Vera Farmiga extracted from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, distributed under the GNU Free Documentation License

Vera Farmiga
Farmiga at the showing of Nothing But the Truth at the Toronto International Film Festival, September 2008
Born	Vera Ann Farmiga August 6, 1973 (1973-08-06) (age 36) Passaic County, New Jersey, United States
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1997–present
Spouse(s)	Sebastian Roché (1997–2005) (divorced) Renn Hawkey (2008–present)

Vera Ann Farmiga (pronounced /fɑrˈmiːɡə/; born August 6, 1973) is an Academy Award-nominated American actress, best known for her roles in the films Running Scared, The Departed, Orphan and Up in the Air. For her role in the latter film, she was nominated for a Golden Globe, SAG, a BAFTA and Academy Award (all for best supporting actress).

Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Filmography 4.1 Television 5 References 6 External links

Early life

Farmiga, the second oldest of seven children, was born in Passaic County, New Jersey and grew up in Clifton, New Jersey. She is the daughter of Ukrainian immigrants Mykhailo, a computer-systems analyst, and Luba Farmiga, a schoolteacher.¹ Farmiga was raised in an insular Ukrainian American community, not speaking English until the age of six.¹² She attended a Ukrainian Catholic school in Newark and toured with a Ukrainian folk-dancing ensemble.³⁴ In 1991, Farmiga graduated from Hunterdon Central Regional High School.

Career

Although she originally intended to become an optometrist, Farmiga attended Syracuse University's School of Visual and Performing Arts. She made her Broadway debut in 1996 as an understudy in the play Taking Sides. The same year, she starred as Miranda in the American Conservatory Theater production of The Tempest. Following her theater debut, she played a role the television series, Roar, which was filmed in Australia, alongside Heath Ledger.¹ Farmiga said that the series "wanted to be Braveheart but turned out more Xena: Warrior Princess."¹ Throughout the late 1990s, she continued appearing in stage, television and film roles, including a part in the 1998 film Return to Paradise.

Farmiga appeared in several high profile films in the early 2000s, including Autumn in New York, 15 Minutes and the 2004 remake of The Manchurian Candidate. Her lead performance in the 2005 film Down to the Bone received a "Best Actress" award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. In 2006, she appeared in Running Scared.

Rather than attending auditions for films in which she is interested, Farmiga makes short films which she submits for casting. "To fade in and fade out, have intimacy with the mikes, the lighting, and have the luxury of takes — you could make yourself as ugly or as beautiful as you wanted."¹ One of these audition films led to Martin Scorsese inviting her for what she calls "a chemistry read" with Leonardo DiCaprio, which led to her role as a police psychiatrist in The Departed.¹

Farmiga starred in The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas as the wife of a Nazi commandant, played by David Thewlis. In 2008, she played the role of Erica Van Doren in the political thriller Nothing But the Truth, for which she was nominated as Best Supporting Actress in the 2009 Critics Choice Awards. She stars opposite George Clooney, Anna Kendrick, and Melanie Lynskey in the 2009 comedy-drama Up in the Air, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Performance by an Actress,⁵ as well as many other nominations and acclaim.

Personal life

Farmiga met French actor Sebastian Roché while filming Roar.¹ The two eloped to the Bahamas after the series' end in 1997. The marriage ended in 2003.¹ After being together for four years, Farmiga married Renn Hawkey in September 2008. Farmiga has a son named Fynn, born Jan. 15, 2009, with Hawkey. Hawkey, a carpenter, is also the keyboardist for a goth band named Deadsy.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1998	Return to Paradise	Kerrie
2000	Autumn in New York	Lisa Tyler
2001	15 Minutes	Daphne Handlova
	Dust	Amy
	Snow White: The Fairest of Them All	Josephine
2002	Love in the Time of Money	Greta	limited release
2003	Dummy	Lorena
2004	Down to the Bone	Irene	limited release Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress Special Jury Prize of the Sundance Film Festival Nominated — Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead
	Iron Jawed Angels	Ruza Wenclawska	TV film
	Mind the Gap	Allison Lee
	The Manchurian Candidate	Jocelyne Jordan
2005	The Hard Easy	Dr. Charlie Brooks
	Neverwas	Eleanna
2006	Running Scared	Teresa Gazelle
	Breaking and Entering	Oana
	The Departed	Madolyn Madden	National Board of Review Award for Best Ensemble Nominated — Empire Awards for Best Newcomer
2007	Joshua	Abby Cairn
	Never Forever	Sophie Lee
	In Tranzit	Natalia
2008	Quid Pro Quo	Fiona
	The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas	Elsa (Mother)	British Independent Film Award for Best Actress
	Nothing But the Truth	Erica Van Doren	Nominated — Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress
2009	The Vintner's Luck	Baroness Aurora	awaiting release
	Orphan	Kate Coleman
	Up in the Air	Alex	Nominated — Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Nominated — Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — Detroit Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Nominated — Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Nominated — Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best Supporting Actress

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1997	Roar	Caitlin
1998	Law & Order	Lindsay	Episode: "Expert"
2002	UC: Undercover	Alex Cross
2004	Touching Evil	Detective Susan Branca

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Vera Farmiga

• Vera Farmiga at the Internet Movie Database
• Vera Farmiga Online - Fansite
• Hirschberg, Lynn (September 3, 2006). "A Film of One’s Own". The New York Times Magazine. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/03/magazine/03actesses.html. Retrieved 2006-09-03. 
• Buzzline interview (February, 2006)
• Dateline New York article (December 10, 2000)
• Interview (September, 2000)
• Vera Farmiga on Quid Pro Quo at Premiere.com (June 13, 2008)