10 Breakthrough Performances From 2014's Rising Movie Stars

10. Ellar Coltrane - Boyhood

There was always going to be an element of risk for Richard Linklater and his collaborators when it came to choosing who to play the lead character in Boyhood, his sprawling and hugely ambitious film in which audiences see the main character - along with his co-stars - age and develop over a period of 12 years. Shot from May 2002 to October 2013, Boyhood's potential to fall into a forced melodramatic trap would have been far greater in the hands of a less accomplished director - Linklater's great achievement is to deliver as much naunce and subtlety as he does more dramatic events in the life of Mason Evans Jr. Whether it's his mother's abusive, alcoholic boyfriend or Mason's burgeoning interest in photography, the film views it all as a part of the ebb and flow of life itself. Ellar Coltrane might not have had any acting experience when shooting began but 12 years is more than enough time to pick up a new skill, and as he grows throughout the movie there's a feeling more that you're watching a genuine human being - rather than a character in a movie - adapt and change. It's a naturalistic debut filmed under exceptional circumstances.