Casting Director Kseniia Pilyavska-Svystun

- About six years. I had various jobs: in production, a jewelry company, and the hotel business. I’m a lawyer by education. When my child was born, I left Kyiv and temporarily moved back to Mykolaiv. After three years, I returned to Kyiv and found myself working at a completely non-creative job. One day, while watching a series, I had this sudden thought: “Wait. Why am I not there?” Since childhood, I wrote poetry, organized camp contests, created scripts for Neptune Day or Role Reversal Day… I was quite a creative kid. At 26, I started wondering why I wasn’t in the film industry. First and foremost—as an actress. I called my husband and said: “I have an idea. I’m going to study acting.” Then came the second revelation: at 26, you can’t go to university to study acting. That shocked me. In the West, many actors start their careers far later than 16. To do it consciously, you need life experience and an understanding of the profession. I know that many who get into acting schools never finish because they realize it’s not for them. As a woman with life experience, a mother and wife, I couldn’t understand why that wasn’t applicable in this field. It’s not like ballet or aerial gymnastics, where you have to start at 5 or 6 years old. So, I decided to try an acting school instead. I studied for two years at Oksana Kolyadenko’s “Maska,” but I wasn’t getting much casting work—I didn’t know casting directors or directors yet. Tina Braganets, a wonderful friend whom I love and respect, brought me into film. She’s always open to sharing her experience. We met when she invited students from the school to shoot small episodes in Central Hospital. Those were my first auditions, and I was very nervous. She said: “You’re such a lovely girl. Want to try for a role?” But I was visibly scared, so I ended up doing just a small part. Fate brought us together again the next day at school. We talked, and she asked: “Would you like to work in film?” That’s how I joined the project On the Lifeline, which was quite challenging. Initially, I was just supposed to observe and learn. But five days before the start, a new casting director came in. It was a major project with Akhtem Seitablaiev and around 360 actors. For five months, I mostly handled technical duties rather than casting itself. I was thankful for my past jobs that gave me the skills to manage such responsibilities. That was my first significant experience in film. After that, I worked at 1+1 on the comedy Dogory Drihom with Hryhorii Horian skyi and Natalia Sumska. One of my duties as a casting manager was selecting background and minor roles, conducting castings, fully immersing myself in the process. 1+1 offers a strong foundation—you need to be proactive and take initiative, as no one’s going to walk you through everything.

— I do, but I wasn’t the casting director for it. It’s To Catch Kaidash, where Olya Klymenko did the casting. I mostly handled actors’ scheduling. They came from Dnipro, Lviv, Chernihiv, and many had only two shoot days. They were theater actors with tight schedules. I worked with Sasha Tymenko, whom I had previously collaborated with on Drivers, The Dentist, and Early Sunday Morning She Gathered Herbs. He’s great at organizing work on set, and the atmosphere is always fantastic.

Among the projects I’ve worked on as a casting director, the most significant was probably my first—Podorozhnyky. It didn’t go into production immediately, and some casting was already done (Sumska, Dovzhenko, Zhurakovska, Vitovska). I didn’t cast the leads, but I worked fully on the supporting and episodic roles. That was valuable experience. My second project was Blood Ties, season two. Now I’m working on Secret Love, also season two. I seem to be cursed with second seasons! (laughs) I dream of starting from scratch with a script and casting from the beginning.

— Once at an audition, I had my first encounter with a truly incredible actress— Olesia Zhurakovska. She’s well-known and beloved in Ukraine. Sasha Tymenko and I love running auditions where the actors can really perform, not just read. I like participating, engaging in the scene emotionally.

Olesia was in a scene with me. During a pause in her lines, I didn’t know whether to speak—she was so immersed, so alive, that it felt like I would interrupt something real. She stunned me with her presence. I also met Hrysha Baklanov during auditions for a small part in Dogory Drihom. He struck me then. I thought, “Once he matures a bit, he’ll fit leading roles perfectly.” He has a radiant, charming smile. We worked together on Kaidash, and now he’s getting plenty of work.

These kinds of discoveries happen all the time, in every project—and that’s wonderful. I also work at ABA Studio, where I manage several actors. Aside from Tina, this studio gave me a platform to feel confident in my casting roles. I had access to a base of actors, and for someone not from a theater or film school background, that was a big step up.

Sometimes during auditions, you see a wonderful actor but realize they don’t fit the character’s age or profile. Sometimes they just need more time. Their role will come. I mainly work in TV series, where the issue is always the lack of time on set. To really connect with a character, you need time—but you don’t always get it. I’d love to work on a full-length film. Something like The Survival Game—set in the mountains, with mystical elements. I dream of a project with suspense, complex characters, and an unconventional plot—not just romance and drama, but unexpected twists. Another small dream: to experience a nationwide casting tour—meeting actors in person across Ukraine. We mostly see self-tapes now. Meeting in person is entirely different. It helps you truly feel the person. And personality matters in actors.

— I don’t like placing actors on pedestals. We’re all human, with flaws. But it’s important to be a good person. That may not always show in auditions, but when your whole team is made of kind, decent people—you see the results.

— I dream of a state acting school for people over 25. Maybe I’ll even help make it happen. Evening courses would be great. I don’t understand distance learning in this field—you have to dedicate yourself fully. I’m sure there are people who want to enter the film or theater world but are held back simply because they lack education. We close castings and make good films, but we still suffer from limited character types. If more people could train later in life, we’d add so much richness and diversity to cinema. We look to the West—many of their actors made it only in their 50s, or were even discovered on the street.

— Yes. I dream of studying acting abroad if there’s no such school here. But for now, I’m not pursuing it actively—I have a child, I can’t just leave. But this dream returns every time a project ends and there’s that emptiness—you start wondering what’s next. I want to gain real tools and proper training to show my best self. Not improvising randomly, but working with skill and knowledge.

— I’m not afraid of being left without projects—I’ve already experienced that. We finished a 16-episode project Shusha with Irma Tsareva, and then the pandemic lockdown hit. I spent four months at home with my family, and my husband wasn’t working either. After that, I went two more months without a project. I’ve worked in other fields before, but I’d hate to be forced to leave this profession —that’s my fear. Another fear comes at the beginning of each project—hoping everything comes together, that you find the right cast. There were times when the director and I chose someone without even doing auditions. It’s great when you’ve worked with a director on multiple projects and already understand their taste.

— I sing at an amateur level—karaoke, whenever I can. I’ve always loved dancing. My parents didn’t want me to pursue creative work—but they failed! (smiles) My film industry friends say I devour movies. I can binge 12 episodes in one night if I really like something. I adore Gladiator. Russell Crowe was my first screen crush—he nailed that role. I never had other idols after him. I love A Beautiful Mind, The Green Mile. At home, I mostly watch movie channels, especially American ones. When I tire of those, I switch to local ones. I love reading too. Recently, I’ve been exploring psychology—how to achieve goals, mother-child relationships. As for fiction, I love classics—The Master and Margarita. I’ve reread it several times as an adult and love the film too. Same with Perfume.

— As I’ve said before: your role will find you. In the meantime—keep growing, learn new skills, create. Your moment will come. Just keep moving forward.