Raffaele was a published poet and short story writer before shifting his focus to the entertainment industry. In 1994, he received certification from Dov S-S Simens' Hollywood Film Institute, joining such alumni as Queen Latifah, Will Smith, and Quentin Tarantino. That same year, Raffaele enrolled in the Hollywood Scriptwriting Institute, where he spent the next two years honing his craft under noted screenwriter Earl Blakesley, Jr., whose screen credits included the popular television shows "China Beach" and "Tour of Duty."Raffaele completed creative writing training through the Christian Writer's Guild in 1995, the same year that he penned the "Mars Hill" anthology. Raffaele sold his first feature film, "Willows Way," to York Entertainment International in 2007, and his second feature film, "Back to the Beyond," to Maxim Media International in 2011.Raffaele consulted on the Indie thriller "Dark Minds," and wrote and produced the original screenplay "One," which centered around the last remaining human being following the disappearance of the Earth's inhabitants.