It seems appropriate that actress Tanna Frederick's breakthrough came in a film called Hollywood Dreams, Henry Jaglom's tale of an aspiring actress who takes Hollywood by storm. With absolutely no connection to the movie business, the Iowa native has proven herself a force to be reckoned with—"determined" would be an understatement—and has found a kindred spirit in Jaglom, who can't say enough kind things about his new muse.

For all the girls wondering how to get the key to Jared Leto's heart, here's part of the answer: Write an intriguing screenplay that allows him to spread his wings. That's all it took for writer-director Jarrett Schaefer to persuade Leto to star in his independent drama, Chapter 27, and throw his weight behind the film (quite literally) as an executive producer as well.

Known for depicting unique and unusual characters like David Helfgott in Shine,” Captain Barbossa in Pirates of the Caribbean, Sir Francis Walsingham in Elizabeth and a wide assortment of misfits and madmen, Geoffrey Rush has steadily become one of the most preeminent actors of our time.

Follow through with your word. People give a lot of false promises in this business. Fight that temptation.

He's voiced a pope, rocked out to Mr. Roboto and lost his hand to a dolphin. Now he's playing best friend to an almost-serious Will Ferrell. After rising to fame as Buster Bluth on the tragically short-lived series "Arrested Development," Tony Hale is taking Hollywood by storm, with a slate of new films in various stages of production--including Paul Feig's Unaccompanied Minors and Marc Forster's Stranger Than Fiction.

Earl Brooks is a fabulously successful businessman, a devoted father and husband, a much-respected pillar of his community and, on those occasions when he simply cannot suppress his baser instincts, a coolly meticulous serial killer. Kevin Costner is an Oscar-winning director and a chronically underrated actor who delights in exploiting his own star power to illuminate every facet of his starring role in Mr. Brooks, a movie that is equal parts ice-cold thriller and pitch-black comedy.

Working with great actors-be they stars or not-doesn't matter. But it's usually the non-stars that are the impressive actors because all they do is work on their craft. I study them and watch them and see how they finesse and massage their characters. So I got to say my inspiration in acting is the journeymen-the working character actors.

Actor. Writer. Producer. Director. Comedian. Playwright. John Leguizamo has been called many things, and for a guy who above all else doesn't want to get "pigeon-holed," that suits him just fine. The former class clown speaks with MM about his formidable body of work and why it's always better to "pick the shit part" in a great movie.

Even if you think it's crap, you'll be glad you finished it. Do a lot of random favors for people so that when you make your movie you can guilt them into working on it for free.

Jenna Fischer, the actress best known to audiences as Pam, the sweet receptionist on NBC’s “The Office,” is proving she’s more than just a pretty face. Fischer spoke with MM about her hilarious new mockumentary, what it takes to make it as a director and the difficult task of keeping her husband—writer-director James Gunn—under control.

Budgets have never scared me as an actor or as a director or as a producer. I've worked on movies that cost $3 million and I've worked on movies with larger budgets. It's just the question about whether one feels the emotional connection to the material and the need to tell that story. I think a lot of movies have very large budgets because they're mismanaged and have indulgent qualities that don't need to happen. Lower budget doesn't mean lower quality. Look at the movies that were celebrated at the Oscars.

Though he’s considered one of the most talented actors of his generation, bringing The Lost City to life was no easy task for Andy Garcia. A project 16 years in the making, the quadruple threat producer-director-actor-composer took time out from working on the film’s soundtrack to speak with MM about bringing his passion project to the screen and directing his first feature.

Gone with the Wind in the morning and The Dukes of Hazzard just before wrap. You can't take way too much time with stuff-you have to pick and choose what your vital scenes are to get done because you have a finite time to get them done in (unless you're Stanley Kubrick).

Donal Logue has one of those faces-the kind that you'll spot in a movie or on TV and immediately think, "Hey, that guy looks familiar." There's a reason for that. With more than 60 film and TV roles to his credit, including this month's The Groomsmen, Logue is proving that he is a leading man's worst nightmare-a rare character actor who, even in the smallest of parts and armed only with wit and charm, can upstage the star.