“My journey was probably slightly different from most people's,” says Mariele Runacre-Temple, Director, Production and Casting for Audible UK, reflecting on how she arrived at her current role. “I trained as an actor, and while I was at drama school, I did some audio acting and fell in love with the medium.” But since the acting landscape can be unpredictable, Mariele decided to create her own opportunities.

In 2007, she launched an audio production company that paired up-and-coming writers with emerging performers to create audio dramas for the web. “Back then, online audio drama wasn’t really a thing,” she says. She put out a call to editors, composers, directors—“anyone with the same mentality who was willing to put their hat in the ring”—and formed a scrappy, collaborative team. The company quickly grew successful, producing around 50 audio works in its first year alone.

Over the next 12 years, Mariele built that company into a recognized player, producing content for many clients, including the BBC and Audible, as well as the company’s own engaged listener base. Then came a pivotal moment: she was producing an early Audible Original drama when a permanent role on the team at Audible became available. “Accepting the role was an absolute no-brainer because what Audible was doing was so exciting. It felt like there was no better place to be,” she says.

Now Mariele leads the casting and production of Audible UK’s slate of star-studded, multicast Original dramas, including George Orwell’s 1984, Sam Mendes’ Charles Dickens collection, and a new production of Pride and Prejudice, and has played a pivotal role in the all-new productions of the original Harry Potter series.

Along the way, she has cast some of the biggest names, like Tom Hardy, Andrew Scott, Ncuti Gatwa, Helena Bonham Carter, Daniel Kalyuua and Vanessa Kirby, while also leading the team in casting exciting fresh talent like Marisa Abela (Back to Black, Industry) and Harris Dickinson (Babygirl, The King’s Men), who voice the leads in Pride and Prejudice. “I love the thrill of finding new voices as much as casting someone more well-known, like Peter Dinklage,” Mariele says.

To find the perfect voice for a role, Mariele often scouts talent portals like Spotlight and IMDB, or holds auditions. Then, casting decisions are made in close collaboration with the commissioning editor, the project director and Audible’s stakeholders.

One of the things Mariele loves about casting in audio is the unique creative freedom it affords—actors can play roles they might not be offered in visual media, which is great for them, and the production team can focus mainly on choosing the best, most effective voices.

Mariele also helps to shepherd UK-originating drama titles as they are produced around the world with local actors, directors, engineers and so forth, to ensure the intended impact of the original is maintained.

For example, with Pride and Prejudice, the Audible UK production serves as the creative basis for other versions of this title, with the team leading everything from script development and English-language casting to performance direction, sound design, post-production and music composition. As the title goes on to be produced globally, Mariele helps steer regional teams to ensure that local casting and performance works with the original sound design and score. For instance, “We encourage naturalistic, modern performances from the actors that resonate with today’s listeners and avoid the more traditional, stuffy approach typically associated with period productions," she says. That guidance extends to sound mixers, too, ensuring every creative layer aligns.

If Mariele has a favorite Audible Original, it’s usually the one she’s most recently worked on. Right now, that’s Pride and Prejudice. “I can’t stop listening to our version,” she admits. “We even commissioned an original theme song for it—it sounds amazing. I’m obsessed. But whatever we do next, I’m sure I’ll feel the same way.”

At any given time, the drama team juggles around a dozen projects at various stages. And she wouldn’t have it any other way. “I love it,” she says. “Otherwise I’d get bored.”

Mariele may have taken an unusual route to get to her current role, but one thing has been consistent from the start: her dedication to forging opportunities for other creatives. Her interest in fostering access and inclusion led her to launch Audible’s Off Mic program, a workshop series in partnership with a UK nonprofit that offers free audio production training to people from diverse backgrounds. The initiative helps participants build skills in production management, directing, sound design, editing, engineering and more.

 “Since I came from a female-led company, and it was a bit harder to find editors and sound designers from marginalized communities, I feel really passionate about” creating opportunities, she explains. “It’s about opening the door.”

See open Content & Audible Studios roles at Audible