Samantha Castillo
Birthday: Born in in Los Teques, Venezuela
Deathday: Alive
Samantha Castillo, Venezuelan actress, was born on March 12th, 1980, in Los Teques, Venezuela. With more than fifteen years of theater experience, Samantha has a Bachelors degree in Arts at Central University of Venezuela, and additional acting training in different techniques and schools in Venezuela and Cuba. In the cinema field, she has been awarded numerous times for her performance in national and international festivals. The role that has given her most recognition was "Marta" in the film Pelo Malo by Mariana Rondon (winning film of La Concha de Oro at the San Sebastian Festival 2013). Samantha accompanied the film in a circuit of more than 15 international festivals, earning seven awards and two nominations for her role as Marta. In Malquerido by Diego Risquez, she played La Lupe, an icon of Latin music, being recognized as best supporting actress at the Merida Film Festival and the Caracas Film Festival in Venezuela. In the film El Amparo by Rober Calzadilla (winner film of the Public Award in Biarritz), Samantha had an additional challenge, along with the artistic team, being immersed in isolation in the Venezuelan plains for over 2 months. This enabled real acquisition of the physical and emotional subtleties required by the character. Samantha received a special mention as Supporting Actress at the Merida Film Festival in Venezuela. In Le Badanti by Italian director Marco Pollini, Samantha played Lola, a Latin American immigrant in Italy. To excel in her interpretation, Samantha studied Italian intensively during the previous months and took Pole Dance lessons for a one-minute sequence in the film. Samantha has also contributed to theater research and teaching in Venezuela, developing professional training programs for young actors, stressing both practical and theoretical work elements of the actor. These trainings have taken place in theater schools in Caracas, The Higher School of Performing Arts Juana Sujo and The School of Musical Theater of Caracas.
TV Credits
Cecilia
Character: Sara
The story of a woman whose world seemingly crumbles when she suffers a stroke. What at first seems like a tragedy ends up being an opportunity to reunite her family and rebuild her life....
Movie Credits
El Malquerido
Character: La Lupe
The film follows the rise to fame of venezuelan singer Felipe Pirela. From the beginnings when he worked alongside Billo Frometa and his band Billo's Caracas Boys to the days of his death at the hands of a drug dealer....
Evil Eye
Character: Rebecca
Nala, a thirteen-year-old girl from the city, travels with her family to her grandmother's home in the countryside, to try to find a cure for her little sister's mysterious illness - But she'll soon find her granny is not exactly what she seems......
Bad Hair
Character: Marta
A nine-year-old boy’s preening obsession with straightening his hair elicits a tidal wave of homophobic panic in his hard-working mother, in this tender but clear-eyed coming-of-age tale....
Jezabel
Character: Esposa de Rafael
Four upper-class high school students live carefree between drugs, games and love until one of the girls, Eli, is brutally killed. Sixteen years later, the memory of the crime torments Alain, another member of the group....
Villa Bella
Character: Lola
Three women from different walks of life, all struggling with various personal issues, come together as caretakers at an elderly home....
Huesera: The Bone Woman
Character: Carolina (uncredited)
Valeria's joy at becoming a first-time mother is quickly taken away when she's cursed by a sinister entity. As danger closes in, she's forced deeper into a chilling world of dark magic that threatens to consume her....
The Woman Who Cries
Character: Carmen
Miguel, a 7-year-old boy, lives with three generations of estranged women in an old house. Among them is his mother who, after a traumatic divorce, distances herself from the boy. Miguel takes comfort in Carmen, an enigmatic Venezuelan immigrant who works as a maid for this Brazilian family. Carmen becomes an ambiguous mother figure for the boy, who develops an intimate and unusual bond with her, introducing him to a universe in which the real and the imaginary intertwine....
El show de Willi
Character:
Willi premieres his own reality show and the first guest is the famous telenovela actress, Elsy Ferrer.. It immediately captivates the public with absurd and hilarious situations inspired by the routines of the most celebrated hosts of Latin American television....
Panorama
Character:
Dazed by her mother's death, 9-year-old Hanali travels with her father to a remote town where she meets Rosa, a mother who recently lost her child. Under the weight of their grief, delusion takes hold - pulling the two together as they seek to find what they've lost....
El Amparo
Character: Yajaira
On the border of Venezuela with Colombia, during the late 80's, two men survive an armed assault near the Arauca River, in which fourteen of their companions end up dead. The Army accuses them of being guerrilla fighters and tries via intimidation to seize them from the cell where they are being watched over by the local police officer and by the entire village. They say they are simple fishermen, but pressure to yield to the official version is overwhelming....
Contactado
Character: Rita
An aging self-proclaimed prophet who revisits his past as a spiritual guru after an eager young follower entices him to return to preaching....
Puzzle
Character: La Funcionaria
In a dystopian society, Albertini must face an abusive and indifferent administration just to complete a simple puzzle....
Under the Heavens
Character: Marta
Marta, a young Venezuelan mother, immigrates to Brazil. During her journey, she meets a struggling young couple. The couple has a baby and Marta the ability to breastfeed....
Far from the Sea
Character:
Roxana, a young Venezuelan woman exiled in Mexico City, defies the law when her father dies in a boarding house, and tries to convince Hilda, the landlady, not to report it to the authorities. Hilda faces the dilemma of helping her or getting into trouble. Roxana’s determination almost convinces her, but her fear is stronger. Alone, in an unknown country, Roxana has to part with her father’s body, her only family...
Zafari
Character: Natalia
In a small zoo, the arrival of the hippopotamus Zafari is celebrated by neighbours of opposing social classes. Ana, Edgar and their son Bruno watch all the action from the windows of their decadent high-class building. Amidst a chaos of food, water and electricity shortages, the family has to solve everyday problems and the lack of basic needs while trying to find a solution to escape. Ana scavenges for food in the abandoned apartments, but strange noises in the dark corridors frighten her more ...
It Would Be Night in Caracas
Character:
While struggling to withstand the chaos of modern Venezuela, Adelaida sees a chance to survive—and takes it: leaving everything behind, even her own name. In a land with no future, her only way out is to become someone else....