Penelope Cruz Sanchez

Penelope Cruz Sanchez was the daughter of Eduardo Cruz (a retailer) and Encarna Sanchez (a hairdresser). She was a performer with a passion as a young girl, and reenacted TV commercials for family amusement. However, she chose to concentrate her energy on dance. She continued to train by working with several well-known dancers, after having spent the last nine years learning ballet at Spain's National Conservatory. She realized what she wanted to do at age 15 after she defeated over 300 other girls during an audition held by an agency for talents. The contract she received landed her roles in Spanish TV programs as well as music videos. It opened the way to a promising career on the big screen. Cruz made her movie debut in The Greek Labyrinth (1993) (The Greek Labyrinth) Then she appeared briefly in the Timothy Dalton thriller Framed (1992). Her next film was an Oscar-winning film, Belle Epoque (1992), where she played one of the four sisters vying for the affection of a handsome deserter from the Army. The film also garnered many Goyas awards, which are the Spanish equivalent to the Academy Awards. Cruz became a renowned Spanish actress after her three- to four films per year that she added to her resume. 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) earned her the title of award for the Best Actress Goya. Cruz was able to travel to English-language films, however All About My Mother (1999) was her first major international hit. She played a unchaste yet well-meaning nun. Cruz found herself highly sought-after on both sides of the Atlantic as her film received numerous awards and accolades. The next major film she worked on was Woman on Top (2000) which is an American comedy about a cook who is enchanting in her cooking skills and a serious case of motion sickness. In the US,