A Native of Hollywood, California, MICHELLE BONILLA caught the acting bug at a young age. By the time she was 10 she was studying voice, music, dance, and theatre at Los Angeles City College’s Arts Department. She went on to major in drama at California State University Northridge. As a freshman she landed the role of “Ophelia” in the main stage production of Hamlet. Michelle left school to pursue her professional career. On her first Equity audition she landed the role of Renee, in the critically acclaimed Dark Rapture by Eric Overmyer at the prestigious Kalita Humphreys Theatre in Dallas, Texas. In Los Angeles her theatre credits include As You Like It…Fresh, The Matrix; Wilding, The Road Theatre Company; The Circle, The Bilingual Foundation of the Arts; the West Coast Premier of Eddie Sanchez’s Award Winning, Clean, at The Celebration Theatre; and Borderlands (Co-written by Dana Stevens) at Second Stage. Michelle also co-wrote, produced, and starred in Mal Vista, at The Tamarind Theatre.

Bonilla made her big screen debut in Above Suspicion, with Christopher Reeve and Kim Cattral. Her other film credits include working opposite Jason Alexander and Faye Dunaway in Dunston Checks In; The Rich Man’s Wife; with Halle Berry; Trial and Error, with Michael Richards, Jeff Daniels, and Charleze Theron; Homegrown, with Billy Bob Thorton and Hank Azaria; Price of Glory, with Jimmy Smitts; Lansky, with Richard Dreyfus; True Friends (Winner Gold Jury Award- Best Independent Film- Charleston International Film Festival), Sexual Life (Official Entry of The 2004 Los Angeles Film Festival), with Tom Everett Scott, Anne Heche, and Dulè Hill. She can next be seen, on the big screen, opposite Olympia Dukakis and Haley Joel Osment, in Montana Amazon. She has worked with acclaimed directors such as Jonathan Lynn, Ken Kwapis, Amy Holden Jones, Stephen Gyllenhaal, and John McNaughton.

Michelle’s impressive list of television credits includes recurring roles on The Profiler and Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, where she originated the role of “Teresa Morales”, the first Mexican-American School Marm. She has begun her 12th and Final Season recurring as “Harms”, the sexy Latina paramedic on NBC’s, Emmy Award Winning Drama, ER. Her other guest star credits include JAG, City of Angels, Seinfeld, The Pretender, Diagnosis Murder, Providence, Nash Bridges, The Division, Enterprise, Judging Amy, and two different roles on ABC’s NYPD Blue. Her most recent credits include Shark, The Closer, and Days of Our Lives.

Bonilla is the proud co-owner of Synergy Actors Studio, in North Hollywood, CA, where she teaches an ongoing, On-camera Meisner technique, to actors seeking to strengthen the craft of acting. And, is a proud winner of The ALMA (American Latino Media Arts Award) Award, for her portrayal in PBS’s, Award Winning Foto-Novelas Series, Seeing Through Walls.