Born on January 1st in the city of San Jose, California, Monica eventually became the middle child. She has one brother three years older, Jaime, and one brother five years younger, Xavier. Her parents are both immigrants from Michoacan, Mexico. Her father came to United States at the age of 15 and her mother at the age of 16. Her father, unusually and unwillingly joined the army in the 1970s and is a Vietnam Veteran. He is also a well known and respected real estate broker specializing in the Bay Area for nearly 30 years.Monica knew she wanted to act since she was a little girl, but her passion kicked in full force one day, at the age of 8, when she stumbled along her brother and cousin playfully shooting a home version of Robert Zemeckis' Zurück in die Zukunft (1985). They asked for her assistance, and, from then on, she knew that she had to get into filmmaking one way or another. Although, she mainly acts and/or assists in productions, her true passion is writing and directing. She's written a few scripts based on actual events and hopes to have the opportunity to direct them someday.As a child, Monica attended Suzanne Dancers, a well-known dance school in San Jose. She also joined the performing arts club in elementary school and participated in the school showcase play of "Rags to Riches". At the age of 14 while at a county fair, Monica was approached by a modeling agency, The Modeling Connection. She joined and began to take modeling classes and attending auditions. Two years later she joined Style, an acting and modeling agency and school in Sunnyvale, CA, where she attended acting classes and workshops. In high school, she participated in various school plays and functions. At the age of 21, Monica graduated from DeAnza College, in Cupertino, CA, a film major. DeAnza College is known for having one of the best film programs in the Bay Area among community colleges.Living in the Bay Area, there was not much film production to participate or work in. Monica worked at a local television station that really had no relation to her passion, nor was it paying well. She directed, starred and interned in a lot of local student and independent films but most were for no pay. At the age of 22, Monica followed in her father's footsteps and earned her real estate license and later her notary license. She worked in the real estate business, under the brokerage of her father, in the Bay Area for over four years. She was extremely successful the first few years and really enjoyed helping people achieve the dream of owning a home. Business was going great, and there was a lot of it, until one day the market hit a standstill, and it wasn't only for a month or two; it appeared to be years until it picked up again. Rather than let it negatively affect her, Monica took it as a sign and as an opportunity to pursue her film career. Within a few months of the real estate market crash, Monica purchased a condo in the heart of Hollywood and relocated to Southern California.Within two months of relocating, Monica was already auditioning and booking jobs. She searched web sites and represented herself. Weeks later, she landed an agent.
