Before Camila Mendes was cast in the iconic role of Veronica Lodge, for the hit show,
Riverdale,
Before building up almost 800 thousand followers on twitter, and 3.9 million on instagram
Before taking home the 2017 Teen Choice Award for Choice Scene Stealer
Camila Mendes grew up travelling all over, finally settling down in southern florida,
where she attended a fancy private school with an excellent theatre program.
But things weren't always perfect.
Her parents divorced during her childhood, and like her character on Riverdale, she was
slut shamed as a young teen.
But hopefully she didn't handle it in the same way...
Whats going on guys?
My name is Michael McCrudden, documenting the life and career of Camila Medes prior
to fame, here for you on Before They Were Famous.
I've covered a ton of other actors and actresses in the past but this Riverdale show, it's
so hot right now!
Who else from the show do you want me to document next?
Sound off in the comments down below.
(Graphic Intro)
Camila Carraro Medes was born on June 29th, 1994, to Brazillian Parents, and grew up alongside
her sister, Kiara Moreno.
While she was born in Charlottesville, Virginia, she moved around frequently throughout her
childhood.
The family moved back and forth between Virginia and Atlanta, Georgia, before finally settling
down in Orlando, Florida.
Then, her parents got a divorce, after which Camila, Kiara and their mom moved to Brazil.
They lived their for a year, and I assume that's where Cami picked up the ability to
speak fluent Portuguese.
After that, they returned to Florida, and bounced between Coral Springs, Pomano Beach,
Fort Lauderdale, and Miami.
Camila dealt with the constant moving like a champ.
She said,
“I created this idea in my head that no matter where I go I'm home because I am – my
body is my home.
I got a tattoo below my right breast that says, 'To build a home,' because that's my
goal in life--to build a home within myself.”
Let's take a look at that tattoo, shall we.
Camila was around 8 years old when she started getting into acting.
She did plays for class, and she performed in plays that her sister would write.
She also watched a lot of TV growing up, and was a big fan of The OC, Gossip Girl, and
Weeds.
When the family settled in Plantation, Florida, her mother put her in school with a strong
theatre program, called the American Heritage School.
That's a private school with a student to faculty ration of eight to one.
The 40 acre campus is equipped with courtyards, an olympic size swimming pool, engineering
and robotics labs, a mock courtroom, outdoor classrooms with a certified wildlife habitat,
media centers, and a center for the arts.
Seems like an ideal place to go to school, but in an interview with Teen Vogue, Camila
revealed that she was often the victim of cyber bullying and slut shaming, saying,
“These two girls who were a few years above us put out this video on Facebook, and they
were just like, 'Who are freshman sluts?
Cami and Kylie.'
They just kind of made this video talking about how much we were sluts...Both of us
were in relationships, and not even hooking up with anybody but our loved ones.”
Despite having to deal with stuff like that, her school's execellent theatre program helped
prepare her for an advanced education in acting.
Camila attended New York University's prestigious Tisch School of the Arts.
Some of this schools notable alumni include, Taylor Schilling, Christopher Guest, Michael
C Hall, Peter Kruase, John C McGinley, Debra Messing, Josh Radnor, Pedro Pascal, and Rainn
Wilson.
In September of 2013, Camila started dating a guy named Ian Wallace.
She posted a picture of herself with him on instagram in 2016, captioning the photo...
“Three Years with this charmer.
Grateful for the endless inspiration and unconditional love that you give me.
I love you so much, Ian Wallace, and I am luck to fully experience just how rare and
special you are.
Happy Anniversary, love.”
But the photo has since been deleted.
So, maybe they broke up.
If so, that's a shame.
He sounded like a great guy.
She finished her classes in December of 2015, but didn't technically graduate until May
of 2015.
While still in school, she gained representation by the Carson Kolker Organization, and landed
her first acting job was in a 2016 commercial for Ikea.
Let's take a look.
That same year (2016), while still in college, Camila would be cast in the role of a life
time.
Back in 2013, Warner Brothers had begun developing a feature film called Archie, based on Archie
Comics.
After several delays and priorty shifts at warner brothers, the project was reimagined
as a television show.
Fox was the first network to pick up the series in 2014, but they never moved forward with
it.
The CW was the next to bite, and officially ordered a pilot on January 29th, 2016.
And at some point, Netflix acquired the exclusive international broadcast rights.
The casting process for the show began in November of 2015, and was apparently pretty
ruthless.
In an interview, Camila's cast mate Lili Reinhart, who plays Betty, said,
“We all worked our asses off, and it was a nationwide search that took months and months
of casting.
I was lucky enough to be cast as one of them.
I was told no at first, and so was Camila, and so was KJ.”
The casting process formed tight bonds among the Riverdale stars, and on instagram, Camila
is frequently posting photos with her castmates.
Needless to say, Camila got the role of Veronica, and filming took place between March and April,
2016, in Vancouver, Canada.
In the spring of 2016, Camila was signed by CAA, and graduated from Tisch.
Riverdale premiered on the CW on January 26th, 2017.
The series was well received by audiences, and
won two saturn awards, and six teen choice awards, including Choice Scene Stealer, which
went to Camila.
Season two of Riverdale premiered on October 11th, 2017.
As for the rest of the story, well, we'll have to wait and see because this is before
they were famous.
My name's michael mccrudden, thanks for watching, two more videos for you down here.
Hit subscribe and let me know who you want me to document next.