Next person biography:
Rafael was born and raised in Miami, Florida. He was influenced by his father's architectural drafting table and his mother's paintings as a young artist. During his teenage years, he rode the Florida rodeo and horse show circuit with his Cuban uncle, a former CIA asset, and worked on his ranch. This experience instilled in him an appreciation for Latin America's Magic Realist authors.
Pursuing his love for the arts, Rafael entered NYU's Tisch School of the Arts on full scholarship to study acting, stage directing, production design, and film theory and history. He became the Co-Artistic Director of the Seraphim Theatre Company, directing and producing plays with some of the best actors in New York.
Rafael then entered the film and television world as a story analyst for New Line Cinema, Fine Line Features, Miramax, and Robert Halmi. He discovered the script "Hangin' with the Homeboys" and received a "Special Thank You" in the film credits. He later became Director of Development at RHI/Hallmark Entertainment, building the East Coast story department and working on several projects.
Rafael began researching and writing his first spec script, "Hackers", which triggered his coming under surveillance by the FBI. The script sold to United Artists and he wrote "The Rage: Carrie II" for UA, a sequel to the Stephen King/Brian DePalma horror classic "Carrie". He has since written several as yet unproduced screenplays and has worked on various projects, including a remake of the 1949 Jacques Tourneau classic, "Catpeople", for Will Smith's Overbrook Entertainment.
