Background
Selway was born in Norwich in 1936, daughter of a cinema manager and impresario, and enrolled at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London at the age of 13 to study acting.
Selway was born in Norwich in 1936, daughter of a cinema manager and impresario, and enrolled at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London at the age of 13 to study acting.
By 19 she had decided not to become an actress, and went to work as a production assistant at Independent Television before starting to work in casting, first under Miriam Brickman and then, from 1969, under Lindsay Anderson at the Royal Court Theatre in London. By the age of 34 she had started casting films, which she continued for the rest of her life. Selway worked with a number of renowned directors over three decades, including Steven Spielberg, Roman Polanski, Clint Eastwood, John Boorman, Sydney Pollack, Robert Altman, Michael Apted, Nicolas Roeg, Fred Schepisi, Fred Zinnemann and Ridley Scott.
She was responsible for the casting of 104 films and gained a reputation for fairness, determination, charm, wisdom and irreverence.
Selway was always seeking new acting talent, watching films from all over the world and attending fringe theatre performances. Unusually, she would stay in touch with the cast throughout the shooting process.
A biographical documentary entitled A Cast of Thousands: The of Mary Selway is being produced in celebration of her life. lieutenant is directed by Isabelle Gregson, who explained that it aims "in its own small way to give those who didn"t have the pleasure of knowing her, a taste for her enormous contribution to Cinema through the eyes and words of those who knew and loved her."
Selway"s death in 2004 is acknowledged by a memorium at the end credits of the movie Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film).
She directed the casting of many well-known films, including:
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
The Libertine (2004)
Vanity Fair (2004)
Enduring Love (2004)
Thunderbirds (2004)
The Chronicles of Riddick (2004)
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
Love Actually (2003)
The Sleeping Dictionary (2003)
K-19: The Widowmaker (2002)
Gosford Park (2001)
Enigma (2001)
Captain Corelli’s Mandolin (2001)
Notting Hill (1999)
Lost in Space (1998)
The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)
First Knight (1995)
King Ralph (1991)
The Russia House (1990)
Gorillas in the Mist: The Story of Dian Fossey (1988)
Aliens (1986)
Withnail and I (1986)
Top Secret! (1984)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Curse of the Pink Panther (1983)
Trail of the Pink Panther (1982)
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Outland (1981).