Las Cruces Auditions for 'THE BURNING PLAIN"!!!

What: Open call for speaking roles in “The Burning Plain”
Needed: White boys ages 14 to 16; Hispanic men, ages 28 to 55 who can speak fluent Spanish; experienced Hispanic male actors ages 18 to 22; Hispanic women ages 38 to 43
When: 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Sept. 29
Where: 221 N. Downtown Mall (next to Day’s Hamburgers) in Las Cruces
Bring: A headshot and/or photo and resumé if you have them
Note: All participants must be available to shoot in the Las Cruces area Nov. 4 through Dec. 18.

Future auditions
An open casting call for extras will be held in Las Cruces soon, probably in October.

Closer look
• About “The Burning Plain”
• Plot: “The Burning Plain” explores the mysterious connection between several characters separated by time and space: Mariana, a 16-year-old girl trying to put together the shattered lives of her parents in a Mexican border town; Sylvia, a woman in Portland who must undertake an emotional odyssey to make up for a sin from her past; Gina and Nick, a couple who must deal with an intense and clandestine love; and Maria, a young girl who helps her parents find redemption, forgiveness and love.
• Director: Guillermo Arriaga
• Star: Academy Award winner Charlize Theron
• Producers: Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald
• Executive producers: Todd Wagner, Mark Cuban, Charlize Theron, Alisa Tager, Ray Angelic and Marc Butan
Source: Producers of “The Burning Plain.”

By S. Derrickson Moore
Sun-News reporter
LAS CRUCES — It could be your chance to be a star...or at least land a speaking role in a major motion picture. The first round of Las Cruces auditions will be Sept. 29 for speaking roles in “The Burning Plain,” starring Academy Award-winning actress Charlize Theron and written and directed by “Babel” screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga. The film will be shot in and around Las Cruces from Nov. 5 through Dec. 21.
“I’ll only be doing a very limited open call and then inviting a few people back, then doing an appointment-only call for actors I have chosen,” said the film’s New Mexico casting director Kathryn Brink.
The production’s first Las Cruces auditions will be from 10 a.m. to noon Sept. 29 at 221 N. Downtown Mall, next to Day’s Hamburgers, for the following speaking roles:
• White boys ages 14 to 16
• Hispanic men, ages 28 to 55 who can speak fluent Spanish
• Experienced Hispanic male actors age 18 to 22
• Hispanic women, ages 38 to 43
“Bring a headshot or other photo and resumé, if you have them,” Brink advised.
About 75 New Mexico crew members and 800 local principal actors and background talent will be hired for the film, according to the New Mexico Film Office.
“We want to let the public know that there will be a later casting call for all the background extras and many more people will be invited to participate. That will be the major casting call and that will be what most people will be qualified for. It will probably be in October, but no dates have been set yet. There is no e-mail or phone where people can ask questions or respond; unfortunately it just backs up our ability to cast,” said Brink, who stressed that all casting call announcements will be made through the media.
“Casting is underway in both Los Angeles and New Mexico,” Brink said.

S. Derrickson Moore can be reached at dmoore@lcsun-news.com