# Oka Giner

Okairy Alejandra Giner Arredondo (born November 30, 1992), known professionally as Oka Giner, is a Mexican actress who gained popularity for her debut role as Bárbara Fuenmayor in the 2013 Mexican television series, Gossip Girl: Acapulco. Giner has also starred on the telenovelas Bajo el mismo cielo, Señora Acero: La Coyote, Corazón guerrero and Perdona nuestros pecados.

## Early life

Giner was born in Camargo, Chihuahua. As a child, she participated in beauty pageants. When she was 17 years old, she modeled locally, appearing in photo shoot for the online newspaper "El Diario de Chihuahua" in 2010. She also studied Polynesian dances such as Hawaiian and Tahitian for 11 years. Giner showed an interest in performing from an early age, directing and acting in plays with her cousins during family gatherings. Later, she enrolled at Autonomous University of Chihuahua, where she majored in Communication sciences.

## Acting career

Giner studied briefly at university, but soon left and successfully auditioned for the Centro de Educación Artística, the free drama school run by Televisa. In January 2012, she moved from Camargo to Mexico City to attend school. While attending CEA, Giner gained acting experience by performing various in student-run productions. During her first year at CEA, she heard about an audition for producer Pedro Torres' latest project, Gossip Girl: Acapulco, a Spanish-language remake of the hit American series. Actress Mariana Van Rankin was originally cast as Bárbara Fuenmayor and filmed a short pilot episode. When she later dropped out, producers recast the role. Giner originally attended the casting call hoping to gain experience for future auditions. Although she had little professional training and no professional acting experience, she was cast in one of two lead roles. Giner was the last actor to audition and be cast in the series. The entire cast was officially announced in January 2013. Gossip Girl: Acapulco began filming in various locations in Acapulco, Mexico on January 21, 2013 and ended in May of that year. The show premiered exclusively on the subscription service channel, Golden Premier, on August 5, 2013. In spite of the show's success in Mexico, it was not renewed for a second season and was officially cancelled on January 14, 2014.
Following the completion of filming and promotion for Gossip Girl: Acapulco, Giner returned to CEA to begin her second year of school in July 2013. In March 2014, she auditioned for a lead role in the Televisa telenovela, Hasta el fin del mundo, but did not receive a part. She was instead cast in a recurring role in another series, Señorita Pólvora, in July 2014.
In September 2013, she was announced as a new celebrity spokesmodel for "Always Platinum", appearing in commercials for the brand in Mexico. Her short film, M de iMportante, was released on her official Twitter account via Vimeo in July 2014.
Giner then appeared in the Telemundo telenovela Bajo el mismo cielo which premiered on July 28, 2015. The first episode garnered one of the highest-rated telenovela on Telemundo in 3 years. On August 8, 2015, she began filming another Telemundo telenovela ¿Quién es quién?, moving to Miami for the show's production. The telenovela premiered on October 26, 2015 on Gala TV in Mexico.

## Personal life

On December 10, 2022, Giner married Venezuelan comedian Nacho Redondo after three years of dating.

## Filmography
### Films

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2014 | M de iMportante | Alejandra | Short film |
| 2015 | Hagamos un corto | Oka | Short film. Writer/Producer/Director |
| 2020 | Escuela de Nada Salva La Navidad | Novia | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2013 | Gossip Girl: Acapulco | Bárbara Fuenmayor | Lead role; 26 episodes |
| 2015 | Señorita Pólvora | Emilia Marín | Recurring role; 55 episodes |
| 2015–2016 | Bajo el mismo cielo | Susana "Susy" Sanders | Supporting role |
| 2015–2016 | ¿Quién es quién? | Yesenia Pérez | Supporting role |
| 2016–2018 | Señora Acero | Rosario Franco | Main role (seasons 3–4); 266 episodes |
| 2018 | La Piloto | Olivia Nieves | Main role (season 2) |
| 2019 | Cita a ciegas | Marina Salazar Fuentes | Main role |
| 2021–2022 | Madre sólo hay dos | Elena | Main role |
| 2021 | La venganza de las Juanas | Juana Caridad | Main role |
| 2022 | Corazón guerrero | Doménica Ruiz-Montalvo | Main role |
| 2022 | Donde hubo fuego | Leonara Robledo | Main role |
| 2023 | Perdona nuestros pecados | Elsa Quiroga | Lead role |
| 2024 | Marea de pasiones | Luisa | Lead role |
| 2024 | Las hijas de la señora García | Valeria García | Main role |

### Music video appearances

| Year | Artist (s) | Song |
| 2011 | Francisco Rey | "Si tú te vas" |
| 2013 | Paty Cantú | "Dicen por ahí" |
| 2013 | Carla Mauri | "Tengo que olvidarme de ti" |
| 2015 | Diego Amozurrutia | "Cada noche" |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 2016 | Premios Tu Mundo | Revelation of the Year | Bajo el mismo cielo | Nominated |