Although Mozambique does not have a consistent film industry, Mélanie de Vales has proven to be a versatile talent.
Mélanie began her career as an actress at the age of 14, she gave life “Nuta”, a girl who becomes the city doctor when all adults disappear and it is up to the children to rule the city in the film Republica de Mininus (2012) by Flora Gomes where she played opposite Danny Glover.
Then She gave life to the character Fatima where She was the guardian of the sea in the movie Under the Full Moon (2014) of Orlando Mabasso.
It was also Rosa, a city doctor who embarks on a trip to her first job and in the middle of the war, two captains fight for Rosa’s love in Licinio de Azevedo’s Salt and Sugar Train (2016), which was accepted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences from Hollywood to the Oscars.
And finally, it was The Girl of the Party in the movie Ruth (2018) by António Pinhão Botelho.
Born and raised in Maputo, capital of Mozambique. She is fluent in English, Portuguese and French. She studied music at the National School of Music and did dance classes over the years.
While in secondary school, she was invited after being discovered by the director who was looking for talents, to incarnate her first role in the cinema.
In 2011 at the age of 16, she became Young Designer of Mozambique Fashion Week where she presented her fashion collections annually for 5 years. In 2014, she was the winner of the Home Fashion Challenge of Mozambique Fashion Week.
She was the vocalist of a jazz band that brightened the Jazz nights of one of Maputo’s largest 5-star hotels, the Polana Serena Hotel.
Mélanie has as hobbies photography, video and photo editing, reading, and travel.
Far from the cameras, Mélanie followed with her studies where she obtained the degree in International Relations and Diplomacy at the Higher Institute of International Relations in Maputo. She was also a student at the Ferrari Fashion School in Milan, Italy. Where she qualified in “Modelista Sposa” or simply “Fashion for brides”.
In March 2018 she embarked for Burkina Faso to participate in the “Journées Cinématographique de la Femme Africaine de l’image”. She received this invitation by virtue of the roles she incarnated over the years.
In December 2018, she won the Sotigui Awards on the category of Best young African actress.
She currently has projects and partnerships on YouTube and Instagram, with Mozambican fashion and beauty brands, as well as her personal project where the public can follow the course from the beginning of her career, where she recorded small diaries that will be released soon.
She has also become an ambassador for the fight against breast cancer in Mozambique for the October Rosa 2018 campaign.
