SNAPSHOT
Before he fought in the galactic battles of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Adam Driver was a United States Marine with 1/1 Weapons Company. He tells the story of how and why he became a Marine, the complex transition from soldier to civilian — and Arts in the Armed Forces, his nonprofit that brings theater to the military. Because, as he says: “Self-expression is just as valuable a tool as a rifle on your shoulder.” (synopsis via TED Talks)
When we see actors up on the big screen or on the television, we don’t necessarily ask ourselves how they came to be in that line of work.
And gossip mags tend to spend their time on prurient, often made-up aspects of actors’ lives, which in the end give us little to no insight on why that particular person does what they do.
But in this funny, illuminating TED Talk by Adam Driver who quickly rose from Girls to a major Hollywood movie career, we gain valuable insights into his life, including why it is he eventually felt the gravitational pull of acting, and how that even with that epiphany, it took him some time to turn his dreams into reality.
Throughout this talk Driver comes across as warm, down to earth and self-deprecating, someone who very much appreciates what they do but who wants to keep it all in perspective and give back to the people who got him to this place.
So rather than watch the plethora of TV-based and online entertainment shows and be subject to meaningless drivel that adds nothing to your appreciation of a particular actor, watch this TED Talk and understand in ways both funny and poignant what it meant for one actor to find his dream and live it.