Raised in Los Angeles, Paula Patton has been pursuing her dreams of becoming an actress ever since she was a little girl. Having grown up in the entertainment capital of the world, Paula began preparing for a career in the business while still in high school. Paula’s teen years were spent at the prestigious Hamilton School for the Performing Arts, where the would-be performer spent hours honing her craft. After graduating, Paula received the opportunity of a lifetime when PBS selected her as one of four young filmmakers to participate in a program called The Ride, in which she was given access to equipment and a small crew, and told to film her experiences with other youths across America.
F
ollowing that experience, Paula enrolled at UC Berkeley, though she transferred to USC Film School after her first year, and went on to graduate magna cum laude. It wasn’t long before Paula, with her experience on The Ride and her education behind her, managed to land a job with the Discovery Channel as producer for the show Medical Diaries.
Paula eventually grew tired of toiling behind the camera and decided to sign herself up for acting classes. She consequently began the arduous auditioning process, finally landing her first role opposite Will Smith and Eva Mendes in 2005’s Hitch. She followed that up with a small part in the little-seen drama London (also released in ’05 and featuring Chris Evans, Jessica Biel and Jason Statham), and appeared alongside OutKast boys Andre Benjamin and Big Boi in Idlewild (2006).
Paula was also cast in the 2006 film Déjà Vu, a thriller starring Denzel Washington and Val Kilmer.
