Emilio Buale was born in Equatorial Guinea, but he moved to Spain along with his parents and brothers when he was six years old. He had no intention of becoming an actor until one day, casting director Paco Pino discovered him when they both were waiting in a subway station in Madrid. He needed a black actor to play Ombasi, one of the main characters of Imanol Uribe's Bwana (1996). Before that, Emilio was studying to become a construction engineer, and meanwhile, he was also working as a fireman. He accepted the proposition, and traveled to Almería two weeks later, when he made his debut, along with two well-known Spanish actors Andrés Pajares and María Barranco.

After that first professional experience as an actor, he continued working in films, TV series and, especially, in theatre. He was a member of the Spanish Company of Classic Theatre during a couple of years, and he has appeared in lots of stage productions.