Biography
Hana Sofia was born and raised in Luxembourg, to Portuguese parents. [5]
After her high school degree at the Athénée de Luxembourg, she studied at the Lisbon Theatre and Film School, [6] from which she graduated in 2012. As part of the Erasmus Programme, she performed a one-year university exchange at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in Madrid (RESAD), Spain in 2011. [7]
She then studied at the Conservatoire national supérieur d'art dramatique, France's National Drama Academy in Paris, [8] in the classes of Daniel Mesguich, Sandy Ouvrier and French choreographer Caroline Marcadé, among others.
During a performance of the Marriage of Figaro [8] at the Paris Drama Academy in 2014, film director Marco Serafini sees her performance on stage and decides to cast her in the leading female role in Toy Gun, a feature film that he is then developing. [9] In this film, she plays the leading female role alongside John Hannah, Anthony LaPaglia and Julian Sands. [10] Her performance in this film has landed her a Best Actress nomination at the Luxembourg Film Awards, the Lëtzebuerger Filmpräis , in 2018. [11]
In 2017, she made an appearance in the German TV series Bad Banks directed by German director Christian Schwochow. [12] The series was broadcast on ARTE and German broadcaster Zdf. This show marks Hana's first performance in a German-language project. [13]
Subsequently, she played a Spanish anarchist in the Belgian-Spanish film Escapada directed by Sarah Hirtt. Spanish actors Sergi López and María León are also part of the cast. [14]
In 2017 she was part of the cast of Arthur Miller's The Crucible , [15] directed by the English director Douglas Rintoul. The premiere took place at Queen's Theater, Hornchurch in London. [16] In 2018, she played the lead role in the French play Intranquillités, based on the Book of Disquiet by Portuguese author Fernando Pessoa, staged in Luxembourg.
In 2018, she starred alongside Juliette Lewis and Henry Rollins in the Canadian film Dreamland , directed by Bruce McDonald. [17]
Meanwhile, she has also built a career in Portugal. Her roles in the prime time TV series Mar Salgado (2015) and Coração d'Ouro (2016), co-produced by TV Globo and viewed daily by nearly 2 million viewers, [18] have made her well known to audiences in Portugal. [19] In 2017, she played queen Elizabeth of Aragon, the queen of Portugal in the historical series Ministério do Tempo broadcast on RTP. [20]
Since 2020 she has been part of various plays in major theatres all over Europe: Hedda Gabler in French at the Grand Theatre de Luxembourg, Medea in English at the Grand Theatre de Luxembourg, The lost beginning in Portuguese at the São João National Theatre in Porto. [21] Furthermore, since was on a two year tour through France with the theatre play Habiter le temps with french actors Irene Jacob, Jérôme Kircher directed by Michel Didym. [22] This play was performed in multiple major French theatres: théâtre des Célestins in Lyon, théâtre Anthéa in Antibes, Châteauvallon-Liberté in Toulon, Opera-Théâtre in Metz, among others.
She plays the role of Maria in the second season of Capitani, streaming globally on Netflix from the summer of 2022.
Between 2020 and 2024, Hana Sofia established herself as a versatile and prominent actress on the European stage, performing in a dozen productions at prestigious venues such as the Grand Théâtre de la Ville de Luxembourg and the São João National Theatre Porto. [23] Notably, she performed in Medea by Euripides (in English) and Hedda Gabler by Ibsen (in French), directed by Marja-Leena Junker. [24]
In 2023, Luxembourgish director Frank Hoffmann, also the artistic director of the Recklinghausen Theatre Festival, created a tailor-made role for her in his adaptation of The Iceman Cometh by Eugene O’Neill at the Théâtre National du Luxembourg. The production was a resounding success with audiences and will be revived twice between the 2023 and 2025 seasons. [25]
The success of these productions showcases her talent and ability to captivate both on stage and on screen.
Her latest feature film, Kanaval, directed by Canadian-Haitian filmmaker Henri Pardo, marks her rising international presence. Selected for the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2023, the film won the Amplified Voices Award and received an Honorable Mention for Best Canadian Film, along with four nominations at the Canadian Screen Awards. [26]
In 2024, Hana Sofia Lopes was a member of the international jury at the CinEast Film Festival, alongside Smoke Sauna Sisterhood director Anna Hints. The jury was chaired by the German-Romanian Oscar nominated director Alexander Nanau. The jury awarded the Grand Prix to the Lithuanian film Toxic, directed by Saulė Bliuvaitė, recognizing its poignant portrayal of adolescent challenges and the strength of its performances. [27] [28]
In 2024, Hana Sofia reached a new milestone in her career by being chosen by ZDF, Germany’s leading television network, to star as Sofia Moreno in the thriller Escape from Lisbon, alongside German Star Hans Sigl. [29] Set to be released in 2025, this performance further solidifies her status as one of the most prominent talents of her generation. [30]
She speaks French, German, English, Portuguese, Luxembourgish, Spanish and Italian. [1]
