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Jane Norris and Nathan Lloyd set out their own casting shingles

Jane Norris at her new studio in Port Melbourne.

After 20 years with Mullinars Casting Consultants Jane Norris has launched her own firm, Jane Norris Casting.

The highly respected casting guru is working on a bunch of projects including season 4 of Matchbox Pictures’ Nowhere Boys, producer Julie Ryan’s children’s film H is for Happiness and her husband Robert Connolly’s feature The Dry.

“The time was right to go out on my own,” she tells IF. “It is a buoyant time. I am optimistic about 2018.”

Norris has cast numerous children’s and teen TV series while championing young actors in the early stages of their careers including Kodi Smit-McPhee, Morgana Davies, Angourie Rice, Ed Oxenbould and Julian Dennison.

Nathan Lloyd, who had worked in Mullinars Melbourne office for 15 years, also departed and has launched Nathan Lloyd Casting.

Lloyd just finished casting Gristmill’s ABC comedy Back in Very Small Business and is working on Radio Karate’s True Story with Hamish & Andy for the Nine Network and Screentime’s Playing for Keeps for Ten.

Ryan is developing H is for Happiness, the saga of a 12-year-old girl who is inspired by the odd new boy in school and sets out to mend her broken family – whatever it takes. Experienced theatre director John Sheedy will make his feature directing debut.

Connolly and producer Bruna Papandrea aim to start shooting The Dry, a thriller scripted by Harry Cripps based on Jane Harper’s debut novel, which centres on two murders 20 years apart in a small town in drought-stricken rural Australia, late this year.

Mullinars CEO Ann Robinson tells IF, “It’s business as usual for the team at Mullinars. We’ve established new studio premises in Brunswick and continue to enjoy working extensively, casting Australia-wide for our valued film, television and commercial clients.”