'Beautiful Creatures' Exclusive Featurette: Meet The Casters

Just don't call them witches.

"Beautiful Creatures," the big-screen adaptation of Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl's Southern gothic novel centering around mortal teen Ethan Wate and the supernatural stunner who loves him, doesn't hit theaters until February 13, 2013, but lucky for you, MTV News has finagled an exclusive look at the film's magical casters to ease the wait.

"The casters are sort of a higher species, you know. They're a sophisticated group of witches, but you can't call them that. They don't like it," explained Alice Englert, who plays Ethan's caster love Lena Duchannes.

"They're supernaturals, they're not immortals. They're people who have powers beyond the finite abilities of most mortals," added director Richard LaGravenese, who also adapted the screenplay.

Each caster has his/her own unique ability, but there's another caveat that makes their powers even more complicated. You see, on their 16th birthday, each caster is claimed for a side: light or dark. Lena, whose milestone year looms large, hopes to go light, especially after the cautionary tale of her dark caster cousin Ridley, played by "Shameless" actress Emmy Rossum.

"Casters are either dark or light. Some of her family is dark, some are light," Rossum said. "Lena is a natural, her powers are magnified. If she becomes a dark caster, she will become the most powerful dark caster in the world, and the same for the light."

"Lena's 16th birthday falls on the most powerful solstice in 5,000 years, and more energy will be released than ever before and transferred to her. It's a big deal," Englert added.

In addition to boyfriend Ethan, Lena has a handful of allies, including her reclusive uncle, Macon Ravenwood (played by Jeremy Irons). Click play on the video above to meet Macon, plus get a glimpse of Viola Davis as seer Amma!

Check out everything we have on "Beautiful Creatures."