
Acting
Belén Rueda
Born 1965-03-16 · Madrid, Spain
Rueda was born in Madrid. Her father was a civil engineer and her mother was a ballet instructor. She is the second of three children; her siblings are named Chus and Violeta (Ms. Rodal). She and her family moved to San Juan, Alicante when she was a child because of her younger sister's asthmatic problems. She was married to Daniel Écija and had three children with him, Beliá (b.1994), María (b.1996) and Lucía (b.1998); unfortunately, their second child died of a heart disease as a baby. She is now a divorcée. When Rueda was 18 years old she moved to Madrid to study architecture, but she left the university when she met an Italian man whom she later married. Rueda returned to Madrid and worked as a salesperson and a model until she finally became a TV presenter. After that she worked as an actress on television, including the show Los Serrano, and eventually acted in films. She won a Goya Award in 2004 for her role as Julia in Mar Adentro (The Sea Inside). She received another Goya nomination for her role in the 2007 film, The Orphanage. Rueda played the lead role of the Spanish thriller Los ojos de Julia, which is produced by Guillermo Del Toro.
Acting credits
7.5During a mysterious thunderstorm, Vera, a young mother, manages to save a life in danger, but her good deed causes a disturbing chain of unexpected consequences.
Mirage
2018
7.6Ramón Sampedro is a ship mechanic and part-time poet left a quadriplegic following a diving accident. Ramón fought for 30 years for the legal right to end his own life. He develops close relationships with his long-term lawyer Julia and his friend Rosa, who tries to convince him that his life is worth living. Despite his situation, Ramón manages to inspire those around him to live life to the fullest.
The Sea Inside
2004
7.5A woman’s body disappears mysteriously from the morgue without a trace. Police inspector Jaime Peña investigates the strange occurrence with the help of Álex Ulloa, the widower of the missing woman.
The Body
2012
7.2A woman brings her family back to her childhood home, which used to be an orphanage, intent on reopening it. Before long, her son starts to communicate with a new invisible friend.
The Orphanage
2007
4.0The 70th anniversary of the “Fotogramas” magazine comes in the shape of a sentimental voyage through the history of Spanish cinema thanks to a mosaic of voices represented by people who make films, those who write them and those who consume them. The documentary pays tribute to the readers of “Fotogramas” helped by the leading figures of Spanish cinema, who will read to the camera the most representative letters received at its offices in the history of the magazine.
Querido Fotogramas
2018
7.0After a difficult divorce, Alicia moves into an old house with her daughter Carla, unaware that it hides a past of recurrent tragedy. As Carla senses perturbing presences, Alicia begins to doubt her own sanity. A blue dress connects Carla to the ghost of a girl from the past, triggering terrifying events. Mother and daughter will try to escape the house, but the house won’t let them get away so easily.
Evil Dress
2026
5.7This examination of a famous scandal from the 1970s explores the relationship between Barbara Baekeland and her only son, Antony. Barbara, a lonely social climber unhappily married to the wealthy but remote plastics heir Brooks Baekeland, dotes on Antony, who is homosexual. As Barbara tries to "cure" Antony of his sexuality -- sometimes by seducing him herself -- the groundwork is laid for a murderous tragedy.
Savage Grace
2007
6.2Mario sees his brother David's kidnapping. When David returns 19 days later with no memory, Mario suspects the returnee isn't really his brother. His investigation challenges his grip on reality.
Reversion
2025
6.7Julia, a woman suffering from a degenerative sight disease, finds her blind sister Sara hung in a basement. Despite all signs pointing to suicide, Julia decides to investigate what she intuitively feels is a murder case.
Julia's Eyes
2010
5.6Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country, Spain, 2019. Two corpses appear in the crypt of the Old Cathedral. Police officer Unai López de Ayala, an expert in criminal profiling, must hunt down the ritual murderer who has been terrorizing the city for two decades.
Twin Murders: The Silence of the White City
2019
6.5Marisol is the national rhythmic gymnastics coach, methodical, demanding and authoritative. The World Championship is approaching and she places all her gold medal hopes on Angelica, the team's most promising newcomer. Two weeks before the final, Marisol discovers that her husband is having an affair with a much younger woman with whom she is expecting a child. Marisol does not contemplate failure, so she embarks on a desperate race to win him back, without taking into account her motives and feelings. Her pain is transferred to her tatami, where she becomes even more implacable towards Angelica, in whom she places her hopes of success. At this point, winning gold is all that's left for him.
Free Falling
2024
6.0Madrid, Spain, 1998. The many resources and skills of Gloria, Paz and Sagrario, three middle-aged women investigating paranormal events, are put to the test when their leader, Father Pilón, has an unpleasant encounter.
Phenomena
2023
5.0Large doses of humor, ingenious nods to Spain's most recent national cinema, an artistic cast highly linked to comedy and a high reserve of surprises constitute the ingredients of this crazy comedy: Spanish Movie.
Spanish Movie
2009
5.8Helena, a young woman on a deep space mission, has been alone for 20 years. Her parents abandoned ship after a technical malfunction made it impossible for all three of them to reach their intended destination. Alex, an isolated engineer, is about to enter her life and turn her world upside down.
Orbiter 9
2017
6.7During a lunar eclipse, seven friends gather for dinner and decide to play a game in which they must share with each other the content of every message, email or phone call they receive throughout the evening.
Perfect Strangers
2017
5.5Ana de Mendoza y de Silva, Princess of Éboli, is accused of treason and imprisoned in 16th Century Spain.
La princesa de Éboli
2010
5.5Lucía is a woman for whom leading a model life and taking control of her life is the most important thing. Since she got married, she has focused all of her efforts on caring for her family, until achieving what for her is a perfect family. However, her entire world begins to collapse with the arrival of Sara, the girlfriend of her son; a young girl with great freedom and without mincing words who has a very different family from what Lucia always dreamed of as a political family. Now, Lucia must accept that the perfect family was not exactly what she thought.
The Perfect Family
2021
6.5It tells the story of five friends who discover a jewel theft plot in a cemetery without any adult believing them.
Los Muértimer
2025
5.9Suddenly, Clara, Mónica's daughter, falls into a deep coma. With Clara left to die, a mysterious man proposes Monica to make a pact: Clara will be saved if Mónica does something for him.
The Pact
2018
5.8Buenos Aires, Argentina. Sebastián, a successful lawyer, leaves his ex-wife's condo, located on the seventh floor of an apartment building, to take his two children to school. While they run down the stairs, he uses the elevator. Once on the ground floor, Sebastián awaits the arrival of the children.
7th Floor
2013
5.6In an abandoned psychiatric hospital, a theatre group experiments with insomnia for the preparation of a stage play. With the passage of days without sleep, they reach new thresholds of perception that expose them to the secrets of the place and the energies that inhabit it. When Bianca, a young, promising actress, joins the cast, competing for the lead role, she must survive not only the intensity of the work and her cast mates, but the unknown force that is pulling them towards a tragic outcome.
You Shall Not Sleep
2018
5.3Diego is a doctor so used to working in extreme situations that he has immunized himself to others' pain. He has switched off from his work, his partner and his commitment as a father. Over the course of a disturbing meeting, Diego is threatened with a gun. Hours later, he can only remember the sound of a bang and the strange feeling of having being hit with something more than a bullet. Diego has to take an irreversible decision which will affect his own life and that of his loved ones.
For the Good of Others
2010
6.1Laura has spent years looking for her sister Sara who went missing in the depths of the jungle in the Congo. Neither the NGO she works for, nor the embassy, have news on her whereabouts until a photo appears of Sara in a mining town. Apparently, Sara is being held captive by The Hawk, the fearsome rebel leader who controls the mafias behind the prized mineral coltan.
Sara's Notebook
2018
5.2Men and women deal with different stages of love. Desire, jealousy, longing and melancholy are part of the romantic story of each of the characters, including a teacher, a middle-aged couple and a jealous boyfriend.
8 Dates
2008