Penelope Cruz Sanchez

Penelope Cruz Sanchez is the daughter of Eduardo Cruz, a Madrid hairdresser, and Encarna Sanchez. She was an obsessive performer as a young girl and even reenacted commercials on TV to keep the family entertained. But she chose to concentrate on dance. She continued her dance training with a variety of highly-regarded dancers after she had spent the last nine years learning ballet in Spain's National Conservatory. She discovered her true passion at the age of 15, after she defeated over 300 other girls during an audition with a talent agency. The contract she signed secured her roles on Spanish television shows as well as music videos. The contract opened the doors to a promising career on the big screen. Cruz made her film debut in The Greek Labyrinth (1993) (The Greek Labyrinth) and then briefly in the Timothy Dalton thriller Framed (1992). The Oscar-winning Belle Epoque (1992) was her third film. In it she played one of four sisters who were seeking the affection of a handsome deserter from the Army. This film won many Goyas, Spanish equivalent of Academy Awards. Cruz continued to add films to her portfolio, growing by three to four per year. Soon Cruz was the most sought-after actress in Spanish cinema. Live Flesh (1997) (Live Flesh) offered her the chance to work with renowned Spanish director Pedro Almodovar (who would later be her ticket to international fame), and the same year she was the lead actress in the thriller/drama/mystery/sci-fi film Open Your Eyes (1997), a huge hit in Spain that earned eight Goyas (though none for Cruz). Her luck turned around in 1998, when her film-industry comedy La Nina De Tus Ojos (1998) received her the Best Actress Goya. Cruz made several more trips into English-language films, but All About My Mother (1999) was her first big international success. She played a chaste but well-meaning nun. Cruz was in hot demand across the Atlantic and west coast. The film received numerous awards and accolades. The American comedy Woman on Top (2001), which was her next big project, is about the chef who is able to combine remarkable culinary talents and serious motion sickness. When she was in the US,