Jason Henkel, Skydance SVP of Casting and Talent Relations, Talks Finding the Right Voice for Animated Films

variety.com:

Jenelle Riley Deputy Awards and Features Editor This article first appeared as part of Jenelle Riley’s Acting Up newsletter – to subscribe for early content and weekly updates on all things acting, visit the Acting Up signup page.

Jason Henkel came to Los Angeles in 1993 to pursue an acting career, before he pivoted to working in animation production. But his experiences as a performer helped show him the kind of casting director he didn’t want to be. “I didn’t want to go into a field where I secretly felt, ‘I could do this better,’” he says. “And from the moment I became involved with voiceover, watching these amazing actors who were so great at manipulating their voices, I knew I could never do what they do.” Henkel began his career as the assistant to the SVP of Music of DisneyToon before moving to casting in 2008, where he worked on the animated “Tinker Bell” movie with John Lasseter, who was then-COO of DisneyToon, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios.

Henkel served as head of casting for DisneyToon Studios, where he was twice nominated for the Casting Society of America (CSA) Award for “Planes” and “Tinker Bell and the Neverbeast.” After 18 years with Disney, Henkel followed Lasseter to Skydance Animation in 2019, where he currently serves as SVP, Casting & Talent Relations where he oversees casting and recording for all Skydance animated features and television series.

Though animation takes years to complete, Henkel has already seen massive growth in his time at Skydance. He estimates Skydance had between 50 and 75 employees when he started, and now that number totals over 1,000.