival where it received rave reviews and was acquired by Fox Searchlight. Since then they have been busy casting numerous indie films including "Freelancers" starring Robert Deniro and Forrest Whittaker, Jamie Babbit's "Breaking the Girl" for Myriad Pictures and in the process of casting "Battlecreek" to be directed by Alison Eastwood and has Hayden Christensen & Emily Browning attached. Many of their indies have been accepted into festivals throughout the country. In conjunction with another casting director, they also cast MTV's breakout comedy, "Awkward" which has been picked up for a third season AND has been named one of the top shows of 2011 by the New York Times and Huffington Post as well as just won the People's Choice Award for best cable comedy.

Julia Kim - Starlet, Robert Altman Award

Moderated by Jenelle Riley, Backstage.