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Well-known casting director Lori Malkin, formerly of Paladino Casting, has put up her own shingle with her new casting office Lb Casting, and is now coming to Backstage University to teach an on-camera intensive as she prepares to cast a new Web series for Time, Inc. and a new indie feature. Malkin is a full service casting director that specializes in film and TV. She started her career at Casting House in 2003, where she worked on several indie features including “The Perfect Fit” with Adrian Grenier and “A New Wave” with John Krasinski. Malkin also worked for Discovery Networks as their talent coordinator. There, she worked on casting hosts for all 10 networks. After Discovery, Lori continued to freelance with Casting House, where she cast several projects with Miramax and Michael Bay’s “The Amityville Horror.” She also worked on shows for ABC, NBC, MTV, and BBC before making her last stop at Paladino Casting,...

Awards season has long been the perfect time for the movie industry’s fresh faces to gain exposure at movie premieres, on red carpets and in a barrage of print and TV interviews. Often, it’s when we first become aware of young actresses, like Oscar nominees Hailee Steinfeld and Jennifer Lawrence last year. This year, it’s not just teenagers catching our eye; a few ladies who’ve been around for decades are finally getting their due as well. All week long, we at TheFablife are saluting these women and looking forward to what they’ll bring us after the last statuettes are handed out on Sunday. We’ve looked at Berenice Bejo’s, Shailene Woodley’s, Melissa McCarthy’s, Rooney Mara’s and Jessica Chastain’s big moments so far, and now we turn to …

Who: Octavia Spencer

Age: 39

What she did before 2011: A graduate of Auburn University,...