Cristina Spina is an Italian actor, writer, and filmmaker based in New York City and Rome.
She started her career as a dancer and actor in Rome, working with top Italian theater directors, such as Luca Ronconi, Massimo Castri and Carlo Cecchi.
Cristina made her American debut when she was chosen by choreographer and director Martha Clarke for a lead role in the play Kaos by Frank Pugliese at the New York Theatre Workshop. In 2014, she performed in Martha Clarke’s production of Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht at the Atlantic Theatre Company in New York. In 2015, she played a lead role inKarin Coonrod’s Texts and Beheadings/Elizabeth R at The Folger in D.C. and then at BAM’s Next WaveFestival in Brooklyn. In 2018, she played the lead role of Eleonora Duse in Imperfect Love by Brandon Cole, directed by Michael DiGiacomo. In film, she has worked with Pupi Avati (La Via Degli Angeli and Il Cuore Altrove), Irene Papas and Giuliana Berlinguer (Hecuba), Matteo Rovere (Veloce Vome Il Vento) and Giada Colagrande (Padre).
In 2006, Cristina began creating and developing her own work. She created and performed Una Vita All’Istante (based on the poetry of Wislava Szymborska) at Piccolo Eliseo Theatre in Rome. In 2009, she directed and performed in the Italian premiere of My Name is Rachel Corrie, also in Rome.
In 2013, Cristina studied at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in their film program’s Sight & Sound Course. She was assistant director on Bette Gordon’s film, The Drowing. And on House of Cards, season 6, she shadowed the director Alik Sakharov. And for City On a Hill, season 2, she shadowed the director Hagar Ben Hasher. In 2016, she directed her debut short film So Be It, which won Best Short Film at RIFF, Rome Independent Film Festival. In 2019, she wrote and directed her short, 500 Calories ( Official Selection Festival di Roma, Alice nella Città) which won many awards around the world. In 2022 she directed her short Consider The Lilies (Official Selection Alice Nella Città) which won the BNL PARIBAS best short film. And she is now developing her first feature film.
