Published: January 17, 2010

'surreal' Actress Kate Jarvis

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Katie Jarvis used to be too scared to act in drama lessons at school.

The British actress - who stars in new movie 'Fish Tank' after she was plucked off the street by director Andrea Arnold while she was having an argument with her boyfriend - said she thought what had happened to her was "surreal" because she'd never even been confident enough to act in her drama class.

She said: "It's nuts, do you know what I mean? A lot of people think that's what happened to me is surreal. It doesn't seem real sometimes, it feels like a dream.

"Before 'Fish Tank' I was at school and didn't have the guts to do drama. This has boosted my confidence right up. Before I was doing nothing all the time. It made me learn that I could do things if I wanted to. It shows you don't have to go to drama school to get into it, but I think I was one of a kind. I don't think anyone else will get picked off a train station."

'Surreal' actress Kate Jarvis

The 18-year-old actress - who recently won the Best Newcomer Prize at the British Independent Film Awards, and has also been nominated as Best Actress at the European Film Awards alongside stars such as Kate Winslet and Penelope Cruz - said she won't let the film change her.

She told the Independent: "I felt like it came quite naturally. The more it went on, the more I enjoyed it. When I first went into it, I didn't know anything at all about the film industry. I don't think the film will change me. I think it will make me a better person."