The Bafta-winning movie Aftersun's star had never performed on stage before landing the role of a young child enjoying an idyllic vacation with her father.
Alongside Paul Mescal, Sophie is portrayed by 12-year-old Frankie Corio from Livingston in West Lothian.
Leona, her mother, sent a picture of her to a casting agent after seeing an advertisement for tomboyish girls between the ages of 10 and 12. She was chosen for the role.
Frankie clarifies, "I wasn't trying to break into acting.
"My mother simply came home one day and said, "I've put you up for a casting audition thing.
"I knew what it was, but I didn't think I would understand it. ".
Calum, a young man with mental health issues who is portrayed by Mescal in the movie, is the father of Sophie, who is Calum's daughter.
The adult Sophie, as portrayed by Celia Rowlson-Hall, remembers a trip she took to a Turkish resort with her father 20 years ago.
Frankie acted in the scenes as the young Sophie, which were filmed on location in Turkey over the summer of 2016.
The entire two months of filming were spent with her, along with her mother, father, sister, Mariella, 13, and brother, Lorenzo, 6.
Leona, a primary school teacher, expressed how proud she was of her daughter.
The 40-year-old said to BBC Scotland that Francesca always had a chaperone and that they were very laid back, so she could come and go from the set as she pleased.
We wanted to give her some room to be herself and to get to know Paul, so my husband and I took turns going to the set.
We didn't want to come across as overbearing parents, so we gave them a little bit of freedom. ".
When she learned her daughter had been selected for the role, Leona claimed she had been in "disbelief.".
"Everyone praised her acting for being so natural. She is a very expressive person in real life, so to see her acting with such composure and restraint was impressive. ".
With the exception of the singing, Frankie enjoyed making the movie.
She was required to perform "Losing My Religion" by REM on stage in front of a crowd in one scene.
"I despised it, despised every second. I detested both singing and the song. There were many people in attendance.
"I pretended to be Sophie, my fictional character, and got through it. I simply pretended to be someone else for every scene I did. ".
Before the filming of Normal People began, Frankie spent two weeks getting to know Mescal, who played Connell.
She recalled, "We played pool, ate ice cream, and went swimming in the sea.
With the exception of learning how to play pool for a few scenes, I had no training. Frankie continued, "Paul taught me how to play pool.
Frankie outlined the differences, despite the fact that she feels quite similar to her movie character.
"I'm not as embarrassing as her, like singing karaoke and also jumping in the pool with my shoes on -- a bit of an odd decision," she claimed.
But occasionally, I didn't perceive it as acting; I simply thought that people were simply reciting lines. ".
She watched Millie Bobby Brown, one of her favorite actors, in Stranger Things to get advice on how to get through.
Her Scottish friends have been very encouraging and "so excited" when she took them to a movie.
The news that her teachers were organizing a night out to the movies to see it made her feel "very proud.".
The movie was helmed by Charlotte Wells, and it debuted at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2022. For the best British debut film, it was awarded a Bafta.
Frankie remarked, "I think it's a really fantastic movie. I also have a great deal of pride in the fact that I am a Scottish actor, and I hope that this will encourage the development of more Scottish performers.
When I'm older, I hope to still work as an actress. Playing a role that you are not is enjoyable.
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