Billy DaMota's remarkable journey began in San Francisco, California, where he started his career in the arts as a rock and roll guitar player. The mid-1970s saw him relocate to Los Angeles, only to find the rise of disco stifling his live music aspirations.
After bouncing from one dead-end retail job to another, Billy began his career in casting in 1985, starting as an assistant on films such as Predator, The Running Man, and The Three Amigos. The call from Dennis Hopper in 1988 marked a turning point, as Billy joined the casting team for the gang epic Colors, directed by Hopper and starring Sean Penn and Robert Duvall.
Billy's independent casting director career took off with Miracle Mile, starring Anthony Edwards and Mare Winningham. He went on to cast Above the Law, starring Steven Seagal and Sharon Stone, and the cult classic Chopper Chicks in Zombie Town, featuring Billy Bob Thornton in his first starring role.
One of Billy's most memorable projects was the family drama Touching Home, starring Ed Harris, Robert Forster, and Brad Dourif. Over the years, Billy has worked on hundreds of films, TV shows, commercials, plays, and music videos, casting actors at various stages of their careers, including James Franco, Cameron Diaz, and Brad Pitt, as well as Hollywood legends such as Faye Dunaway, Mickey Rooney, Glenn Ford, Martin Landau, Christopher Plummer, and Tony Curtis.
In the TV world, Billy, along with his longtime casting partner Dea Vise, cast the hit FOX TV show America's Most Wanted for 20 seasons and the ABC drama "In an Instant" for four seasons. He has also worked as a casting director on 35 films and two TV series for Pure Flix, the industry's #1 faith-family production company.
Billy's work in the music video world includes collaborations with artists such as Tori Amos, Big & Rich, The Basement Jaxx, Brooks and Dunne, Faith Hill, George Strait, Dave Navarro, Ministry, Toby Keith, Brad Paisley, MC 900 Ft. Jesus, Kanye West, and The Ramones.
As a writer, director, and producer, Billy produced the award-winning indie crime drama Reflections in the Dark, starring Billy Zane and Mimi Rogers. He has also won several awards for Posey (2012),a film he wrote and directed, starring Ray Wise and Oscar nominee Sally Kirkland.
Billy joined the Casting Society of America in 1992 and has been nominated four times for an Artios for Best Casting. He studied with renowned acting teacher Howard Fine and credits him with helping to develop the skills necessary to find the best talent on the planet.
Billy is a published poet, with his book Whispering Lunacies published in 2000. For 25 years, he has played guitar and written and recorded with the LA indie singer Shelly O'Neill and the Big Way.
As an advocate for the rights of actors, Billy founded DoNotPay in 2001 to help educate and inform new actors. He has been instrumental in working on legislation to help protect the acting community and promote ethical behavior in the casting industry.
In 2017, Billy resigned from the CSA in protest of the organization's failure to address the casting director pay-to-play scandal. He is currently writing his book, CASTING BUY, detailing the illegal payola debacle that found 18 casting directors, including 9 members of the Casting Society, prosecuted for charging actors for auditions.
In the fall of 2018, Billy opened an office in Southern Oregon called Rogue River Entertainment and Lunch Wagon, which focuses on writing, playing, and recording old-school, blues-based rock and roll, as well as baking award-winning pies.
