Pia Miranda

Pia Miranda
At the Goddess premiere in Sydney
Born	(1973-06-15) 15 June 1973 (age 43) Melbourne, Australia
Occupation	Actor
Spouse(s)	Luke Hannigan

Pia Miranda (born 15 June 1973) is an Australian actress whose career was launched with her role in the 1999 feature film Looking for Alibrandi, an Australian film based on the novel of the same name by Melina Marchetta.

Born in Melbourne, Australia, Miranda is of Italian descent and spent the majority of her early life travelling throughout Australia with her family, attending a large number of schools. After completing her high school certificate at the Sacré Cœur School, Miranda studied history and drama at La Trobe University before transferring to Victoria University, where she majored in drama, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Performance Studies) in 1996.

After university, Miranda studied drama at the Atlantic Theater Company in New York for one year before playing Karen Oldman on the Australian soap Neighbours, from 1998 to 1999. At this time, Miranda was also starring in the ABC television series 'Bondi Banquet', playing Jo Tognetti. This was the starting point for Miranda's future success within the Australian film and television industry, quickly being chosen for the role of Josephine Alibrandi in the hugely successful Australian movie Looking for Alibrandi, directed by Kate Woods in 1999.

The movie was based on the novel written by Melina Marchetta in 1992, where seventeen-year-old Josephine Alibrandi deals with the stresses of Year Twelve, her illegitimacy, the reunion with her father, new-found companionship, the death of her close friend and life as a third-generation migrant in contemporary Australian society. Miranda co-starred with fellow prominent Australian actors Kick Gurry, Anthony LaPaglia, Greta Scacchi, Elana Cotta and Matthew Newton. The movie received critical acclaim, with Pia Miranda receiving the Australian Film Institute award in 2000 for Best Actress for her performance.