Penelope Cruz was inspired to become an actress after sneaking into a cinema to watch Pedro Almodovar's racy Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down.
Cruz had to lie about her age to get in to see the acclaimed 1990 movie and admits it changed her life.
She explains, "I was 13 (and) I lied in the theatre - I said I was 17. I came out of the theatre, I took a walk and that was the day I decided to become an actress... so that I could get to meet Pedro one day."
Cruz has become one of the Spanish director's leading ladies and currently stars in his film Broken Embraces.
Together Cruz was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar back in 2006 with Volver, losing out to Helen Mirren for The Queen.
But 2009 has been a great year for Cruz as she finally got her hands on the big award as she scooped Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona.
She returns to the big screen next month with musical Nine, which sees her team up with Daniel Day Lewis, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench and Marion Cotillard.
Tagged in Pedro Almodovar Penelope Cruz