Behind the Lens

Film Career · Casting

Associate Casting Director

Casting · Teamsters Local 399 (casting directors); varies

Union
Teamsters Local 399
Day rate
~$50K–$250K/yr
Experience
8–18+ yrs
How to join your union

What does an Associate Casting Director do?

A associate casting director leads within the casting department, answering for its output while managing the people and logistics behind it.

Union coverage for the position varies: teamsters local 399 (casting directors); varies. Like every casting role, the job is hired production by production, and repeat work comes from department heads who trust the name on the call sheet.

What does an Associate Casting Director make?

  • This is a department-head chair, toward the top of its department's range.
  • Casting is paid per project or weekly: assistants and coordinators run modest day rates, and casting directors roughly $25K-$100K+ per feature.
  • Roughly $50K-$250K a year (Teamsters Local 399 covers casting directors in the West).

Film work is gig based, so crew are paid a day or weekly rate rather than a salary. These are realistic 2024-2025 ranges grounded in union rate cards and industry data; actual pay swings with budget tier, market, overtime, and reputation.

Sources & how we estimate pay

Union scale is the floor; the ranges above also reflect market day rates above scale. They are grounded in the following 2024–2025 sources:

Government wage data

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, for the closest federal occupation.

You’ll like and be good at this job if:

Hard skills

  • You know talent and can run auditions and deals

Soft skills

  • You can lead a crew, hold a budget, and answer for the department
  • You make decisions calmly and own the results

The ladder

Related chairs in this craft family, ordered from entry toward leadership:

  1. 1Assistant Casting Director
  2. 2Senior Casting Director
  3. 3Associate Casting Director (this role)
  4. 4Casting Director
  5. 5Main Casting Director
  6. 6Supervising Casting Director

Career progression

Within this craft family the recognized progression runs from assistant casting director toward supervising casting director, with each step earned through set time and the trust of the chairs above. Where this role sits on that ladder is less important than how the casting department works: people move up when the department already believes they can do the next job.

A typical path, from entry to the top of the craft. Times are rough and vary by market, luck, and how steadily the work comes.

  1. Assistant Casting Director

    ~$50K–$250K/yr

  2. Senior Casting Director

    ~$80K–$250K/yr

  3. Associate Casting Directoryou are here

    ~$50K–$250K/yr

  4. Casting Director

    ~$80K–$250K/yr

  5. Main Casting Director

    ~$80K–$250K/yr

  6. Supervising Casting Director

    ~$50K–$250K/yr

How do you become an Associate Casting Director?

The path here is internal: the casting department promotes this position from within, based on a track record built in its junior chairs. Start at the department's entry level and let the work argue for you.

Covered by a union? The joining a film union guide explains how each one takes members.

More casting roles

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