Six to watch - Test 1

C2 Proficiency · Multiple Matching · Cambridge English Proficiency 1, Cambridge University Press

You are going to read a magazine article about six young people who have been successful in various artistic fields. For questions 1–10, choose from the people (A–F). The people may be chosen more than once.

Yasmin Shahmir – singer

'I was so excited. I felt euphoric,' says Yasmin having heard her first single being played. After five years spent DJing, this is one milestone the 22 year-old will never forget. The feline-eyed singer cuts a striking figure and you sense she was not destined to stay behind the decks forever. 'The song is about a time in my life when I was really going out on a limb – I'd quit my university course and moved to London where I was up for whatever life threw at me. At school I'd never been like the others – I'm half-Iranian, half-English and have a weird name. So I stood out a bit – maybe that's where my determined attitude comes from.'

Emma Hart – video artist

Emma Hart is tipped as 'one-to-watch'. Her output consists of video works, lectures and performances that challenge the way photographs and film are received. They make witty observations about everyday situations and ask the viewer to be active and questioning. 'The focus,' she says, 'is on how I use the camera, not on what I'm filming.' Recognition has been hard won. She worked first as a 'frustrated' office clerk. Bitten by the photography bug, she began a degree course but, constantly getting marked down on technical issues, dropped out. However, the criticism received was probably the making of her – it helped consolidate her artistic ideas, and made her more determined. It paid off in the end.

Danielle Hope – actor

'I'm 18, I'm a leading lady and a singer. I mean, who'd have thought it?' Danielle's life has undergone a considerable change – last year she was working as a waitress and thinking about applying to drama school. Instead, she auditioned on a whim and beat 9,000 hopefuls to win the lead role in a forthcoming musical. She seems remarkably unfazed by the task ahead. 'I don't want to let anyone down. It's self-pressure more than anything. Of course some will like my performance, some will hate it. Everyone's entitled to their opinion. I won't take it to heart – they won't be criticising me the person, but me the actress. It's all been so exciting – I've no idea what's going to be next.'

Eudon Choi – fashion designer

Eudon Choi trained as a menswear designer in South Korea and has always enjoyed the support of his family. After moving to London he won a prestigious award and his collection is soon to be stocked in 'Brown's Focus', an influential fashion boutique. For all the accolades, Eudon is surprisingly diffident. Is it a strain living up to all the hype? 'You can say that again.' For a relatively new designer, it's a great start. His inspiration comes from eclectic sources – he trawls vintage shops for military jackets and has, in the past, taken the aesthetic of the industrial revolution as his model. Now his clothes are acclaimed by fashion editors and worn by celebrities.

Andrew Sheridan – playwright

Andrew Sheridan's debut play is soon to open in Manchester. It has already been described as 'the best first play' by one of a group of leading young playwrights, the friends who initially pushed him into writing. It will be judged by the actors too, well known to Sheridan after a decade performing on stage and screen, and by his family. His family's reaction concerns him – none of them has ever had anything to do with theatre and they haven't read his play. A desire to delve into 'what it is to be human' primarily drives his writing – 'what ultimately makes us tick.' Will his family find it all a bit weird?

Sunjeev Sahota – novelist

Sunjeev studied maths at university and didn't catch the reading bug until relatively late – he didn't read a novel until he was 18. Now, after eleven years spent 'catching-up', with his own first novel just published, he talks with the air of someone with a lifetime's reading behind him. It took him four years to write, working in the evenings and at weekends, but he didn't really expect to get it published – 'It was just maybe, maybe.' Now that it's out, he feels good. 'My friends aren't readers. They're just normal lads. But they've all bought the book. I'm anxious, slightly, and proud.'

Six to watch

Sarah Carter chooses six young people to watch in various artistic fields.

is inspired to investigate motivation?

is undaunted by the prospect of future demands?

makes a link between background and character?

appears to have thrived on negative feedback?

seems strangely unassuming given levels of success?

concentrates more on the medium than the message?

was prepared to make a leap into the unknown?

owes success to taking a step on impulse?

has a healthy disregard for adverse comment?

shows an understanding way beyond experience?

Which of the successful young people

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