New Zealand actress Miriama McDowell received her formal training at Toi Whakaari National Drama School while simultaneously launching a film career with roles in such movies as Zenolith, For Good, and Party at Our Place. A frequent fixture on the Toi Whakaari stage in her early years at the school, McDowell gradually branched out to the Court Theater and the Auckland Theater Company as she gained her footing on the boards. In addition to her film and stage work, McDowell also made a strong impression on television viewers with roles on Revelations, Interrogation, and Shortland Street. In 2006, McDowell appeared in the family comedy drama Naming Number Two as Hibiscus, a role for which she received a New Zealand Screen Award nomination as Best Supporting Actress.