SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- Friends and co-workers of an aspiring model and actress found dead on Saturday came by her apartment on Tuesday to remember the 21-year-old.

The friends and colleagues came by in small groups to Juliana Redding's small apartment on Centinela Avenue, with some brushing away tears as they remembered her. While her friends were too distraught to talk on-camera, they said off-camera that Redding was "the nicest person you'll ever meet."

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The body of Redding was found about 6 p.m. Sunday in her residence in the 1500 block of Centinela Avenue, said Assistant Chief Ed Winter of the coroner's office.

Police would only say Redding had been "physically assaulted before death," but did not give additional details. The L.A. County Coroner's Office said an autopsy on Redding's body had been completed, but the results were sealed at the request of the police department. Santa Monica police were treating her death as a homicide.

"It appears the victim died as a result of an assault," police said in a statement.

The body was discovered after the woman's mother called authorities to report that she had not been able to get through to her daughter.

"They had to force their way into the apartment," said Santa Monica police Lt. Alex Padilla. "That's when they found her dead on the floor."

Officials as Redding's high school in Tuscon said while she had good grades and was an athlete, Redding had more to offer.

"Her personality just drew people to her," said Mike Urbanski, associate head of Salpointe Catholic School. "She had so many friends and just a lot of enthusiasm for life."

"I always think of Juliana as a breath of fresh air," said Sister Helen Rau, a counselor at Salpointe. "She had a smile that won people over."

Redding had moved to Los Angeles, where she appeared in small films, as well as a music video or two. She also attended Santa Monica City College, friends said, and worked at a Venice restaurant to make ends meet.

Film director Evan Lieberman told KNBC Redding had a small role in the movie Kathy T Gives Good Hoover.

Greg Cipes told NBC4's Ted Chen that he became friends with Redding while working on that movie. He said they dated for awhile, and she appeared in his music video. Cipes said Julianna seemed unhappy when he last spoke with her.

"She would call me every so often," Cipes said. "She was very lonely and scared being in her apartment."

Cipes said he and Redding drifted apart after she began working at a strip club on Sunset Boulevard, but police did said Redding was not a stripper.

Anyone with information about the case was asked to call detectives at 310-458-8451.