Who is Paula Garcés?
Paula Maria Santos Garcés was born in Medellin, Colombia, on 20 March 1974 – her zodiac sign is Pisces, and she holds both Colombian and American nationality. She’s an actress, film writer and producer, who has appeared in close to 50 movies and TV series, while she’s perhaps known best for her portrayal of Geny Martinez in the comedy series “On My Block”. Created by Eddie Gonzalez and Jeremy Haft, it starred Sierra Capri, Jason Genao and Brett Gray, and follows four friends who are attending a high school in South Central Los Angeles; the series aired from 2018 to 2021, and won one of the nine awards for which it was nominated.
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Early life and education
Paula was raised in Medellin alongside her sister Vanessa, by their mother Victoria and their father, about whom nothing’s known, as Paula respects their privacy; it’s said that her father was a fisherman, and that her mother was a teacher. She was around six years old when she moved to Spanish Harlem, New York City with her family.
She became interested in acting while still attending elementary school, was a member of its drama club, and appeared in various plays performed at the school. Paula’s interest in acting only grew stronger upon enrolling at a local high school in New York City in 1988, and she launched her acting career in 1991, with her portrayal of Lucy Rivers in the episode “The Secret Sharers” of the mystery crime series “Law & Order”; the same year saw her make her debut film appearance, in the comedy drama “Hangin’ with the Homeboys”.
She matriculated in 1992, and then focused on her career, rather than to pursue a college degree.
Roles in movies
In 1993, Paula was cast to play Janice in the popular family comedy “Life with Mikey”, directed by James Lapine, and which starred Michael J. Fox, Christina Vidao and Nathan Lane. It follows a former actor who has launched a talent agency, and the movie was nominated for four awards. Two of Paula’s other notable performances in the ‘90s were in the 1995 biographical drama “Dangerous Minds”, and the 1998 drama “Harvest”.
She became somewhat popular in 2003, when she portrayed Cashier in the critically acclaimed comedy drama “The Station Agent”, written and directed by Tom McCarthy, and which starred Peter Dinklage, Patricia Clarkson and Bobby Cannavale.
The movie follows a man with dwarfism who moves to New Jersey after the death of his only friend, and there befriends a woman and a man selling hot dogs; it won 29 of the 60 awards for which it was nominated. Then in 2004 Paula appeared in the adventure comedy “Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle”, and in 2006, she starred alongside Izabella Miko and Lesley Ann Warren, in the mystery thriller drama “The Shore”.
The year 2013 saw her play the main character Drina, in the thriller “The Maid’s Room”, written and directed by Michael Walker, and which also starred Annabella Sciorra and Bill Camp. The film follows a live-in maid who believes that her employer’s son has committed a murder; it won one of the two awards for which it was nominated.
Three of Paula’s most recent movie roles have been in the 2016 drama “Short Version of Alma”, the 2016 crime action drama “King of LA”, and the 2021 mystery horror drama “Aftermath”; she’s currently shooting for the upcoming drama “Alma of My Heart”.
Roles in TV series
The ’90s saw Paula play supporting characters in a couple of popular series, such as the crime drama “New York Undercover”, the crime thriller drama “Oz”, and the romantic drama “Guiding Light”.
In 2005, she was cast to play Millie Vizcarrondo in the mystery crime drama “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”, created by Dick Wolf, and which stars Mariska Hargitay, Christopher Meloni and Ice-T. The series has been airing since 1999, and follows a team of detectives who only investigate sex-related crimes; it’s won 62 awards, including two Primetime Emmys, while it has been nominated for 167 other awards. A couple of Paula’s other notable performances in the 2000s were in the action crime drama “CSI: Miami”, the mystery adventure thriller “Knight Rider” and the crime thriller drama “The Shield”.
In 2013, she played Flora Hernandez in the critically acclaimed mystery comedy drama “Devious Maids”, created by Marc Cherry, and which starred Ana Ortiz, Dania Ramirez and Roselyn Sanchez. It follows the lives of four Latina maids, and the series won two of the 16 awards for which it was nominated.
Two of her most recent roles in TV series have been in the 2014 episode “Savage Seduction” of the mystery science fiction drama “Warehouse 13”, and five episodes of the action crime drama “Major Crimes” in 2017.
Other credits
Paula has two writing, five producing and a single directing credit. She made her producing debut with the 2007 short animated film “Red Princess Blues Animated: The Book of Violence”, then in 2010 produced the short video “Aluna: The Motion Comic Animation”, as well as wrote and produced 12 episodes of the series “The Mun2 Look”.
She wrote and produced the 2013 short horror movie “Demonio”, and then produced the 2016 short drama film “Short Version of Alma”; most recently, in 2021, Paula directed the episode “Chapter Thirty” of the series “On My Block”.
She has made a guest appearance in a couple of talk-shows, including “LatiNation”, “Noches con Platanito” and “Celebrity Page”.
Awards and nominations
Paula has been nominated for two American Latino Media Arts (ALMA) Awards: one in 2008, for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Television Series, and the other in 2009 for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series, both for her performance in “The Shield”.
Love life and husband
Paula is quite secretive when it comes to her love life, but a couple of things about it are still known. She gave birth to her daughter Skye Mahoney in 1992, but Paula hasn’t spoken of the girl’s father; it’s believed that the two were together for only a couple of months after Skye’s birth, and that Paula was the one to initiate the break-up.
In 2002, she married the film producer and entrepreneur Antonio Hernandez – Paula suffered two miscarriages in the following a couple of years, so she and Antonio then decided to wait before having a child together, and it was only in 2013 that Paula gave birth to their son, whom they have since been keeping away from the media’s attention.
As of November 2021, Paula is married to Antonio Hernandez, and has two children, a daughter with her former boyfriend, and a son with Antonio.
Hobbies and other interests
Paula is quite active on Instagram, and seems to be enjoying the attention which she’s receiving from her more than 150,000 followers; she’s uploaded over 2,500 pictures onto the network, most of which have been taken during her everyday life.
She’s a huge fan of comic books, and Paula published her own in 2010; the premiere of her book “Aluna” was at San Diego’s Comic Con, and it follows a Colombian tribe princess who was taken to Spain by conquistadors, while she later returns to Colombia to rescue her people.
Paula is passionate about travelling, and her acting career has taken her to various US states, while she goes to Columbia at least once a year.
She has her own favorite actors and actresses, some of whom are Tom Hanks, Matt Damon and Natalie Portman, while a couple of her favorite movies are “Catch Me If You Can”, “Good Will Hunting” and “Leon: The Professional”.
Age, height and net worth
Paula’s age is 47. She has long brown hair and brown eyes, her height is 5ft 5ins (1.65m) and she weighs around 120lbs (55kgs).
As of November 2021, Paula’s net worth has been estimated at over $2 million.
