Christal Ransom Emmy and NAACP Award-Winning Television Producer and Casting Director shares her story with Black Talk Radio. Ransom's journey of becoming a casting director, the selection process of casting, and casting directing before social media.
“ I am the person behind the scenes, I am in charge of the content and who gets cast on television,” said Ransom.
Christal went from being an administrative assistant for E! Entertainment to now producing and developing syndicated and cable shows for the past 18 years. Christal began her career with Fox Television launching and producing "Divorce Court". Over the course of Christal's career, she has produced shows for CBS, NBC, Viacom, The Oprah Network. Ransoms mentions Oprah Networks Iyana fix my life in particular.
“ I love casting celebrities, but what I enjoy the most is casting real people. I really like casting people that are relatable to everybody. "
She describes being a casting director as “social work” when casting shows like Iyanla: Fix My Life. This show features Iyanla Vanzant helping people overcome difficulties in their lives. Each episode focuses on a specific problem posed by the story of one guest (or group of guests), with pre-taped production pieces at the guest's home and interviews with Iyanla that provide commentary throughout the show as a therapist.
“When you are dealing with real people with real problems, and they are coming to you to confide in you with their problems you have to have trust and take your time to get to know them, '' said Ransom.
Other television triumphs include being a casting assistant for the "Game Show Network" which helped enhance her eyes for raw talent. After working as a casting assistant for a couple of years, she then went back to producing daytime talk shows such as "The Jeremy Kyle Show" and "Paternity Court". As of late, Christal can be found working as a casting director for VH1. To learn more about Christal feel free to check out our full interview out now!