I wonder why actors like Penelope Cruz, Antonio Banderas, etc (who are from Spain), are always doing roles of Mexicans, or Latin Americans in general. Can´t they just have a Mexican actor? Is this some racist, post-colonial mindset?

I'm a Filipino college student taking up Spanish as a 3rd language (4th, if you consider the Visayan dialect dissimilar from "Filipino"). I've already studied English and am passably proficient at it.

The school offers two Spanish classes, one offering Castellano (Spain Spanish) and another offers Latin American Spanish.

I'd like to learn both, and I anticipate working a lot with Latin Americans, but I also might transfer to Marbella, Spain in the near future.

Which learning transition would be less problematic?

Learning Latin American Spanish and then taking up Castellano, or learning Castellano prior to studying Latin American Spanish?

I want to learn Spanish, but I like the Spanish from Spain (Castellano) because it sounds wonderful to me (not that Latin American Spanish sounds bad or anything). I just want to know if Latin Americans can understand so I know if the language is useful or not.