Sofia Shinas Biography

Sofia Shinas is a Greek Canadian television and film actress and director who began her professional career in the entertainment industry as a recording artist. She is best known for her hit single, "The Message", and her role as Brandon Lee's murdered fiance, Shelly, in The Crow.

Career

As a Musician

In 1992, Shinas released her debut, eponymously titled album on Warner Bros. Records. She co-wrote every song and worked with various noted producers and remixers, including Steve Peck, Daniel Abraham (record producer), Mitch Kaplan, Mark 'MK' Kinchen, Roger Sanchez, Tommy Musto, Ben Grosse and Boris Granich.

Her first single, "The Message", reached #20 on Billboard's Dance/Club Play chart and was a crossover pop hit, peaking at #75 on the Hot 100 chart. The second single, "One Last Kiss", didn't fare well enough to chart at all, except in her native Canada, where it became a minor hit. Her third and last single, "State of Mind", peaked at #16 on the Dance/Club Play chart. Shinas left the music business to pursue an acting career and has yet to release another album.

As an Actress

Shinas made her film debut in the 1994 action thriller The Crow, starring Brandon Lee. The film was a box office success and, since its release, has become a cult favorite. Shinas witnessed the accident that led to Lee's death. She left production and went back home to Los Angeles. After The Crow, Shinas landed a role opposite Charlie Sheen and Nastassja Kinski in Terminal Velocity. In 1995, she starred alongside C. Thomas Howell in the independent action/drama, Hourglass. Two years later, Shinas again co-starred with Howell in the 1997 action film, Dilemma. In addition to her film work, she has appeared in two episodes of the TV series The Outer Limits (in the Valerie 23 and Mary 25 episodes) and an episode of The Hunger.

Education

In 2008, Shinas graduated from the USC School of Cinema-Television in Los Angeles, California where she directed a film entitled Spring Eternal as a thesis project. Her first feature as director was the thriller, My Stepdaughter, released in August 2015.

Personal Life

Fluent in English, Hebrew and Greek, the Canadian director often travels from her Hollywood home over seas and between Canada and the US. She has four cats and a dog and is a passionate animal welfare advocate and wildlife conservationist. She is particularly interested in big cats and has worked with captive tigers as an animal handler.

Filmography

Film
Year	Film	Role	Notes
1994	The Crow	Shelly Webster
	Terminal Velocity	Broken Legs Max
1995	Hourglass	Dara Jensen
1996	Ripper Man	Gena
	Dilemma	Lydia Cantrell
1997	Hostile Intent	Gina	Alternative title: Lethal Games
2000	Red Shoe Diaries 12: Girl on a Bike	Woman on Train	Segment: "Borders of Salt"
2004	Planet of the Pitts	Fay Kennedy NBC News Anchor
2016	DaZe: Vol. Too (sic) - NonSeNse	Rosabel	Completed; in post-production
Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1994	Red Shoe Diaries	Woman on Train	1 episode
1998	The Hunger	Claire	1 episode
1995-1998	The Outer Limits	Mary 25/Valerie 23	2 episodes

Discography

Albums

• 1992: Sofia Shinas

Singles

• 1992: "The Message"
• 1992: "One Last Kiss"
• 1992: "State of Mind (You Make Me Feel Good)"