Eric Dawson is an Emmy Award winning television and film casting director. He also was the recipient of the Casting Directors of America’s highest award, The Hoyt Bowers Career Achievement award. He received this award in 2019 for his contributions to the casting profession and in recognition of his body of work over the last thirty years.

Eric and his business partner, Robert Ulrich, founded their Los Angeles based casting company Ulrich/Dawson Casting in 1989. They added Carol Kritzer as a partner in 1992. U/D/K Casting (as it is often referred to) has been the largest television casting company in the United States for over 25 years. The company has cast nearly 200 different TV and film projects and over 4000 hours of television. They have the notable distinction of casting more episodes of primetime television than anyone in Hollywood history. They are also very proud that they have employed over 100 casting directors, associates and assistants through the years; many are now prominent casting directors out on their own, and others are studio/network casting executives.

Over the last thirty plus years, Eric and his partners have cast some of the most groundbreaking and successful projects in television. Their 15-page resume is too long to include here, but some of their favorite shows include: AMERICAN HORROR STORY, GLEE, GREY’S ANATOMY, CSI, THE BOYS, NIP/TUCK, THE EXORCIST, 9-1-1, ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW, ZOEY’S EXTRAORDINARY PLAYLIST, HIGHTOWN, SUPERNATURAL, FEUD: BETTE AND JOAN, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, MELROSE PLACE, THE MENTALIST and FELICITY.

Eric has been nominated for eight Emmy Awards. He won the Emmy in 2011 for GLEE for Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series. He was nominated for four years in a row for his work on AMERICAN HORROR STORY. He has also been nominated for 25 Casting Society of America Awards and has won several. Eric and his partners also received a Media Access Award in recognition of their passion for the Employment of Actors with Disabilities. In 2006, Eric’s alma mater, the University of Nebraska, awarded him the prestigious Alumni Achievement Award. U/D/K just was nominated for two CSA awards for the 2021 season. They are the only casting directors nominated for awards in both the Comedy and Drama categories.

Eric spent four years serving as Treasurer of the Casting Society of America. He also served as a board member on the Casting Executive Committee of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

Eric has been married to actress turned director/producer Roxann Dawson for 27 years. They have two daughters. Mia is graduating from UNL in the spring of 2022. Emma is at MIT in a PhD program.

The event is free and open to the public and accessible at: https://go.unl.edu/ignite