Casting any film - short or feature always presents challenges specific to that particular project. For this project Mia was very open to seeing people she was not familiar with - she is very open in general to people regardless of their credits or length of resume, I found she really is just curious to see what actors bring to the project. She's very collaborative.

In the case of EXPOSURE she was interested in having a range of kinds of people to reflect the diversity of Los Angeles. There's a lot going on in the film and the action brings together 2 different worlds, Jesse's world and Roxanne's world. I think the people who populate each environment are what make that world real and vibrant for the audience.

JoNell Kennedy ( Roxanne ) is someone whose work I've known for a long time, and she's auditioned for me in the past. Once the idea of her in the role came to me, I felt really confident that she'd be ideal. Peyton McCormick ( Nicole ) is someone who I met recently and she's also new to Los Angeles so that was great to be able to bring her to this. And I think in general it's great to have a mix of people from different backgrounds and ranges of experience - it just makes for a more textured and vibrant world.

I've been interested in working with Mia for a few years, and we've kept in touch - I was thrilled to have the opportunity to work with her on EXPOSURE. It was a great coincidence that I had met Reuben Lim at a Film Independent event around the time HALF LIFE was screening at LAFF. It was just kismet that I got to work with 2 people I'd met separately and was excited to collaborate with, who happened to both be on this project.

The topics explored in the film were really compelling to me - I think fear in general is a great subject. Fear can be a powerful motivator and can also be something that paralyzes us. There are so many complex issues around health and intervention - and the speed with which things change in the field makes it almost impossible to have a static set of beliefs or rules. And of course all of us have things that in the abstract we would or would not do - but when faced with a health crisis of our own or a loved one those could change or shift dramatically.

Nicole Arbusto
nicole@dicksonarbusto.com