Profiles: Juan Pablo Raba | Proimágenes Colombia

Co-star and producer of The Seal of Confession, Colombian-Venezuelan film that premiered in Colombia in May
 
Juan Pablo Raba, known for his long acting career in Colombian and Venezuelan television, plays Lieutenant Humberto Restrepo in The Seal of Confession, also trying his hand as the film’s producer. The movie is a police thriller produced by Drive Pictures, founded by Raba, along with the Venezuelan actor Edgar Ramírez and the film’s director Henry Rivero.
 
"All characters affect you, and therefore transform you in some way. In the case of Lieutenant Humberto Restrepo, I felt his deep solitude, true solitude. Playing an individual who is conflicted, solitary and full of rage led me to think that revenge is the need to carry out your own justice; justice is the balance between good and evil; guilt is a bit like not feeling at peace; regret is not considering the consequences of your actions; and sin is very subjective,” he says about his character in the film.
 
Son of Argentinian businessman Ricardo Raba and art restorer and writer María Eugenia Vidal, Juan Pablo Raba was born in Bogota on January 14, 1977. However, he grew up in Spain, and before beginning his acting career in Venezuela, he lived in both Colombia and Argentina. He began his career as a model, until producer Malcom Aponte and casting director Humberto Rivera called him in 1998 to co-star in the TV series Amor en Forma, with Zharick León and Lorna Paz.
 
He trained as an actor in Caracas and New York, where he studied dramatic arts at the Lee Strasberg Academy. He has been part of productions in Colombia, Venezuela and Spain. He acted in the series Marido y Mujer (1999), La Reina de Queens (2000), the Venezuelan production Viva La Pepa (2001), and was the antagonist in the Venezuelan program La Niña de Mis Ojos (2001). In 2003 he played the role that established him on Venezuelan television, as the star of My Sweet Fat Valentina, which shattered viewing records in Venezuela, and was even sold to countries such as Indonesia and the Czech Republic.
 
He traveled to Spain in early 2004, to star in Estrambótica Anastasia. He then returned to Colombia to play the leading role in the soap opera Por Amor a Gloria (2005) and subsequently, back in Venezuela, And I now pronounce you Husband and W(2006). He once again returned to his home country to star in Sobregiro de Amor (2007), El Último Matrimonio Feliz (2008), and The Clone (2010), to play special roles in The Queen of the South (2011), Wild Flower (2011), Open-Hearted (2011), and to star in Pobres Rico (2012) and, again in Venezuela, Lucia’s Secrets (2013).
 
His greatest international recognition has been for his roles in The Cartel of Snitches 1 and 2 (2008), Tiempo Final, Sin Retorno, Mental (2009) and Los Caballeros Las Prefieren Brutas. His acting has brought him three nominations for the India Catalina Colombian Television Awards and two for the TV and Soap Opera Awards.
 
In film, he has played roles in Anillo de Compromiso (Engagement Ring) (2005), Soltera y Sin Compromiso (2006), A Virgin Grandmother (2007), Ni Tan Largos ni Tan Cortos (2007), the feature films Puras Joyitas (2007) by Henry Rivero, En Coma (2011) by Juan David Restrepo and Henry Rivero, Postales Colombianas (2011) by Ricardo Coral-Dorado, El Cielo en Tu Mirada (2012), The Seal of Confession (2014) by Henry Rivero, and Los 33.
 
"The Seal of Confession was a more difficult challenge than I expected. Switching between acting and production and achieving just the right level of concentration between one task and the other was quite a challenge. Accompanying Henry, who I deeply admire, in this adventure was a big motivation. Also, being able to participate in a project in its entirety, being present at every part of the process, is very exciting,” says Raba.