After the public relationship with Tom Cruise ended, Penelope Cruz managed to make it back into the spotlight, for her own merits, this time. That's not to say that she wasn't acknowledged as a good actress but, back then, the media had the tendency to give her credit for being Tom's girlfriend first and then for her acting skills.

Most recently, Penelope has also become involved in a series of other new projects (like executive producer for an ABC show), while diversifying her onscreen roles. Pedro Almodovar's movie, 'Volver', in which she plays the main character, became so successful that the famed director decided to release an English version of it for the US too.

Either way, it was the Spanish version that got Cruz the title of Europe's best actress for 2006. The ceremony, which took place in Warsaw, Poland, represented the climax of a career that started a long time ago for the gorgeous actress.

While Penelope was honored with the award, the director of the movie, Almodovar, got that for Europe's best director. Unfortunately, 'Volver' was not named the film of the year, that distinction going instead to 'The Lives of Others', a German product directed by newcomer Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck.

The importance of the European Film Awards, other than the obvious, is that they give an insight on which may be the next Oscar aspirants. By being crowned Europe's best actress, Penelope Cruz, now more than ever, stands a great chance of taking home one of those cherished golden statuettes. All the good luck to her!