Decided Cast Members

Throughout the planning process I auditioned many people to play the roles within my soap opera trailer, after looking through all of the audition tapes I have decided to cast:
Zak Douglas as Detective Jamie Douglas:
I chose Zak to play this part as he had the most suited look for this character. With his emotional backstory, the character needed a hard, unkempt appearance which I think is replicated by his image. Also his confidence reinforced the position of authority the detective is in, therefore this would make the character more believable for the audience. With his previous acting skills and abilities, I felt that Zak would fit perfectly into the role and the story of the character.
Bethany Dugmore as Ellie Dean and the other body of the dead girl found:
I thought that Beth was most suited to play the character of a young girl, with a fresh face and long dark hair she fitted perfectly into the criteria I wanted. As the two characters Ellie Dean and the dead body of a girl are meant to be similar in appearance, I thought it would be easier to cast the same person to play both parts, whilst making minor changes to their outfits and makeup on the day of filming.
Nicole Morris as Ellie's Mother:
I chose Nicole to play the role of Ellie's mother as again her appearance seemed to portray a stereotypical mother figure with long curly hair and jumpers/cardigans etc. With her previous acting abilities and shows as experience, I thought she would be the most confident to play this role and have good acting abilities to suit the emotional journey the character goes on.
John Thomas as Ellie's Father:
John Thomas was chosen to be the father as I felt he had a kind nature and most suited the stereotypes of a father figure, being able to act worried and emotional whilst his daughter has gone missing. Also his older looking appearance made the character more believable to audiences in thinking he has a daughter.
Nathan Hodgkiss as the Kidnapper:
I chose Jack as the kidnapper figure due to his appearance, tall stature and muscly build. I felt he looked the most intimidating out of all the people who auditioned, making him suit such a formidable role within the soap opera. This appearance will enable audiences to see him as intimidating and scary, much like Ellie will see him and therefore make her fear more believable too.

After choosing these main cast members, I then chose extras who will appear as the detectives, search party and press members throughout the trailer:
Harun Hudson, Stuart Platt, Lyeon Wakoma, Kristina Obulaite, Luke Cross, Jenny Baker, Claire Moody, Rosie Tkazcuk, Colm Keogh, Montel Beecher-Brown, Daniel Williams, Simon Charles, Joel Chaproniere