---
name: "Irene Cara"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/irene-cara"
fi1m_id: "irene-cara"
imdb_id: "nm0001011"
tmdb_id: 32385
wikidata_id: "Q234169"
roles: ["Songs"]
born: "18 March 1959"
died: "25 November 2022"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-10-04T18:06:16.969370+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Irene Cara

## Identity

Irene Cara

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/irene-cara
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** irene-cara
- **IMDb ID:** nm0001011
- **TMDB ID:** 32385
- **Wikidata ID:** Q234169
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irene_Cara, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q234169, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001011/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/32385

Songs. Born 18 March 1959 in The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA. Died 25 November 2022.

## Details

- **Work:** Songs
- **Born:** 18 March 1959, The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA
- **Died:** 25 November 2022
- **Active:** 1980–1983
- **Also known as:** Irene T. Escalera, Irene Cara Escalera, Айрин Кара, Ирен Кара
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 2: 1 acting, 1 crew
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar (1 won)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irene_Cara, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q234169, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001011/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/32385

## Biography

Irene Cara Escalera (1959–2022) was an American actress and singer. She began performing as a child on Spanish-language television and appeared on Broadway and in series such as The Electric Company before making her film debut in Sparkle (1976).

Cara rose to prominence playing Coco Hernandez in the musical film Fame (1980), in which she also sang the title song and the ballad Out Here on My Own. She later co-wrote and performed Flashdance... What a Feeling for the 1983 film Flashdance, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

*Sources: theguardian.com, nytimes.com, en.wikipedia.org.*

## On Fi1m (2)

### Performed in (1)

- *Fame* (1980), Fi1m 70, as Coco Hernandez — [page](https://film.one/film/fame.md)

### Crew (1) — the average rests on these

- *Flashdance* (1983), Fi1m 54, Songs — [page](https://film.one/film/flashdance.md)

## Complete filmography (24)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *All Dogs Go to Heaven* (1989), as Theme Song Performance
- *Happily Ever After* (1989), as Snow White (voice)
- *Caged in Paradiso* (1989), as Eva
- *Busted Up* (1986), as Simone, Songs
- *The Longshot* (1986), as Theme Song Performance
- *Certain Fury* (1985), as Tracy
- *City Heat* (1984), as Ginny Lee, Songs
- *Going Bananas* (1984), series, as Theme Song Performance
- *D.C. Cab* (1983), as Irene Cara
- *Flashdance* (1983), as Songs — Fi1m 54, [page](https://film.one/film/flashdance.md)
- *For Us, the Living: The Story of Medgar Evers* (1983), as Myrlie Evers
- *Killing 'em Softly* (1982), as Jane
- *Trans* (1982), as Songs
- *Sister, Sister* (1982), as Sissy Lovejoy
- *American Playhouse* (1982), series, as Myrlie Evans
- *Fame* (1980), as Coco Hernandez, Songs — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/fame.md)
- *Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones* (1980), series, as Alice Jefferson
- *Roots: The Next Generations* (1979), series, as Bertha Palmer Haley, Bertha Palmer (archive footage)
- *Apple Pie* (1976), as Dancer
- *What's Happening!!* (1976), series, as Maria
- *Sparkle* (1976), as Sparkle, Songs
- *Aaron Loves Angela* (1975), as Angela
- *Kojak* (1973), series, as Amy — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/kojak.md)
- *The Electric Company* (1971), series, as Iris - Member of the Short Circus

## Gallery

- ![Irene Cara](https://film.one/media/person/5539851/gallery-766f087de826.jpg) Irene Cara — Aaron Rapoport. Published and Distributed by Elektra Records, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Irene_Cara_%281987_Elektra_publicity_photo%29_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![EXCLUSIVE TO YOU IN YOUR CITY ROOMIES WITH A VIEW -- Irene Cara (left) plays Irene Cannon, a young and talented performer who moves into a New York apartment wi (1981)](https://film.one/media/person/5539851/gallery-1f00bc1b4116.jpg) EXCLUSIVE TO YOU IN YOUR CITY ROOMIES WITH A VIEW -- Irene Cara (left) plays Irene Cannon, a young and talented performer who moves into a New York apartment wi (1981) — NBC, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Irene_Cara_and_Dee_Dee_Rescher_1981.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Irene Cara](https://film.one/media/person/5539851/gallery-f66615fe09fc.jpg) Irene Cara — Image via TMDB
- ![Irene Cara](https://film.one/media/person/5539851/gallery-c232cd144f02.jpg) Irene Cara — Image via TMDB
- ![Irene Cara](https://film.one/media/person/5539851/gallery-feb2b14142b4.jpg) Irene Cara — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 1 won

- 1984: Best Original Song (won), for *Flashdance... What a Feeling*

### BAFTA Film Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 1984: Best Original Song (nominated), for *Flashdance... What a Feeling*

### Golden Globes — 1 won, 1 nominated

- 1984: Best Original Song (won), for *Flashdance... What a Feeling*
- 1981: Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy (nominated), for *Fame*

### Other awards — 1 won, 1 nominated

- Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Album 1984: Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Album (won), for *Flashdance – Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture*
- Grammy Award for Best New Artist 1981: Grammy Award for Best New Artist (nominated)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/irene-cara