Laia Costa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Laia Costa
Costa at the 2022 Berlin International Film Festival
Born	Laia Costa Bertrán (1985-02-18) 18 February 1985 (age 40) Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2011–present
Partner(s)	David López
Children	2

Laia Costa Bertrán (born 18 February 1985) is a talented Spanish actress. She has worked in many countries, including Spain, Russia, Germany, and the United States. Laia has won several important awards, like a Goya Award and two Platino Awards. She was also nominated for a BAFTA Award.

Before becoming an actress, Laia studied advertising and marketing. She started acting when she was 26. After some small TV roles in Spain, she became famous worldwide. This happened when she starred in the German thriller Victoria (2015). This movie was special because it was filmed in one continuous shot. For her role, Laia won the Best Actress award at the German Film Awards 2015. She was the first Spanish actress to win this award. Later, she appeared in movies like Newness (2017) and Only You (2018).

In 2019, Laia played the main character in the HBO Spain series Foodie Love. She was also in the TV series Devils (2020) and Soulmates (2020). In 2022, she received great praise for her role as Amaia in the film Lullaby. In this movie, she played a new mother. Her performance earned her many top awards, including a Goya Award and a Platino Award. Since then, she has starred in several Spanish films. In 2023, she also played the character Moghedien in the Amazon Prime Video series The Wheel of Time.

Early Life and Education

Laia Costa was born in Barcelona, Spain, on 18 February 1985. Her father, José María Costa, was an accountant. Her mother, Cristina Bertrán, was one of Barcelona's first female taxi drivers. Laia grew up in the Horta area of Barcelona. She has a younger sister, Noemí, who is also an actress and works in art direction.

Laia never planned to be an actress. She thought of it as an "accident." When she was young, acting was not seen as a common career choice. For 17 years, she played basketball as a point guard. She says that sports taught her important values like teamwork.

She earned a degree in advertising, public relations, and marketing. After college, she worked for marketing companies. She had some free time, so she decided to take theater classes with her sister. Laia also took acting courses in English. She can speak Catalan, Spanish, French, and English very well.

Career Highlights

Early Roles and International Success (2011-2020)

Laia Costa started her TV career in 2011 in the series Bandolera. She also appeared in Toledo in 2012. That same year, she had a small role in the film I Want You.

In 2013, Laia starred as Rym in Polseres vermelles. This show won an International Emmy Award and was even adapted by Steven Spielberg. She also performed in her first professional play, Atraco, paliza y muerte en Agbanäspach. For this play, she learned her lines in German by heart. This led to more roles, including in the TV series The Time in Between.

Costa at the 2015 Berlin International Film Festival

In 2014, Laia appeared in the Russian film Fort Ross. This was her first international movie. She also starred in an episode of Cuéntame un cuento, a twisted version of "Little Red Riding Hood."

Her big breakthrough came in 2015 with the film Victoria. This crime thriller was filmed in one continuous shot, meaning no cuts! Laia's acting was praised by critics. The New York Times called her one of the "Breakthrough Performances of the Fall Season." She won the German Film Award for Best Actress for this role. Later that year, she appeared in the TV series Cites and Carlos, rey emperador. She also starred in the short film No me quites, winning Best Actress at the Málaga Film Festival.

Costa at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2018

In 2016, Laia worked with Jean Reno in a short film called The Little Things. The next year, she starred in the thriller Black Snow with Ricardo Darín. She also appeared in the romantic drama Newness, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. In February 2017, she was nominated for the BAFTA Rising Star Award.

Laia starred in five movies in 2018. These included the horror-thriller Piercing and the romantic comedy Duck Butter. She also played a role in the drama Life Itself. Her performance in Only You, where she played a woman dealing with infertility, was highly praised.

In 2019, Laia was cast in the HBO Europe series Foodie Love. In 2020, she appeared in the international TV series Devils and the science fiction series Soulmates.

Acclaimed Roles and Prominent Star (2022–Present)

Costa holding her Goya Award for Best Actress in 2023

In 2022, Laia returned to the Berlinale with the film Lullaby. The movie won big at the 25th Málaga Film Festival, and Laia won Best Female Performance. She received the script for Lullaby when she was pregnant. This helped her connect deeply with her character, Amaia, a new mother. Laia won many awards for this role, including the Goya Award for Best Actress and the Platino Award for Best Actress.

In 2023, Laia was in the British political thriller series The Diplomat. She also starred in the Spanish film The Enchanted and reprised her role as Paula in the TV series Cites Barcelona. She took on the lead role in the film Un amor, where she played a young woman rebuilding her life in a new town. For this performance, she won her second Platino Award for Best Actress.

Laia also played Moghedien in the Amazon Video series The Wheel of Time. Her character first appeared in the second season finale in October 2023. She also co-starred in the Spanish historical drama The Teacher Who Promised the Sea. In February 2024, Forbes Women named Laia one of the 50 most influential women in Spanish cinema.

She is set to star in a remake of The Mummy.

Personal Life

Laia Costa lived in Miami, Florida, for six years with her husband, David López. They met during their university years.

In May 2020, Laia gave birth to her first child, a girl. In early 2024, she welcomed her second child, a boy.

Laia is also a certified birth doula, which means she supports mothers during childbirth.

Filmography

Key

Denotes productions that have not yet been released

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2012	I Want You	Chica Serpiente
2013	Y otro año, perdices	Claudia	Short film
2014	Fort Ross	Lyusiya
	Razones	Luna	Short film
2015	Victoria	Victoria
	No me quites	Laura	Short film
	Palm Trees in the Snow	Daniela
2016	The Little Things	Laia	Short film
2017	Black Snow	Laura
	Newness	Gabi Silva
2018	Piercing	Mona
	Duck Butter	Sergio	Also associate producer
	Maine	Bluebird	Also executive producer
	Life Itself	Isabel Díaz
	Only You	Elena Aldana
2022	Lullaby	Amaia
2023	The Enchanted	Irene
	Un amor	Nat
	The Teacher Who Promised the Sea	Ariadna
2026	The Mummy		Post-production

Television

Theatre

Music Videos

Awards and Recognition

See also

In Spanish: Laia Costa para niños