Penelope Cruz Sanchez

Penelope Cruz Sanchez was the daughter of Eduardo Cruz (a retailer) and Encarna Sanchez (a hairdresser). When she was a baby, she was already a fervent performer, re-enacting TV commercials for her family's amusement, but she ultimately decided to devote her energy to dancing. After nine years of classical ballet classes in Spain's National Conservatory she was able to continue her studies under the guidance by a range of well-known dancers. When she was 15 she realized her real calling when she bested more than 300 other girls in an audition by a talent agency. She was offered roles on Spanish TV and music videos. This brought her many performances, which opened the way to a future in the big screen. Cruz made her debut film in 1993's The Greek Labyrinth (The Greek Labyrinth). After that, she briefly was in Framed (1992), a Timothy Dalton thriller. The Oscar-winning Belle Epoque (1992) was her third film. In the film she played one of the four sisters seeking the affection of a handsome Army deserter. The film also won numerous Goyas in Spain, which is the Spanish equivalent of the Academy Awards. Cruz was a well-known Spanish actress with her average of three to four films per year, which was a growing list. 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 changed dramatically in 1998 when her movie-industry comedy La Nina De Tus Ojos (1998) received her the title of Best Actress Goya. Cruz made a few more attempts at English-language films, but her first international success was Almodovar's All About My Mother (1999) where she played an unassuming but thoughtful nun. As the film was showered with awards and praises, Cruz was suddenly sought-after on both sides of the Atlantic. Woman on Top (2000) was her next film. It was an American comedy about a chef who has extraordinary culinary talents and severe motion sickness. While living in the US,