Catalina Sandino Moreno was born on April 19, 1981 in Bogotá, Colombia. She is an Academy Award-nominated Colombian actress.

A native of Bogotá, Colombia, raven-haired beauty Moreno developed an interest in becoming an actor which prompted the young hopeful to enroll in the Ruben Di Pietro theater academy while she was still in high school.

It was during this time that she essayed a number of stage performances in such productions as Griselda Gambaro's Acuerdo Para Cambiar de Casa, Tennessee Williams' The Dark Room, and Christopher Durang's Laughing Wild. Later studying advertising and theater at a Bogotá college, Moreno caught the eye of director Marston during an audition for Maria Full of Grace, and it didn't take long to convince the director that despite her relative lack of experience she was the perfect candidate for the complex and demanding role.

Indeed, Moreno brought undeniable depth and onscreen charisma to her thoughtful portrayal of a smart but desperate mother-to-be, earning the emerging starlet numerous critical accolades in addition to a Best Actress nomination for the 77th Annual Academy Awards. Packing her bags for New York City shortly thereafter, Moreno enrolled at the famed Lee Strasberg Institute while preparing for her New York stage debut in a production of Shakespeare's +King John at the Frog and Peach Theater Company.

Credits by Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Filmography

• The Argentine (2008)
• Guerrilla (2008)
• Love in the Time of Cholera (2007)
• Corazón de la tierra, El (2007)
• The Hottest State (2006)
• Fast Food Nation (2006)
• Paris, je t'aime (2006)
• Journey to the End of the Night (2006)
• Maria Full of Grace (2004)

Awards

• Independent Spirit Award Best Female Lead "Maria, Full of Grace" 2005
• ShoWest International Star of the Year 2005
• Los Angeles Film Critics Award New Generation Award "Maria, Full of Grace" 2004