Girlfight's ringside talk

I was a tomboy growing up. All the girls around me were into satisfying boys, looking good and going to the mall and I was like, "It's not fun!" So I played manhunt or baseball with the guys or went round ringing doorbells and running away.

I quit school four years ago, at 17, and worked as an extra in films like Summer Of Sam, Cradle Will Rock and For The Love Of The Game. I was just about to give up when I heard about an open call for Girlfight, about this tough Latina chick who finds herself by becoming a boxer.

There were so many people at the audition. I stood there with a pessimistic attitude - "Yeah, they don't even know me from a canape" - and I think that's what got me a call back. I did a very raw, unpolished reading - I didn't know what the hell I was doing. But I guess they saw something in me because they wanted me to go to the gym and work out with a professional boxer.

When I got into that ring he started whacking me and laughing and running away. I just couldn't catch him. I turned into an animal, and that's when the director pulled me aside and said, "Michelle, I think we've found our star."

I trained for four-and-a-half months. It was rejuvenating and at the same time excruciating. It relieved all my body's stress, even though the next day I would be in agonising pain. They wanted me to go pro at the gym. But I stopped boxing after the film - I'm not a competitive person. Besides, I want to keep my teeth.