Liane Balaban

Liane Balaban (born June 24, 1980) is a Canadian actress. Her film debut was in New Waterford Girl (1999) as Agnes-Marie "Mooney" Pottie. She has since appeared in the films Definitely, Maybe (2008), Last Chance Harvey (2008), and the independent drama One Week (2008). She has guest-starred on the television series NCIS: Los Angeles, Covert Affairs and Alphas, and joined the cast of Supernatural for its eighth season. Early life Balaban was born in North York, Ontario, the daughter of a Catholic mother who worked as a medical secretary, and a Jewish father from the Uzbek SSR in the Soviet Union, who worked in real estate. She grew up in the Willowdale neighbourhood of North York, now part of Toronto, and went to high school at Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute, where she was classmates with singer Henry Lau. She majored in journalism at Ryerson University but left to concentrate on acting. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Concordia University. Career Balaban made her feature film debut in New Waterford Girl (1999), as a 15-year-old misfit longing to escape the Cape Breton coal-mining town of New Waterford. Set in the 1970s, the film was directed by Allan Moyle. Producer Julia Sereny, who knew Balaban through her aunt and uncle, asked her to audition for the film. Balaban had studied drama in high school, but did not intend to be an actor. After seven auditions, she landed the part that won a Special Jury Citation at the 1999 Toronto International Film Festival and a nomination for a Canadian Comedy Award. She made a successful follow-up with Saint Jude (2000), directed by John L'Ecuyer. She starred in the TV movie After the Harvest (2001), opposite Sam Shepard, and appeared in Happy Here and Now (2002), opposite David Arquette and Ally Sheedy. She also starred in the horror film Spliced (2002), co-starring Ron Silver. She was a member of the garage/electro/pop band We are Molecules, where she sang and played keyboards and drums. She has also written for arts newspapers.