You Can Shape A Choice, You Can’t Shape Nothing
A graduate of The Juilliard School, actress, director and producer Monica Raymund continues to expand her repertoire and pave the way for new female voices in Hollywood. Her creative choices and strong points of view break the mold of how women of color are perceived in front of and behind the camera as she brings to life stories from a fresh and timely perspective.
Currently, Raymund stars in the second season of the Starz hit crime-drama series, HIGHTOWN, from executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer. The series follows Jackie Quiñones (Raymund), a hard- partying federal Fishery Service agent who has her free-wheeling life thrown into disarray as she finds herself at the center of Cape Cod’s gruesome heroin epidemic. In Season 2, Jackie joins forces with Leslie, the only other female cop on the force, to bring down major dealer Frankie Cuevas, the man Jackie holds responsible for the death of her best friend, Junior. Through it all, Jackie continues to walk the tightrope of sobriety that she struggled through in Season 1.
Behind the camera, Raymund was part of the inaugural class of Female Forward, NBC’s initiative aimed at increasing female representation in the director’s chair. On television, she directed an episode of HIGHTOWN for the new season and recently wrapped production on directing the Season 4 finale episode of USA’s THE SINNER as well as an episode of LAW & ORDER: ORGANIZED CRIME. Last year, Raymund directed episodes of CBS’s FBI, and in 2018, she directed an episode of LAW & ORDER: SVU. Lastly, in 2016, she directed the short film TANYA for the Hidden Tears Project, a non-profit media company developing content to bring awareness to sex trafficking.
Raymund is perhaps best known for her role as ‘Gabriela Dawson’ spanning eight seasons on NBC’s hit series CHICAGO FIRE. As part of Dick Wolf’s popular “Chicago” franchise, the series follows the personal and professional lives of the firefighters, paramedics and first responders working at the Chicago Fire Department. Raymund received an Imagen Award for “Best Actress, Television” in 2013 for her performance, and was subsequently nominated an additional three times. Her additional television credits include Michelle and Robert King’s THE GOOD WIFE, Mitchell Burgess and Robin Green’s BLUE BLOODS, David Pasquesi’s SPECIAL SKILLS, and a 3-season arc on Fox’s LIE TO ME opposite Tim Roth and Mekhi Phifer.
On the big screen, Raymund has starred in Nicholas Jarecki’s thriller ARBITRAGE opposite Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon, as the lead of Stephen Elliott’s drama HAPPY BABY opposite Bill Heck, and in Mahesh Pailoor’s BRAHMIN BULLS.
Resources
LINKS:
- IMDB: Monica Raymund
- INSTAGRAM: @monicaraymund86
QUOTES:
“I believe that the power of ‘no’ is just as important as the power of ‘yes.”
“You can shape a choice, you can’t shape nothing.”
“There’s no right way to become a professional actor.”
VIDEOS:
Guest links:
- IMDB: Monica Raymund
- INSTAGRAM: @monicaraymund86
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