From regional Queensland to Paris, Boston and now Hollywood, this 20-year-old Aussie ballerina's star is shining bright.
Primrose Kern from Cairns in Far North Queensland is about to make her acting debut in a main role in a movie.
She says it is still surreal, as she had never considered herself an actress.
"I'm a professional ballet dancer and we spend our whole lives silent," she says.
"Sure, we perform story ballets like Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, and the Nutcracker on stage, but we don't use our words."
Taking up the role of Gracie, the "mean girl" in the new movie The Red Shoes: Next Step, was a whole new experience for Kern.
"I never actually auditioned for the role, I was asked if I'd be a body double by my old ballet coach who was the choreographer on the movie," she says.
"I said yes, but then after meeting with the director over Zoom, he offered me the lead role of Gracie."
Kern said the filmmakers had auditioned for every other role but hadn't found anyone for the role of Gracie, and thought she was a good fit.
She was thrilled to take on the role, but says she is slightly concerned people will think she really is the mean girl she plays in the movie.
"I'm not like that, I was paid to be mean," she says.
Kern says she constantly felt the need to apologise after every "mean" scene with Juliet Doherty, who plays the lead character of Sam.
"As soon as they would say 'cut', I would apologise to her and she would reassure me it's fine," she said.
Former principal dancer with the Australian Ballet, dance coach, and choreographer on the movie Daniel Gaudiello says Kern was the perfect fit for the role of Gracie.
"Primrose has a gift, she can command the stage and is a complete perfectionist," he says.
"There's definitely an arrogance about her dancing, which you sort of need in ballet because an audience picks up on it and they go with you.
"Having a really strong female lead like her was important to the film and her performance has definitely solidified her reputation now as an ambassador for Australian ballet."
Gaudiello, who coached Kern for many years before she took up a dancing contract with the Paris Opera Ballet at the age of 17, says she has the skills to successfully work in both film and ballet in the future.
"She copes well under pressure, she is good at remembering lines and she backs herself when it really matters," he says.
Kern might only be 20, but she has an impressive resume already and it seems those around her have always seen her star potential.
She was only three when her mum enrolled her at the Julia Macalpine Dance Studio in her home town of Cairns, but even then she stood out from the pack.
"Primrose showed talent and potential from the moment she started, even at a young age," Julia Macalpine says.
"You could tell she was destined for greater things and it's very rare to see a child like that."
Macalpine says Kern had more than just raw talent, she was incredibly disciplined and never shied away from practice and hard work.
It was this passion and drive that led Kern to take up a role with the Paris Opera Ballet.
"It's the most prestigious ballet company in the world and to say I started my career there is incredible," Kern says.
"That alone on my resume opens every door for me."
Kern says her German and English heritage meant she had the right look for the Paris Opera Ballet.
"Each ballet company requires a certain type of dancer and in Germany they require taller dancers, in America they want athletic dancers and in Europe they want petite dancers," she says.
After two years performing with the Paris Opera Ballet, Kern accepted a contract with the Boston Ballet, where she is currently.
"I wanted to broaden my horizons and travel, which is why I joined the Boston Ballet," she says.
"I was also looking forward to speaking English again, after two years predominantly speaking French."
Kern says she filmed The Red Shoes: Next Step during her summer break after leaving Paris and before she started at the Boston Ballet.
"I never saw myself going into film or television, I've only ever been in love with dancing like a racehorse with blinkers on," she says.
"I never saw anything else for myself but this experience has shown me I'm more than just a ballet dancer, I can do multiple things."
