Michelle is the fourth of six children from a Chilean-Canadian family. She was born in Calgary and grew up moving between Toronto and Vancouver. She studied Theatre and Classical Literature at the University of Toronto. Her first professional acting job was playing a showgirl in the British farce "Shady Business". Michelle starred in the television series "Heartland" (2007/II)" for CBC, based on  ...  show all 

Michelle is the fourth of six children from a Chilean-Canadian family. She was born in Calgary and grew up moving between Toronto and Vancouver. She studied Theatre and Classical Literature at the University of Toronto. Her first professional acting job was playing a showgirl in the British farce "Shady Business". Michelle starred in the television series "Heartland" (2007/II)" for CBC, based on the books by Lauren Brooke . Michelle played the character Lou Flemming, the prodigal daughter who returns to Heartland from New York after her mother's death. On the big screen, Michelle was in the lead role as Debra Moynihan in George A. Romero 's "Diary of the Dead (2007)". The film mad it's debut at the Toronto International Film Festival and hit theatres in the Spring of 2008. It received acclaimed reviews in such a myriad of publications as Rolling Stone, the Economist, and Fangoria. Other notable television appearances included the recurring character F.R.A.N on "Stargate: Atlantis" (2004)" and guest starring roles on "The L Word" (2004)", and "The Smart Woman Survival Guide" (2006)". In Toronto, she has performed sketch comedy at the Laugh Sabbath alternative comedy nights and has collaborated with acclaimed comedians Chris Locke and Nathan Fielder on short film projects. Michelle loves to cook and has a passion for all board sports, growing up snowboarding and later picking up surfing on her travels throughout Central and South America. Michelle has volunteered with women's shelters across Canada. She created a drama and music for the children of Interval House, a Toronto shelter, and designed and conducted a series of workshops called 'Be Heard!' for the women of a Calgary shelter. 'Be Heard!' uses improvisation activities to encourage the women to think on their feet and speak their mind. She hopes to some day work with her heroes Tim Burton , Wes Anderson , and Michel Gondry.
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