Drena De Niro (born September 3, 1971) is an American actress and filmmaker who is the daughter of
Diahnne Abbott
Diahnne Eugenia Abbott (born January 1, 1945) is an American actress and singer. She played supporting roles in films of the 1970s and 1980s, including ''Taxi Driver'' (1976).
Abbott was married to actor Robert De Niro from 1976 to 1988. Th ...
and adoptive daughter of
Robert De Niro after their marriage in 1976.
Life and career
De Niro is the daughter of actress
Diahnne Abbott
Diahnne Eugenia Abbott (born January 1, 1945) is an American actress and singer. She played supporting roles in films of the 1970s and 1980s, including ''Taxi Driver'' (1976).
Abbott was married to actor Robert De Niro from 1976 to 1988. Th ...
, and the
adopted daughter of actor
Robert De Niro, whose last name she took upon her mother's marriage to him in 1976.
De Niro enjoyed a bohemian upbringing that saw her divide her time between
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
,
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, and
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. This transient lifestyle is said to have been a driving factor in her embrace of the arts. Post schooling, she began her career in the entertainment industry working as a model.
[Living the De Niro Dream](_blank)
, avenuemagazine.com, 2011 Further driven by her interest in fashion and music she became a DJ and Fashion Consultant.
This led her to work as a musical supervisor for
Giorgio Armani, serving as the creative force behind the coordination for runway shows.
Her transition to the field of acting began after landing a role in
Allison Anders
Allison Anders (born November 16, 1954) is an American independent film director whose films include ''Gas Food Lodging'', ''Mi Vida Loca'' and ''Grace of My Heart''. Anders has collaborated with fellow UCLA School of Theater, Film and Televisio ...
's ''
Grace of My Heart''. Since her premiere role, De Niro has worked with and trained under Larry Moss, author of the acting guide, ''Intent to Live'', and Susan Batson of The Black Nexxus Acting Studio. With the turn of the millennium, De Niro set her sights on writing and directing her first film, ''Girls and Dolls''. This documentary examined a young stylist's obsession with her dolls, and won De Niro the Best Directorial Debut Award at the New York Independent Film/Video Festival in 2001.
More recently De Niro's endeavors have led her back to Italy, where she worked on her latest film. Since 2006, she has been the spokesperson for the Kageno Orphan Sponsorship Program, which helps provide care for orphaned children in Kageno villages. De Niro currently lives in New York City with her son, Leo.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:De Niro, Drena
1971 births
Living people
American film actresses
American television actresses
American voice actresses
Actresses from New York City
American adoptees
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
Drena