Kristen Rakes

Kristen Rakes is an actress who was born in Oklahoma and raised in Illinois and New Mexico. Interested in acting from a young age, she performed in school plays from elementary through high school, taking a break only to play basketball. After high school, she enrolled in college as a business major but switched to filmmaking after two years, earning a degree in Moving Image Arts. She then worked in art department crews in New Mexico's growing film industry. After moving to California, she worked as an extra and for Reelzchannel, which renewed her desire to act. She booked her first mainstream role on Longmire, though it was cut, and other parts quickly followed. She also worked on independent projects, completing a first feature in 2014.