Aitana Sánchez-Gijón

The recorded working language is Spanish and Italian. Residence is recorded at Rome. Positions recorded include President of the Spanish Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences. Distinctions recorded are Premio Feroz for Best Supporting Actress, Barcelona Film Award for Best Actress, Medalla de Oro and Silver Shell for Best Actress.

• Name — Aitana Sánchez-Gijón • Born — 5 November 1968 • Birthplace — Rome, Italy • Citizenship — * Spain • Italy • Relatives — Pablo Carbonell (cousin) • Years Active — 1986–present • Occupation — Actress

Aitana Sánchez-Gijón was born in Rome on 5 November 1968, to a Spanish father Ángel Sánchez-Gijón, a history lecturer exiled from Francoism, and an Italian mother, Fiorella de Angelis, a lecturer. She was named after Aitana Alberti, Rafael Alberti's daughter. The latter dedicated Aitana Sánchez-Gijón some verses upon her birth. The family moved to Madrid when she was 1 year old. She is a cousin of Pablo Carbonell.

Sánchez-Gijón made her television debut as an actress at age 16 in the high school series Segunda enseñanza, playing Sisi, a lesbian teenager. She landed her film debut in Romanza final (1986). In 1988, she starred as Acacia in The Unloved Woman, a play by Miguel Narros adapting Jacinto Benavente staged at the Teatro Español. Her breakthrough role as Elena in the 1989 film Going South Shopping launched her career. • Illustration — Together with Pedro Casablanc, Mario Vargas Llosa and Marta Poveda in Los cuentos de la peste at the Teatro Español (2015). Best known for her career in Spanish cinema, Sánchez-Gijón first became known internationally for her portrayal of Victoria Aragon, a pregnant and abandoned Mexican-American winegrower's daughter who is helped by travelling salesman Paul Sutton (Keanu Reeves) in A Walk in the Clouds (1995) She has since built a reputation as an international star in films such as Manuel Gomez Pereira's Boca a Boca (1996), Bigas Luna's The Chambermaid on the Titanic (1997), Jaime Chávarri's Sus Ojos Se Cerraron (1998), Gabriele Salvatores' adaptation of the Niccolò Ammaniti novel I'm Not Scared (2003) and Brad Anderson's The Machinist (2004). She served as the president of the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Spain between 1998 and 2000. Her portrayal of the Duchess of Alba in Volavérunt won her the Silver Shell for Best Actress at the 1999 San Sebastián International Film Festival. She was a member of the official jury of the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. She earned her first Goya Award nomination for a supporting role in Parallel Mothers (2021). In 2023, she featured in Something Is About to Happen playing a theatre producer stealing the story of a taxi driver's life. In 2024, she appeared in the hospital-set drama Breathless for Netflix. In December 2024, she was awarded the Gold Medal of Merit in the Fine Arts. In March 2026, she starred again in an adaptation of The Unloved Woman at the Teatro Español, this time directed by Natalia Menéndez. In the play, she portrayed Raimunda, the mother of Acacia.

In 2026, Sánchez-Gijón co-signed alongside other Spanish artists a text urging the United Nations and the governments of the world to actively work towards the release from prison of Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti.

• Year — Title — Role — Notes || Ref References • 1986 — Segunda enseñanza — Sisi • 1992 — El Quijote de Miguel de Cervantes — Dorotea • 1995 — La regenta — Ana Ozores • 2015 — Teresa — Doña Jimena — TV movie • 2017 — Conquistadores: Adventvm — Isabel de Castilla — Documentary series • 2017–19 — Velvet Colección — Doña Blanca — Recurring role. Seasons 1–3 • 2024 — Breathless — Pilar Amaro — Main role

• Year — Award — Category — Work — Result — Ref. References • 1996 — 5th Actors and Actresses Union Awards — Best Leading Performance (TV) — La regenta • 1996 — 46th Fotogramas de Plata — Best TV Actress • 1997 — 47th Fotogramas de Plata — Best Stage Actress — La gata sobre el tejado de zinc caliente • 1999 — 47th San Sebastián International Film Festival — Silver Shell for Best Actress — Volavérunt • 2016 — 66th Fotogramas de Plata — Best Stage Actress — Medea • 2017 — 67th Fotogramas de Plata — Best Stage Actress — The Rose Tattoo • 26th Actors and Actresses Union Awards — Best Theatre Actress in a Leading Role • 2021 — 71st Fotogramas de Plata — Best Stage Actress — Juana • 2022 — 9th Feroz Awards — Best Supporting Actress (film) — Parallel Mothers • 36th Goya Awards — Best Supporting Actress • 9th Platino Awards — Best Supporting Actress • 11th Feroz Awards — Best Supporting Actress in a Film — Something Is About to Happen • 32nd Actors and Actresses Union Awards — Best Film Actress in a Secondary Role • 33rd Actors and Actresses Union Awards — Best Stage Actress in a Leading Role — La madre