With idol stars beginning to dominate the acting field, trainees and acting hopefuls are now being advised to take a new course: debut as an idol, and then switch over to acting after three to five years. The increasing popularity of idol roles is starting to crowd out opportunities for actual rookie actors, and many of them have started to become discouraged by this effect. Additionally, directors are less enthused to take a chance with a rookie actor as opposed to a successful idol star. On February 13th, the CEO of Dream Capture stated, "There's a lack of rookie actors these days, especially actresses. Whenever I find a decent actor, they're all a part of some music agency.� Since the idol industry is booming right now, all of the trainees have jumped ship. It's quite difficult to find any rookie actors these days." He continued, "Even so, it's still difficult to even cast an idol since their singing activities take first priority, and their companies often request a lot of things. Fresh talent is largely being picked up by major music agencies, so it's difficult for acting agencies to find any." Broadcast producers are also of the same opinion. An anonymous drama PD commented, "Even if we try to find a fresh face, it's hard to find one in an acting agency.� These days, everyone does plastic surgery in the same manner so there's no individuality. Even if idols aren't that great at acting, I think dramas try to provide a certain freshness to viewers by casting idol singers." The director of SidusHQ, Jung Ji Chul, also added, "These days, younger kids just generally want to pursue singing instead of acting, which naturally leads to big music agencies picking up most of the talented trainees. You can tell just by the male actors.� After Cho In Sung, there's been a void before someone like Lee Minho came along.� There's definitely a shortage of interesting new actors in the field." With dramas being especially sensitive to viewer ratings, producers claimed that they would much rather put in a familiar face, as opposed to taking a chance on a new name. The director of YG Entertainment, Kim Sung Hoon, stated, "The battle for viewer ratings has become more competitive than ever, which means it's also become a lot harder for rookie actors to debut. Back in the day, rookies would get their names known through CFs and then advance into dramas, but now, actors go through three to five years as an idol before debuting as an actor." Kim continued, "Since there are less and less films and dramas centered around actresses, it's also gotten a lot more difficult to find and train actresses as well. The movie industry still holds a high regard for actress Jun Do Yeon, which means there hasn't been a new face to take her place yet." CEO�Na Byung Joon of�N.O.A Entertainment added, "Before, if we felt that a rookie had potential, we would not hesitate about casting them for the lead role in a film. However, the situation in the movie industry has gotten a lot worse, so people are less willing to invest in unknown talent. Because of that, producers are always using the same names, making it impossible for viewers to find new faces on the screen." Although there's a lot of criticism about the influx of idols in the acting game, it doesn't necessarily mean that idols are lacking in talent. Idols like Choi Seung Hyun, Park Yoochun, Ok Taecyeon, IU, and Lee Kikwang have all proven themselves to be a formidable force on their own. Actress Yoo In Na is especially known for her 10 years of idol training before she finally hit it big with her acting in "High Kick Through the Roof" and "Secret Garden." YG Entertainment's Kim continued, "Trainees under music agencies receive severe training in a lot of different areas.� They're made to debut as a singer, but they still take lessons in acting as well. Even if trainees are not able to debut, having trainee experience on your resume makes producers take another look at you because they know the amount of work involved with it." Most industry representatives have analyzed the 'course change' to simply mean that the new generation of debuts are more skilled and talented in a variety of areas, compared to their older seniors. The CEO of CJES Entertainment, Park Chang Ju, concluded, "Young stars these days have a lot of talent because it is born out of hard work in training and rehearsals. They are able to handle both singing and acting. Even though they debut as a singer first, they are made to advance into acting once they have made a name for themselves." This new 'course' just might be the explanation behind the sudden surge in idol debuts lately. Source + Photos: Union News via Daum