Carey Mulligan is quickly becoming one of the British actresses to keep a sharp eye on as her latest movie An Education has been a major hit on the festival circuit.
She made her first appearance back in 2005 when she starred in Joe Wright's Pride and Prejudice as Elizabeth Bennett's, played by Keira Knightley, younger sister Kitty.
The young actress wrote a letter to the producers requesting the role and ever since then her career really has been on the up.
She made her small screen debut that same year when she appeared in the BBC's hit adaptation of Bleak House as Ada Clare that also attracted some major attention.
Over the next couple of years she mixed TV roles with theatre work as she built up an impressive resume of The Amazing Mrs Pritchard, Trial & Retribution X: Sins of the Father and Northanger Abbey.
She received critical praise in 2007 when she took on the role of Sally Sparrow in hit BBC show Doctor Who in the Doctor light episode Blink of episode thirteen.
After TV drama My Boy Jack, which she starred alongside Daniel Radcliffe, she moved back into movies with When Did You last See Your Father?
But it's 2009 that really looks set to propel her to greater success. After a small role in summer gangster movie Public Enemies it's An Education that is the role everyone is talking about.
Directed by Lone Scherfig An Education is a coming-of-age story about a teenage girl in 1960s suburban London, and how her life changes with the arrival of a playboy nearly twice her age.
Her performance, and that of her co-star Peter Sarsgaard, have been highly praised. The film won the Audience Choice award and the Cinematography award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.
Carey also won a Hollywood Film Festival award for Best Hollywood Breakthrough Performance for a Female.
The film has ben very well received on the festival circuit so far this year and could feature during the awards season.
And the actress will remain busy over the next few months with a string of projects in the pipeline.
First up is Brothers, which stars Natalie Portman, Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal before going onto Never Let Me Go and Brighton Rock.
Finally the young actress will also star alongside Michael Douglas and Shia LaBeouf in Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps, which she is currently filming, as Winnie Gekko.
An Education is released 30th October
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
Tagged in Carey Mulligan