Edward James Olmos says he puts up signs on the sets of the movies he directs: “No acting.”
Accepting the Lifetime Achievement Award Saturday from the Santa Fe International Film Festival, the American Me, Stand and Deliver and Battlestar Galactica icon asked that the lights of the stately Lensic Theatre be lowered so he could walk to the edge of the stage and see his audience.
It included, in the second row, his longtime friend Wes Studi.
“Wes has ever acted a day in his life,” Olmos said, before offering a distinction: “He experiences life and he puts it through. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t build character, OK? He’s a great character actor. I’m a good character actor.”
Then he delivered a mini-lesson on the difference between personality actors and character actors: “John Wayne, James Stewart: great actors, but they’re personality.”
He noted that he and Studi, as well as his American Me co-star, Pepe Serna, who was also on-hand Saturday night, were character actors.
“Wes and myself and Pepe, we’re characters,” he explained. “It’s funny sometimes what we get away with. Integrity is a sense of balance of understanding your truths and really holding on to them in your persona.”
He added that he doesn’t audition, requires creative input on his characters, and takes roles because he believes in them — “not for fame and fortune.”
“I’ve turned down more than I’ve ever taken on as far as financially and the kind of movies that I’ve made,” he said.
For example, when Olmos was in high demand after starring in 1979’s Broadway production of Zoot Suit and its 1981 big screen adaptation, playing the leading role in 1982’s The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, and playing a crucial part in Blade Runner, Michael Mann approached him about a role in Miami Vice.
Olmos said he initially passed — first because he couldn’t be locked down to a seven-year exclusive contract, and second because he needed “creative control on my character.”
“To me, creative control and a non-exclusive contract were not done to get my ego up. It was not done to try to move, you know, into a position. No: It was about creating, we were creating a story together.”
Olmos ultimately got his way, and became essential to the show.
His commitment to shaping his Blade Runner character, Gaff, paid off for the overall film. Olmos studied at Berlitz to bring together 10 languages into the “Cityspeak” he uses in the film. Olmos said he also ad-libbed perhaps the film’s most memorable line: “It’s too bad she won’t live. But then again, who does?”
Edward James Olmos on Stand and Deliver
Olmos’ commitment to shaping characters also paid off in 1987’s Stand and Deliver, the mostly true story of Garfield High School teacher Jaime Escalante. The Bolivian-born educator gained national attention for his success in helping Latino students from working-class Los Angeles families achieve success on the Advanced Placement Calculus exam, which opened the doors to top colleges.
The film was written by director Ramón Menéndez and producer Tom Musca, but Olmos used his cache to push hard to get the film made, and helped re-write his character. He performed many scenes with Escalante watching in the wings, Olmos recalled Saturday. The teacher would look at him with his head down, then give a quick thumbs up.
Olmos received an Oscar nomination for the role — but wishes more Mexican-Americans had received the same honor.
“You’re looking at the only Mexican American in the history of this country and in this industry to ever be nominated for the Best Actor Award,” he said. “Being the only one? That’s crazy.”
Olmos went on to direct and star in 1992’s American Me and lead the hit 2000s television series Battlestar Galactica. The latter earned him an invitation to the United Nations, where he took issue with the frequent references to different races, telling the UN audience, “there is only one race — the human race.”
Olmos’ dedication to film and activism continued right up to the award ceremony Saturday: In the morning, he took part in a No Kings Rally in Santa Fe, then watched short films playing at the festival.
He said he was heartened by the vast turnout at No Kings rallies nationwide: “I was marching here… and putting my voice out there, because to me, this is it, guys, if we don’t unite ourselves.”
He also said his purpose has been to speak up for those who don’t have a platform.
“To me, the essence of what I’ve done with my life has been nothing more than to bring a voice to those that don’t have one,” he said.
You can read more of our Santa Fe Film Festival coverage here.
Main image: Edward James Olmos at the Sante Fe International Film Festival. Moviemaker.