NCIndieSeen

It always bewilders me when an independent film actor who makes a conscious effort to stay underground in their cinematic career and then suddenly decides to go mainstream.  Joseph Gordon Levitt (aka JGL) is not exempt from this process.  Many indie actors like Parker Posey, Ryan Gosling, Anthony Mackie, and Jesse Eisenberg have decided to follow suit.  Is it selling out when an actor goes mainstream?  Or is it a way to show some versatility in their career to "stay the course" within the industry without sinking deep down into underground cinematic obscurity.

It's the actor whose face you totally recognize and movies you totally know, but you have no clue what their name is.  A PR agent has a responsibility to make sure you know the name of their client.  In some cases, they make sure you know the bits and pieces of their personal life too. However, maybe it is not about PR, maybe its about scripts?  The lackluster material coming out lately even within the indie circuit could be the reason why actors are not walking, but running into the other direction.  It seems as if the really good indie scripts out there are being outsourced to big wig movie studios. 

The fact that an indie film like Hurt Locker gained such attention is attracting major studios to finance independent films.  As you can see, there are a myriad of reasons why loyal indie actors turn mainstream.  The bigger question here is...is it good or bad?  Good because it generates more work for that actor?  Or bad because they leave their roots and forget about their ties to the indie community?

It's an interesting prospect to ponder either way...as the ticket holder, you be the judge.