Life and career

Schroeder was born in Valparaiso, Indiana. Carly's younger brother, Hunter Schroeder, is also an actor; he has appeared with her in Gracie and Eye of the Dolphin. Her parents Paul and Kelli Schroeder currently reside in Ventura County, California. In 1993, while accompanying a cousin to an acting audition, the casting director asked if the cute three-year-old would consider working for them. At first her mother was hesitant about the question but things such as money for a college education began to appeal to her. After her first job as a child print model, she began doing print work in Chicago for Sears, Roebuck and Company, Kmart, Spiegel, Lands' End, Chuck E. Cheese's and many other print advertisers. Two years later in 1995, child director Bob Ebel asked her to do a few television commercials.

In 1997, American Broadcasting Company (ABC) hired Schroeder to play Serena Baldwin on General Hospital. She was twice nominated for a Young Artist Award for her work on the show; once in 1999 and again in 2000, as well as a Young Star Award nomination in 1999 for Best Performance by a Young Actress in a Daytime TV Program.

Schroeder then appeared as Melina Bianco in The Disney Channel's Lizzie McGuire. Originally booked as a one-time appearance, she shot twelve episodes of the show and also appeared in The Lizzie McGuire Movie in 2003, in the same role.

In 2003, Schroeder auditioned for her first feature film and won the role of Millie in the thriller Mean Creek. The movie won wide acclaim for Schroeder and the rest of the cast, winning the Humanitas Prize at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, and also being awarded the 2005 Independent Spirit Festival Special Distinction Award for best ensemble cast.

Gracie was Shroeder's next film role, in 2006. In order to win the role, she began an intense three-month work-out that included a daily regimen of not only physical fitness, but also of training in advanced soccer skills with professional athletes and trainers.

While Gracie was in theaters, Schroeder's other movie, Eye of the Dolphin, was receiving attention, winning two awards from the 2007 International Family Film Festival: a Best Child Actor win for Schroeder, and a Drama Feature win for the movie. The movie has been well received and continues to receive honors, including being named as an Official Selection for the Tribeca Film Festival, Delray Beach Film Festival, Kids First! Film Festival, Tiburon Film Festival, USA Family Film Festival and the Worldfest Houston Film festival.

At the 2007 Kids First Awards in October, Schroeder received the award for Best Emerging Actress, while the film received the Best Feature Award (ages 12-18).

Her recent movies are Forget Me Not (2009), and Slightly Single in L.A., which completed filming in 2009 and was released in 2012. She was also featured in the film Creepers (2011) and "Prep School" (2013), in the role of Kyra Matheson.

Schroeder graduated from Thousand Oaks High School in June 2009, and graduated from California Lutheran University in 2014 with a double major in communications and psychology, and a minor in theater.

Awards

• Special Distinction Award at Independent Spirit Awards for Mean Creek (2004)
• Best Child Actor Award at Int. Family Film Festival for Eye of the Dolphin (2007)
• Best Emerging Actress at 2007 Kids First! Awards for Eye of the Dolphin

Television Roles

• Port Charles, Serena Baldwin - over 480 appearances 1997-2003
• General Hospital, Serena Baldwin 1997-2001
• Dawson's Creek, Molly Sey, 2000
• Lizzie McGuire, Melina Bianco, recurring role in 12 episodes, 2001-2003
• George Lopez, Ashley, 2002
• Cold Case, Brandi Beaudry, 2003
• Ghost Whisperer, Lisa Benzing, 2008
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Kim Garnet, 2009

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2000	Growing Up Brady	Susan Olsen
2003	The Lizzie McGuire Movie	Melina Bianco
2004	Mean Creek	Millie	limited release
2005	We All Fall Down	Charity	limited release
2006	Firewall	Sarah Stanfield
2007	Gracie	Gracie Bowen
	Prey	Jessica Newman
	Eye of the Dolphin	Alyssa
2008	Prayers for Bobby	Joy Griffith	Lifetime TV
2009	Forget Me Not	Sandy Channing	released
2011	Rites of Passage	Carly	released
2012	Slightly Single in L.A.	Becca	released
2013	Prep School	Kyra Matheson	completed

[ Source: Wikipedia ]