Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Flick 4 Friday : Favorite Up and Coming Actor

The Flick 4 Friday question this week asks for an "up and coming" actor to watch. I immediately thought of the actor Jesse Garcia. This young man is outstanding in the role of Carlos, in the film Quinceanera. This film won both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize at Sundance in 2006. This film was the opening night film at the Newport Film Festival last year, where it was also an Audience Award winner. I am a volunteer driver for the festival. After the opening night party, in the midst of a downpour, a handsome young man jumped in the front seat of the car I was driving, his friends piled in the back. On the ride to the hotel, he introduced himself as Jesse, and asked me to thank one of the other drivers for waiting for him earlier in the evening. I recognized him from the PR information I had seen on the film and asked how the screening had gone. He was very friendly, enthusiastic and engaging. The film opened in RI a few months later, and I was very impressed with his performance. That year he won the ALMA Award for Best Actor and has completed at least a half dozen projects (film and TV) since then. I don't know what his future holds, but this is a young actor whose work I think will be worth watching.

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