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.

Biography

Sandino was born in Bogotá, Colombia to a pathologist mother and a cattle breeder/veterinarian father Breaking the mould - Telegraph `Maria Full of Grace' star came from out of nowhere. | Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas) (via Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service) (August, 2004). 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 first Colombian and third Hispanic actress nominated for an Academy Award.