NEW: 5 screenings, 4 opportunities, & 3 workshops

Cast Iron Studios' Talent Diversity Initiative provides high-quality, intensive actor training to performers of color at no cost to the actors. Above are some of the program's graduates.

Cast Iron Studios announced that they will be incorporating an inclusion rider into their casting deals, with an additional option for clients to make a financial contribution to their Talent Diversity Initiative (TDI). On a related note, the agency reports that they’ve increased their casting of women roles by roughly 20% in the last couple years.

Expertise reviewed 135 Portland Makeup Artists and chose their top 19; these OMPA members made the list: Bri Ellis of Portland Make-up & Hair, and Terri Lodge. Congrats, ladies!

Our good friends at Mundo Catering received some much-deserved recognition from the WeddingWire Couple’s Choice Awards this year. They are one of 12 caterers recognized in Portland.

Another festival down means another round of OMPA members with new laurels: Joanie Fox (The Joy Block), Nick Brown (Dead Men Talking music video), and Limbo Films (Feeding Fate). Congrats to these Oregon Short Film Festival winners!

Photo: Allyson Riggs/Hulu

Aidy Bryant as Annie and Lolly Adefope as her roommate Fran in the Portland-filmed series, Shrill, which premieres this Friday on Hulu.

Since filming Shrill, SNL star Aidy Bryant has been raving about filming in Oregon. She says, “We basically took the truly unbelievably hard-working and talented crew that [Portlandia] had put together, and made them our own, and it was wonderful.” Congrats to these OMPA members on the show: David Cress, Joe Meade, Schuyler Telleen, Walter Barnett, Kyle LeMire, Ime Etuk, cdavid cottrill, Kent Luttrell, Cameron Carey, Bruce Henderson, Simon Miya, Laura Roe, Jerry Turner, Justin Ward, Tyson Wisbrock, Philip Anderson, Rodrigo Melgarejo, Sam Naiman, Shanna Vincent, Sterling Fiock, Brian Logan, Mercedes Orozco, Jennifer Bertram, Lauren Henry, Steven Weisman, Kevin Sullivan, Das Leune, Sika Stanton, Simon Max Hill, Megan Lask, Dan Eason, Shaun Gavin, Andrew Ticer, and Chandler Vinar.

Set Medic and Diver Matt LeDoux shared an exciting success story with us today about how OMPA connected him with the opportunity work on National Geographic’s new series, Legendary Catch. Executives from Nat Geo and Black Fin were impressed with our state’s natural beauty and talent pool, remarking that they'd like to return for future shoots. The new series premieres this Friday. Thanks for sharing, Matt!