Danielle Pretsfelder Demchick is a disability advocate and the owner of DPD Casting
We are so excited to spotlight Danielle of DPD Casting! Jess and Danielle met at the pediatrician's office of all places and got to talking. They had so much in common in regards to their advocacy and career focus. What started as a meet-cute has now turned into a collaboration!
DPD is working on an INCREDIBLE casting call for a MAJOR brand. We can't say who but the shoot would be in Orlando, FL or Anaheim, CA if that gives you any indication (hint hint!) Take a look at the breakdown below:
DISABILITY INCLUSIVE FAMILY: Seeking real families that include a child who plays 3-5 years old (up to 10 years old) and identifies as disabled. All
disabled identities are encouraged to submit. This includes but is not limited to the following: physical, visible, non-visible, mental,neurodiverse, blind/low vision, D/deaf or hard of hearing, performers who are verbal, performers who are non-verbal, and performers who use assistive technology. Families will be vacationing and making memories together.
HOW COOL?!
Want to apply? Click here
More about Danielle:
Danielle Pretsfelder Demchick, CSA (she/her/hers) is an advocate manifesting change in how the real world is reflected in today’s media. Her focus is on elevating underrepresented and misrepresented communities, and with disability being the most underrepresented and misrepresented facet of our population, her passion for disability inclusion in media is always front and center in her work. She has been an active member of the New York casting community since 2004. Nickelodeon was her casting home for over 14 years, where she tapped into her love of developing young talent. From live action and animation, scripted and unscripted, long form and short form, and even podcasts, she has and loves to cast it all! Some highlights from her Nickelodeon years include The Astronauts, The Barbarian and the Troll, Blue's Clues & You, Bubble Guppies, Dora the Explorer, Drama Club, Wallykazam, and Welcome to the Wayne.
Since her departure from Nickelodeon to open her own casting office in April 2022, some of her favorite credits include RespectAbility's Disabled Children's Content Creator's Lab (sponsored by Netflix), American Girl: Corinne Tan, the first American Girl of the Year film, which tells the story of the first Chinese American Girl, for HBOMax and Marvista Entertainment, Matt Rogers: Have You Heard of Christmas? for Showtime and You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah for Happy Madison Productions (coming to Netflix in mid 2023!) . She continues to cast Viacom Kids & Family content, including a collaboration with Alvin Ailey that she is especially excited about. She also has several independent films and consulting projects she can’t wait to share more about!
Prior to Nickelodeon, she worked in independent film casting. Select credits include Adam (2009), Holly Rollers (2010), New York City Serenade (2007) and Where God Left His Shoes (2007.) She also spent a year at Innovative Artists learning the agency side of the business, learning from the absolute best of the best.
The co-VP of Advocacy for the Casting Society of America, her work elevating underrepresented communities has been barrier breaking. She has led open calls for Trans & Non-Binary Actors, Performers with Disabilities, MENASA (Middle Eastern, North African, South Asian), Veterans, Senior Actors, Native American and Indigenous Actors, Black Actors, Asian Actors (over 7,000 actors submitted.) She is currently overseeing CSA's newest initiative, Mi Gente!, for Latine actors.
She serves on the board of both the Casting Society of America and Casting Society Cares, where her focus is on Training & Education. She serves as a faculty advisor for RespectAbility, the talent and casting consultant for GAMUT management, which works exclusively with talent with disabilities, and she is on the Actor's Fund's Looking Ahead Advisory Board. In addition to her work in casting, she is currently pursuing a master's degree in Disabilities Studies at the City University of New York. She is also a trained childhood bereavement group facilitator. She prides herself on being an ally to artists and aspiring talent of all abilities.
You can connect with Danielle on Instagram @dpdcasting and on her website https://www.dpdcasting.com/