Cris Morena

María Cristina De Giacomi (born August 23, 1956, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, professionally known as Cris Morena) is an Argentine award-winning television producer, actress, television presenter, composer, musician, songwriter, writer, former fashion model and CEO of Cris Morena Group. She is one of the most successful producers in the country and is the creator of Argentina's most successful youth-oriented shows such as Jugate Conmigo, Chiquititas, Rebelde Way, Floricienta, Alma Pirata, and Casi Ángeles. Until 2001, she worked alongside Telefe but since Rebelde Way in 2002 she has her own independent production company Cris Morena Group. She is the mother of the actress Romina Yan (†), and of the television producer Tomás Yankelevich.

Until 1991, she was mostly known as a successful actress due to her role in iconic comedy shows such as Mesa de Noticias and Amigos son los Amigos and also as a songwriter, thanks to the hits she wrote for children show host Flavia Palmiero alongside Carlos Nilson. However, in 1991 she created, presented and produced Jugate Conmigo which was a huge hit and, since then, she has created incredibly successful shows, mostly targeted to children and teenagers. Her programs, including Chiquititas and Rebelde Way, were heavily panned by critics but marked a generation and had huge repercussion and success not only in Argentina but also in several other countries such as Brazil,Greece, Israel, Spain, Uruguay, Mexico and Chile.

Cris Morena has officially retired as a public figure. In 1995, she retired as a host with her last hosting gig being Jugate Con Todo and a year before, after starring in Quereme, she retired as an actress. She rarely appears on television and on magazines anymore and, when she does, it is to promote her productions. Even though she is not usually seen on the media, she is a well-known and recognizable brand in Argentina, with a huge fanbase of kids and teens and TV shows geared to young people stands out if they have her name attached to it.

Currently, she produces the fourth season of highly successful teen-oriented show Casi Ángeles. Her yet to be released show Jake & Blake is the first show with an all-Argentine staff shot entirely in English and will be distributed and aired by Disney Channel. Unreleased projects includes Atr@pados, a fiction for cellphones and Niños de Cristal, a dramatic mini-series about abused children based on real cases. Her other business ventures includes online TV channel Yups TV and Fans Store, a store that sells exclusive Casi Ángeles merchandising and also offers workshops.

Music is an important element in all of her shows and she is a composer herself. Her productions have accumulated over 30 platinum certifications and she, alongside Carlos Nilson (which was her songwriting partner until 2006), is the most profitable songwriter ever in SADAIC's (Argentine songwriters association) history.

A huge fan of Broadway musicals, Cris Morena is also known for musicals with million dollar budgets based on her television production which are usually presented in Teatro Gran Rex in Buenos Aires. With the complete cast of the TV shows, those musicals break attendance records every Winter vacation (July in Argentina). With Chiquititas alone she has sold 1.5 million tickets.

Her first theatrical production not based on any of her TV productions will be the Hispanic version of musical Spring Awakening which will debut in Bueno Aires' Avenida Corrientes in 2010. Casting is currently underway. She also has the rights to produce the musical in the other two biggest Spanish-speaking markets: Mexico and Spain.