Aminah Nieves
American actor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Aminah Nieves is an American actress from Hammond, Indiana, of Taino and Coahuiltecan descent. She became known for her breakthrough performance in the television drama 1923 as Teonna Rainwater.
Aminah Nieves | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 2, 1995 Hammond, Indiana |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2021–present |
Early life
As a child Aminah was always called to the stage. For a while she thought she was going to be this traveling symphonic musician[1]
Nieves’ passion for acting took hold during high school, where a newly opened performing arts school in Hammond allowed her to be part of a theater production. Two months after graduating, she left for New York. For most of the following decade, she struggled to make her way, landing mostly uncredited supporting roles for four or five years.[2]
At some point while living in New York, Aminah was working four jobs at once, trying to make rent. As an herbalist working on her own herbal shop and doing her own practice outside of that. She was also a doula and worked in a clothing store. However, none of that satisfied her, so she moved back home.[3]
Career
While living in New York she managed to be part of a few short and/or indie films such as Blueberry, Maya (Maya Danzig) runs away with a young woman, Elsa, (Aminah Nieves) she meets in rural Iowa leaving her sister, Molly alone in a violent relationship. When Maya and Elsa make it to the Badlands, their journey ends abruptly, and Dogwood.
After moving back in with her parents with only $21 to her name, she remained committed to her craft. With the unwavering support of her manager and family, she took the leap to audition for 1923, despite initial fears about the heavy themes of the role. Her mother's encouragement to embrace the opportunity for the sake of their community played a pivotal role in her decision-making process.[4]
Aminah's performance has not only garnered praise but has also sparked important conversations about the historical injustices faced by indigenous peoples.[4] "A lot of people don't know what happened or deny it happened; some people even think Native Americans don't exist anymore. That's why it's so important to portray our story as honestly as we can, especially on bigger platforms like this, so people can't run away from it anymore. They need to see it." says Nieves in an interview with ELLE[5]
She is also set to be part of Season 2 of Task, an HBO production based on an original idea by Brad Ingelsby, Task is set in the working-class suburbs outside of Philadelphia. An FBI agent heads a Task Force to put an end to a string of drug-house robberies led by an unsuspecting family man.[6]