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Carmen has built a distinguished career in film and television spanning over 25 years, with notable roles in numerous beloved shows.
Beginning in local theatre in Vancouver, she quickly earned recognition with multiple Jessie Award nominations. Her transition to film auditions led to numerous guest and recurring roles on popular TV series. From 2004 to 2005, Carmen starred as "Simone," a lead character in Vancouver’s "Godiva's," earning her first Leo Award nomination for her portrayal of the enigmatic, alluring bartender. Following "Godiva's," she took the lead role of "Rebecca" in the Canadian independent feature "Unnatural & Accidental," receiving the Women in Film & Video Artistic Merit Award at the 2006 Vancouver Film Festival for her performance. Carmen portrayed "Leona Stoney" for five seasons on APTN’s multi-award-winning series "Blackstone," winning the 2011 Leo Award and earning a Gemini Award nomination; she received additional Leo nominations in 2012 and 2015, and won the Leo Award again in 2014 and 2016. She was nominated for a 2017 Canadian Screen Award for her performance in the finale of "Blackstone." Carmen appeared as "Loreen Cassway" in the three seasons of CBC’s "Arctic Air" alongside Adam Beach, earning a Leo Award nomination in 2012. In recent years, she has had recurring roles on "Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce," "Arrow," "iZombie," "Chesapeake Shores," and Fox’s "Second Chance," playing "Special Agent in Charge Sue Adair."
2018 was a milestone year for Carmen. She traveled to Scotland to portray the fierce warrior "Wahkatiiosta" in Season 4 of Starz’s hit series "Outlander," alongside Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe. Upon returning to Canada, she headed to Quebec to star as "Susan Russel" in the independent feature "Rustic Oracle," which tells the story of a Mohawk woman searching for her missing teenage daughter amid racism and indifference following the Oka crisis. The film is told through the eyes of her 8-year-old daughter, "Ivy," played by Lake Delisle. "Rustic Oracle" has received several festival awards, including two for Carmen’s powerful performance, and is slated for limited theatrical release across Canada. Later in 2018, Carmen traveled to Ireland for a recurring guest role on a popular series, details of which remain under strict confidentiality. In 2020, she guest-starred on CTV’s fourth season of "Cardinal" as "Shiela Gagne," an MLA and mysterious spouse of district attorney Robert Quillen, and appeared in a recurring role as "Hannah Gruen" on The CW’s "Nancy Drew."
In 2013, Carmen was honored with the "Lorena Gale Woman of Distinction Award" at the UBCP/ACTRA Awards for her efforts in empowering women within the Vancouver film industry. Her producing credits include two feature films, "Two Indians Talking" and "White Indians Walking," as well as the short film "Not Indian Enough." Carmen made her directorial debut in 2015 with the BravoFact-award-winning short film "Ariel Unraveling," which premiered at the 2016 Victoria Film Festival.
Her most significant and cherished production remains her son, Jaden.
