Raffael Ponce-Valencia is an American actor from San Jose, CA. He is a polyglot fluent in English, Spanish, French, intermediate Portuguese and Italian, with training in a myriad of accents and dialects. His father had a love for art, music, and film which instilled in him a wondrous curiosity for the world.
Most recently, he has begun his venture into film-making with the creation of his production company TzinTzun Productions with 2 films already slated for production.
The first is a short film and passion project currently filming titled 9 LIVES based on Dantes Inferno, the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the mayan Popul Vuh, and an animated series previously written by Raffael. The film is a dark comedy about grief, death, and acceptance. It follows him and his cat Osiris on a spiritual journey through death and the afterlife in an attempt to reclaim his soul.
The second is a feature currently in development titled WOLVES AT THE DOOR. A crime thriller about a young man who is unwillingly tasked with the extermination of his partner in order to save his wife. As he battles with himself to find the courage to kill, an impending doom creeps ever closer.
He has also just been cast as the lead in the upcoming horror feature HOONAK: THE DEATHS ON BLACK RIDGE as well as a series regular on the animated series MOONBASE 11 both of which are currently under development.
Raffael is an avid reader of classics, fantasy, detective novels, horror, and ancient cultures. A lover of archery, languages, and fire. A guitarist with over a decade of experience. An athlete who gave up sports for the arts. A lover of animals, adventure, food, and learning.
Raffael’s work is a reflection of his diverse interests and ferocious curiosity. His work includes voice over roles in many animated series, audiobooks, several foreign language dubs, singing in commercials that have gone viral, stunt work, musical, and shakespearean performances. He can be seen starring as Benji, a series regular in the live-action sci-fi thriller titled PHOENIX, currently streaming on PRIME VIDEO and ROKU.
He met his wife in France while on a trip through Europe and lived with her and her father near Lyon, France for nearly 3 years. They moved to Alicante, Spain and lived there for 8 months before returning to the US.
When he was 10, his family moved to Texas and at 16 he graduated from high school and moved to Los Angeles where he attended The American Musical and Dramatic Academy. He graduated with a BFA in Acting in 2015 at the age of 20.