Strong Actors On The Rise!
A list of Actors/Actresses with a lot of Promise. Ones we've seen that stood out in their films. Mainly lead their own indies. Mention more to add on bottom if you like.
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Gary is an Actor/Writer/Producer who was born in Cleveland, Ohio. Early in his career, he appeared in over twenty commercials and on a number of hit television shows (Justified, Criminal Minds). He has worked with some of the industries best such as the legendary actor Brad Dourif in "Malignant", Norman Reedus, Kim Coates in "Hero Wanted" Timothy Olyphant in the FX series "Justified" , He Co-Wrote/Produced/Starred in the Indy feature "Monumental" with /Luke Albright as well as Starred in the award winning thriller "Purgatory Road". released Feb/2019. Recently worked again with "Daylights End" Director on "The Channel" Directed by William Kaufman, "One Ranger" Directed by Jesse V. Johnson, "Day Labor" Directed By R. Ellis Frazier and "Operation Blood Hunt" Directed by Louis Mandylor.- Actor
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Timothy Ryan Cole grew up all along the east coast, spending the majority of his childhood in Maine. In 2001, he relocated to New York City, where he studied at The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts and took part in a few Off-Broadway productions.
In 2007, Timothy relocated to Los Angeles to step up his Film & Television game and has since appeared in over 50+ national commercials and television shows (Criminal Minds, The Protector, Henry Danger, Go On).
In 2014 Timothy received back to back nominations for Best Actor from the London based Rain Dance film festival and The 4th Annual Stream awards for his work in "Sad Motivator" (dir. Nathan Bunker) This 7 episode web series was also nominated for a Streamy Award that same year.
In 2016, Timothy received a Best Actor nomination from The Idyllwild International Festival for his work in the feature film "Lost in a Crowd" (dir. Micah Cohen).
In 2018, Timothy received a Best Supporting Actor nomination from the Redline Film Festival for his work in "These Things Take Time" (dir. Jerell Rosales)
He most recently had the pleasure of working with writer / director Kay Oyegun (This is Us), Director Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures), and just wrapped the feature "1H20" written and directed by up and coming powerhouse, Daria Nazarova.- Actress
Mayra Leal is a Latina cinema artist of Mexican and El Salvadorian descent, born in Houston, Texas. The University of Houston Communications and Mathematics graduate has discovered a passion for film, TV and digital media and is garnering the attention of veteran producers, directors, business leaders, marketing agencies, fashion designers, and a growing loyal fan-base.
She enjoys the business of entertainment, but loves to spend time with her family and friends when not on the set. She currently resides in Malibu.
Mayra has over 32 movie and TV credits to her name and has appeared in several music videos, featured in "Locked Up Abroad in Bangladesh" - National Geographic, "Revolution", "Southland", and "Memphis Beat". She has also been introduced in "Machete" by Director Robert Rodriguez, starred in "Playing House" by Director Tom Vaughn and supported in "Sanitarium" with Robert Englund ("Freddy Kruger") and Lou Diamond Phillips, to name a few. She most recently completed "The Wisdom to Know the Difference" by Director Daniel Baldwin with William Baldwin, Lou Diamond Phillips, Andy Bowles Elle LaMont and Faith Stanek, which resulted in four best pictures with prominent film festivals and two best actor nominations for Mayra.- Actress
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Agnes Albright was born in Bielsko-Biala, Slaskie, Poland. She is an actress and producer, known for Black Mold (2023), True Detective (2014) and Alien: Harvest (2019).- Actor
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Nick Nicotera was born on 1 July 1981 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. He is an actor and director, known for American Pie Presents: Beta House (2007), Exeter (2015) and Van Wilder: Freshman Year (2009).- Actress
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Santa Barbara-born Maika Monroe's initial desire was to pursue a career in professional freestyle kiteboarding (kite surfer). Following in her father's footsteps, she started the sport at the age of 13. She moved to the Dominican Republic's north coast of Cabarete in her senior year of high school to train full-time while she completed her studies online. From then on, her athletic path prospered and she received second place in the International Red Bull Air Competition.- Actress
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Janina Zione Gavankar (born November 29, 1980) is an American actress and musician. Gavankar is also trained as a pianist, vocalist, and orchestral percussionist. She majored in Theatre Performance at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Gavankar's roles include Papi, a lesbian lothario in The L Word; Leigh Turner, a police officer on The Gates; Ms. Dewey, the personification of a Microsoft branded search engine who commented on the user's searches; Shiva, the namesake of the sought-after trophy on The League; shapeshifter Luna Garza on HBO's True Blood; McKenna Hall on The CW's Arrow; and Meredith Bose on NBC's The Mysteries of Laura. She also played Diana Thomas on FOX's supernatural drama Sleepy Hollow.
Gavankar was born in Joliet, Illinois, to Peter Ganesh Gavankar, an engineer from Mumbai, who first traveled to the U.S. to pursue a master's degree, and Mohra Gavankar, from Pune, Maharashtra, who also emigrated to the U.S. from India. Her mother is half-Indian and half-Dutch.
Gavankar has acted in theatre, film, television, and online. Her most notable roles include Iden Versio, canon Star Wars character, and protagonist of Star Wars: Battlefront II, shapeshifter Luna Garza in True Blood, lesbian lothario Papi in The L Word; Ms. Dewey, the personification of a Microsoft live search engine; and Shiva, the namesake of the sought after trophy on The League. She regularly appears in Funny or Die shorts.
In 2006 she joined the cast of The L Word as a series regular, and shot all of the clips used for Ms. Dewey. In 2007, she landed a lead in CW pilot Dash 4 Cash. In 2008, Gavankar appeared in TV series Stargate Atlantis, Grey's Anatomy and NCIS, My Boys, and Factory. In 2009, she appeared in the TV shows The Cleaner, Dollhouse, Three Rivers, and The League, as well as indie movies Men, Interrupted, Indian Gangster, and Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey. Gavankar played the voice of Nikki in Quantum Quest. She landed a lead role in The Gates, since cancelled, on ABC. She appears on CW's Arrow as a vice squad police officer and brief girlfriend to Oliver Queen.
Gavankar is an admitted gamer and has appeared on, as well as co-hosted, G4 TV's Attack of the Show!, Epileptic Gaming's Up All Night, where she helped review Rock Band, Burnout Paradise, and Army of Two.
In 2011 Gavankar became a series regular in HBO's True Blood as a public school teacher and shapeshifter, Luna Garza, who gets romantically involved with one of the main characters of the series.
Her indie movie, Satellite of Love, premiered at the Dallas International Film Festival in 2012, and her 2012 indie I'm Afraid of Virginia Wolf is in post-production. On December 20, 2012, Gavankar was the last person interviewed for the now cancelled Attack of the Show! which aired on G4 TV.
On August 3, 2013, Gavankar landed a role as a witch named Qetsiyah in the fifth season of The Vampire Diaries. She guest starred in the third season of Husbands.
In 2014, she starred as Amita in the video game, Far Cry 4. She also played Detective Meredith Bose on The Mysteries of Laura from 2014 to 2016.
She starred as Iden Versio, the main character in the campaign mode of the 2017 Electronic Arts video game Star Wars Battlefront II.
In 2018, she has two films releasing. Blindspotting is premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, and The Vanishing of Sidney Hall is being distributed by A24.
Gavankar returned to music with a cover of Kanye West's "Love Lockdown". Gavankar's former all female singing group, Endera, was signed to Cash Money Records Universal Records.
She collaborated on a project for a song called "Tell Me What" in India with Pratichee Mohapatra of Viva, Deep, and Navraaz. She has had songs licensed to movies and television, and has sung and played marimba on film scores. Gavankar was featured in Russian artist Ella Leya's music video for "Wish I Could", in the music video by San Francisco-based band Recliner for their single "Float Away", as well as the music video for Manu Narayan's band Darunam.
In August 2012, she released the single for her upcoming EP, entitled Waiting for Godot, and in November, Billboard premiered the official music video. It went on to win numerous film festival awards.
While in high school, Gavankar auditioned for the front ensemble of the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps of Rockford, Illinois. Before hearing whether she had made the corps, she was accepted for the Yale School of Drama's summer camp, and went there. "I fell in love with drum corps when I was 13 years old", Gavankar has stated, and remains a strong fan of the activity. When she heard the Martin Garrix/Usher collaboration, "Don't Look Down", she had the idea of performing it as marching music. With assistance from Drum Corps International, she contacted the Jersey Surf Drum and Bugle Corps and arranger Colin Bell. She went into the studios in New York with fifty members of Jersey Surf and recorded the music video "Don't Look Down- #JustAddDrumCorps Edition" that was released in April 2015.
On May 20, 2015, Gavankar performed a percussion duet at Carnegie Hall with Questlove for the Best Buddies charity benefit.- David DeLao was born on 28 November 1980 in Brewster, Texas, USA. He is an actor, known for Love Lies Bleeding (2024), The Curse (2023) and Accidental Texan (2023).
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Christopher Denham was born in Blue Island, Cook County, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Argo (2012), Shutter Island (2010) and Billions (2016).- Actor
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During the early 2000s, actor Scoot McNairy quickly came to specialize in portrayals of colorful and individualistic young men with a slightly rebellious edge. McNairy began during the early to mid-2000s, with bit parts in films including Wonderland (2003), Herbie: Fully Loaded (2005), and Art School Confidential (2006). He took his first bow as a producer with 2007's In Search of a Midnight Kiss, in which he also starred. That indie romantic comedy concerns a young man (McNairy) all washed up on New Year's Eve -- until an impulsive ad on Craigslist leads him to the great love of his life (Sara Simmonds) and an extraordinary night on the town.- Actor
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Steven Yeun was born in Seoul, South Korea, to June and Je Yeun. His family first immigrated to Canada and stayed there for one year, and then moved to the U.S. He has a brother named Brian. He began acting while at Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, MI, where he studied Psychology as a major (BS in Psychology, 2005). When he realized his love for acting he went to study theatre in college instead of med school. He was a member of Stir Friday Night, a sketch-comedy group made up of Asian-American performers, and was also a member of the Second City comedy troupe in Chicago. He earned roles on The Big Bang Theory (2007) (as Sebastian), in Jerry (2009) (as Chaz) and in different commercials for Best Buy, Apple, and Milky Way. He lives in L.A.
Steven enjoys playing guitar. His parents own beauty supply stores in Detroit, MI.- Actress
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Lauren Cohan is a British-American actress and model, best known for her role as Maggie Greene on The Walking Dead (2010) and recurring roles on The Vampire Diaries (2009), Supernatural (2005), and Chuck (2007). After her film debut on Casanova (2005) as Sister Beatrice, she starred in the sequel to National Lampoon's Van Wilder (2002), Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj (2006), as Charlotte Higginson. Her next role was in the 2007 film, Float (2008). In February 2010, she was cast in Death Race 2 (2010), with Sean Bean and Danny Trejo, and also the supernatural-horror film The Boy (2016), where Lauren played the main character, Greta Evans. In 2016, Cohan also appeared as Martha Wayne in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016).
She was born in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and moved to the United Kingdom as a teen. She graduated from the University of Winchester / King Alfred's College where she studied Drama and English Literature, before touring with a theatre company she co-founded at the University. Lauren then split her time and work between London and Los Angeles, working on several films as well as some non-commercial projects.- Actress
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Born in Panama and spending her early years in Costa Rica, Marta Cross, began her acting career on stage at the age of 9. She began her film career when her family moved to Texas where she landed leading roles in the horror films Side FX (with Amber Heard) and Red Ridge. She moved to Los Angeles following her first theatrical debut in Believe In Me co-starring with Jeffrey Donovan (Burn Notice, Changeling). Most known for her recurring roles on Showtime's "Weeds: and Nickelodeon's "iCarly". She has had acclaim in the independent film world for her starring role in the Berlinale Panorama Feature "Short Cut To Hollywood". Most recently she wrapped filming on the Romantic Comedy "The Bounce Back" with Shemar Moore (Criminal Minds) and Nadine Velazquez (Flight) and the thriller "Dead Men Float" directed by Jon Hess (American History X) coming to theaters in 2016.
Keep tuning in weekly to your local networks to catch Marta in Guest Starring roles on ABC's "Castle", "Off The Map", NCIS: Los Angeles on CBS and ABC's new pilot with John Leguizamo "Kings of Van Nuys". Hallmark has cast Marta as their new darling in the romantic comedy, "Hopeless Romantic" in where she co-stars as Krista Chapman, a jaded romantic who gives love another chance.
Marta's love for filmmaking developed into writing and producing in Texas working with local filmmakers to bring their movies from page to screen. She continued in Los Angeles and has produced several shorts and the feature film The Land Of Shadowed Sand, which won an award at the prestigious Austin Film Festival. Although, Marta directed many times on stage, her film directorial debut with "Sober" was in 2013 and was made possible through her executive producers at Waterstone Entertainment.
She continues directing and writing just finishing her Indiegogo campaign with the English/Spanish film "Sisters" and is in development to write and Star in her English/Spanish Series "ChiChi & Tucci". She is set to direct the indie feature "Carry Me Home" in the fall of 2016 with Waterstone Entertainment and is taking on the film world full throttle in hopes to be a voice for Latin Americans and Female Filmmakers for her next decade in Film/TV.
Weekly Marta gives back to the community through her show "Sor Juana", which she brings to the Los Angeles School District to teach kids about literacy and perseverance. You can also find her weekly at the Frida Kahlo Theater in East Los Angeles where she works with young Latino actors and actors with disabilities to find their voice through theater and the arts.- Actor
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Zack Bennett was born and raised in the small, rural mining town of Grass Valley, California. He began performing on stage at the age of 8 when his 3rd grade teacher decided that while his high energy and incredibly loud voice weren't great for the class room, it'd be perfect for the stage.
By the time the concept of careers came into Zack's mind, he had already been spending all of his free time on stage or making videos with his old Digital 8 camcorder. He taught himself how to edit on an early Final Cut system by the time he was a Freshman in high school. It was clear from an early age that he was destined to make movies.
As soon as the first opportunity presented itself, Bennett leapt into the unknown, graduating from high school early at the age of 16 and moving to Los Angeles for his first pilot season. Within 3 months he had booked his first professional acting job, a commercial directed by industry titan John Seale (Rain Man, Dead Poets Society, Mad Max: Fury Road).
After that there was no turning back and Zack has been working professionally in Los Angeles for over 10 years. He has acted in dozens of feature films, short films, commercials and television. He has worked with a wide range of talent including Faye Dunaway (China Town, Network), Ed Asner (The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Up), Rob Cohen (The Fast and the Furious, Stealth) and many, many more.
Bennett has studied closely with world renowned acting coaches D.W. Brown & Elaine Williams at the Joanne Baron/D.W. Brown studio; a studio that has produced names such as Halle Berry, Robin Wright, Jeff Goldblum and Patrick Dempsey.
Zack's turn into the vast realm behind the camera began when he and lifelong friend Kevin Schlanser decided to produce and direct their first feature together. The feature length documentary would soon become known as "The Ataxian".
Just as with acting, he found himself enthralled in the world of production and having spent thousands of hours learning the technical aspects of making films he has since developed an impressive framework and even deeper love for the art form. His work and relationships have spanned world famous artists including Hall of Fame musician Jason Newsted (Metallica), world class dancers including Andrea Schermoly (Netherlans Dans Theatre), and Ashley Bouder (New York City Ballet), and many other talented actors, musicians and artists.
Bennett conveys a tremendous sense of gratitude for the opportunities he's been given during his career. He owes a great deal to Valerie McCaffrey (American History X, Babe, Hard Candy) and Sean Michael Beyer (Down the P.C.H., Poor Paul) for the tremendous roll in which they've played in his life both personally and professionally.
Having spent over a decade learning his craft and honing his skills, Bennett is incredibly excited for the future, and at 26 years of age, he is just getting started.- Actress
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Lilan Bowden was born in Alameda County, CA. At Castro Valley High School, she got her start in theater and improv comedy and continued to pursue those interests at University of California, Irvine. After she graduated from college, she moved to Los Angeles and started taking classes and performing at Upright Citizens Brigade Theater. She still performs improv and live sketch comedy, and has a comedy duo with her best friend called "Lilan and Wilder." The correct pronunciation of her name is "LEE-lon."- Actress
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Born and raised in Cape Town South Africa, Brandt immigrated with her family to Auckland, New Zealand in her late teens. Discovered by local casting directors, Brandt took on the role of "Naevia" in the Starz hits, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" and "Spartacus: Gods of the Arena." Working with producers Steven S. D Knight and Sam Raimi, she captivated audiences with her performance and became one of the show's breakout stars.
She starred in the hit Netflix series, Lucifer which had a 6 year run, playing the fan favorite Vertigo/DC comic book character, Mazikeen. Lucifer went on the break binge records and was named the top binged show in 2021 by Forbes.
Brandt can next be seen opposite Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira in the 6 episode limited Walking Dead spin-off which airs in 2024. She is also starring opposite Jason Ritter, Anthony Carrigan and Chris Meloni in the adult animated comedy, Captain Fall which airs July 2023 on Netflix.
Lesley-Ann is now permanently based in Los Angeles.- Actor
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Known for Daytime Emmy Award-winning "Take This Lollipop" and a ratings-winning role on CBS-TV's "Criminal Minds," Bill Oberst Jr. is an American actor of stage and screen whose real-life gentleness and interest in things spiritual are at odds with his often macabre screen persona. Ron Chaney, great-grandson of Lon Chaney, presented Oberst with the first Lon Chaney Award For Outstanding Achievement In Independent Horror Films in 2014.
Oberst's staged theatrical reading "Ray Bradbury's Pillar Of Fire" won an Ernest Kearney Platinum Award for its Los Angeles debut, and was named Best Solo Show Of Hollywood Fringe and Best LA Solo Show in the 2015 Best Of LA Theater Roundup at Bitter-Lemons.com. In 2017 "Ray Bradbury's Pillar Of Fire" won a United Solo Theatre Festival Award for its Off-Broadway debut on Theatre Row in New York City.
The premiere of the horror-themed episode of CBS-TV's "Criminal Minds" which introduced Oberst's deformed killer character (also guest-starring Adrienne Barbeau and Tobin Bell) was the evening's most-watched TV program. CBS.com included Oberst's character in their list of "Criminal Minds' 14 Most Notorious Serial Killers." The character remains one of only a handful of uncaptured "Criminal Minds" killers.
He is perhaps most widely-known internationally as the face of director Jason Zada's "Take This Lollipop," awarded a Daytime Emmy Award by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in the category of New Approaches-Daytime Entertainment. Oberst has been seen by over 100 million viewers worldwide as an online stalker in the interactive application for Facebook users.
His individual award wins include The 2017 Horror Icon Award at The Optical Theatre Festival in Italy, The 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award at iHolly International Film Festival, a 2017 Best Actor Award at Dark Veins Horror Film Festival, a 2014 Best Actor Award at the Los Angeles Movie Awards, a 2015 Best Actor Award at Chicago Horror Film Festival, a 2015 Best Actor Award at Ontario Fright Night Theatre Film Festival, a 2015 Best Actor Award at Biloxi Fear Fete Film Festival, a 2015 Best Actor Award at Dallas Twisted Tails Film Festival, a 2014 Best Actor Award at FANtastic Horror Film Festival, a 2014 Best Actor Award at Housecore Horror Film Festival, a 2104 Best Actor Award at Tucson Terrorfest, a 2014 Best Actor Award at Los Angeles ZedFest Film Festival, a 2013 Best Actor Award at Pollygrind Film Festival, a 2012 Best Actor Award at Shockfest Film Festival, a 2012 Golden Cobb Award for Best Rising B-Movie Actor, a 2012 Baddest Villain Award at ZedFest Film Festival, a 2013 Monstey Award for Great Historical Monster Moments, a 2016 Best Supporting Actor Award at FANtastic Horror Film Festival, a 2017 Best Actor Award at Italy's Optical Theatre Festival and a 2018 Best Actor Award at An Anti-Hero Production Genre Film Festival in Los Angeles.
His shared awards include a 2013 International Critics Award at Deauville Film Festival in France, a 2014 Best Narrative Feature Award at The Los Angeles Movie Awards, a 2016 Director's Award at Boston Underground Film Festival, a 2013 Audience Award at Phoenix Film Festival, a 2013 Audience Award at New Orleans Film Festival, a 2013 Copper Wing Award at Phoenix Film Festival, a 2013 Best Feature Award at Unreal Film Festival, a 2013 Narrative Feature Award at Pollygrind Film Festival, a 2012 Shocker Award at LA Shockfest Film Festival, a 2012 Best Ensemble Acting Award at Sacramento Horror Film Festival and a 2012 Best Ensemble Acting Award at Phoenix Film Festival.