Catalina Sandino Moreno

Catalina Sandino Moreno (born April 19, 1981) is a Colombian actress. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in Maria Full of Grace.

Life and career
Sandino was born in Bogotá, Colombia to a pathologist mother and a cattle breeder/veterinarian father.She went to Saint George's School in Bogota where she graduated in 2000. Before becoming an actress, she studied advertising at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá. She relocated to New York City in 2004, after she was noticed for her talent at the Rubén Di Pietro acting school in Bogotá. She was then referred to a casting audition for the 2004 film Maria Full of Grace where she beat over 900 girls for the lead role. Sandino's role in this movie made her the second South American and third Hispanic actress nominated for an Academy Award.

Sandino has lived with motion picture electrician David Elwell from 2004 to the present, whom she met working on Maria Full of Grace. She married him on April 15, 2006 in a small ceremony held in Cartagena de Indias.

Filmography

* Maria Full of Grace (2004) as María Álvarez
* Journey to the End of the Night (2006) as Angie
* Fast Food Nation (2006) as Sylvia
* Paris, je t'aime (2007) as Ana
* The Hottest State (2007) as Sarah
* Heart of the Earth (2007) as Blanca Bosco
* Love in the Time of Cholera (2007) as Hildebranda Sanchez
* Che Part One: The Argentine (2008) as Aleida March de Guevara
* Che Part Two: Guerrilla (2008) as Aleida March de Guevara
* The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010) as Maria

Awards and nominations

* Sandino received a nomination for Best Actress at the 77th Academy Awards.
* Sandino received a nomination for Best Actress at the 11th Screen Actors Guild Awards.
* 2005 Best Female Lead Award in the Independent Spirit Awards.
* 2004 Silver Berlin Bear for Best Actress in the Berlin International Film Festival.
* 2004 Most Promising Performer in the Chicago Film Critics Association Awards.
* 2004 Breakthrough Award in the Gotham Awards.
* 2004 New generation Award in the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards.
* 2005 Golden Space Needle Award for Best Actress in the Seattle International Film Festival.