Rafael Casal facts for kids

Rafael Santiago Casal, born on August 8, 1985, is an American writer, rapper, producer, director, actor, musician, and showrunner. He grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area in California. He is known for his creative work in many different fields.

Early Life and Education

Rafael Casal spent his childhood in Berkeley and Oakland, California. He attended Berkeley High School for two years. After that, he finished his high school diploma through a special independent study program. Later, he helped create and lead the First Wave Spoken Word and Hip Hop Arts Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. At the same time, he earned a degree in sociology by studying at night. Rafael has a mixed background, with Irish family on his mother's side and Spanish and Cuban family on his father's side.

Creative Career

Rafael Casal has explored many different creative paths. He has worked as a poet, musician, and actor. He has also taken on roles as a producer, director, and showrunner for TV shows.

Poetry and Spoken Word

When he was 18, Rafael Casal appeared on HBO's Def Poetry Jam for three seasons. This show featured poets performing their work. During this time, he also traveled across the country. He performed and taught poetry with a group called YouthSpeaks. Rafael is a two-time champion of the Brave New Voice Poetry Slam Festival. This is a competition where poets perform their original poems.

Music Projects

Rafael Casal has released several music mixtapes online. These include As Good As Your Word in 2008, Monster in 2009, and Mean Ones in 2012. He also worked with his close friend Daveed Diggs and Chinaka Hodge. Together, they released The Getback Mixtape, vol. 1 in 2007 and The BAY BOY Mixtape in 2010. They released these as the Getback Productions Crew. In 2018, Casal and Diggs released two EPs, Collin and Miles. These EPs were created to go along with their movie Blindspotting.

Theater Work

Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs started a workshop called BARS at The Public Theater in New York City. This workshop helps artists improve their skills. It combines modern poetry with theater performances.

Film and Television

In 2018, Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs released their movie, Blindspotting. They both wrote, produced, and starred in the film. The movie tells a story about Oakland using a unique style that includes verse.

In 2020, the Blindspotting movie was turned into a comedy-drama TV series. Rafael Casal played his role as Miles again in the series. He also worked as a co-writer, director, executive producer, and showrunner for the show. The series first showed at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2021. It started streaming on Starz on June 13, 2021. The second season premiered at SXSW in March 2023. It began streaming on April 14, 2023. The Blindspotting series was cancelled in September 2023.

Rafael Casal has also appeared in other movies and TV shows. He had supporting roles in Bad Education, The Good Lord Bird, and the second revival of Are You Afraid of the Dark? In 2023, he played the character X-5/Brad Wolfe in the second season of the series Loki.

Filmography