Casting calls may violate federal law

A new report from UCLA’s Chicano Studies Research Center suggests struggling women and minority actors might want to bring something extra to their next audition besides a head shot: a civil rights lawyer.

Some casting calls that specify gender and ethnicity could violate federal anti-discrimination laws, according to the report by Russell Robinson of the UCLA School of Law, who examined Breakdown Services’ listings of national movie casting calls from June 1 to Aug. 31 and analyzed roles compiled by online movie sites.

Robinson’s report concludes that 69% of available acting roles are designed for white males, either explicitly or by unspoken consensus, and that minority actors were limited to no more than 8.1% of jobs, depending on the ethnic group.

“By virtue of their race/ethnicity or gender, actors of color and female actors are presumptively relegated to the margins,” Robinson wrote, adding that they face a “double bind”: Refuse stereotypical roles and be unemployed; accept them and “increase damage to self and group identity.”

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bars excluding contenders for a job based on race, ethnicity or gender, though Robinson said leeway is given for creative works in which the narrative would be compromised. Imagine, for example, Billy Bob Thornton cast as slave rebel Nat Turner.

But Robinson argues that many casting calls limit potential hires when it is not crucial to the narrative, and that could violate federal laws.

He recommends that Hollywood film producers ban race or gender designations in the casting call “breakdowns” except where defensible for narrative; conduct annual reviews of forms to be completed whenever gender or race is specified; and “study the casting practices of films and television shows that achieve diversity.”

scott.martelle@latimes.com