The Internet cast of Girls On Film, from left: Cleo, Kim, Clarissa and Aimee

ASPIRING actress Kim Barrett has landed a round-the-clock role in an Internet soap opera which is already being compared with smash hit Big Brother.

Kim, 22, from Horwich, is one of four fame-hungry women whose lives will be screened on the Girls on Film website.

The four, who also include Leigh's Clarissa Howarth, have moved into a camera-filled house at a secret North-west location.

Visitors to their website will follow the girls' trials and triumphs as they continue their quest to break into the showbiz world.

Broadcasts began on Monday as Nichola Holt, Bolton's Big Brother contestant, came to terms with being voted off the show which has gripped millions.

The Girls on Film site -- at www.girlsonfilmonline.com -- has already been visited more than 400,000 times.

But former Butlin's redcoat Kim is keen to play down suggestions she is following in Nichola's footsteps.

She said: "I applied for Big Brother as well, but I decided it was too much like a lab experiment and that Girls On Film was much the better deal.

"Big Brother has made the nation into voyeurs and that can't do us any harm, but this is different -- it's real life."

Cameras will follow the girls as they attend auditions for coveted drama and dancing jobs as well as filming them at home.

The dirty mac brigade, however, will be disappointed. Unlike Big Brother, the bathroom is a camera-free zone and sex and nudity are forbidden.

Another twist is that viewers can interact with the girls in internet chatrooms.

Kim and Clarissa, who were chosen from 4,000 respondents to an advert in stage and screen magazine The Stage, say they have already adapted to their new goldfish bowl existence.

"You soon get used to it," said Kim, who used to work in computers for Bolton firm IDN. "We all feel comfortable with it.

"I had an argument with my mother about applying and I stormed out of the house with CV and photos, but my she's enthusiastic about the idea now."

Clarissa, who completed a professional dancing course after leaving school at 16, said: "We are being noticed now which is what we have always wanted. It's really exciting."

The girls have contracts for at least six months but will be able to leave the show at any time if they secure their big break.

Events are broadcast with just a 30 second delay from real time. Programme-makers Arctic Productions say the site is suitable for all ages and there is no age restriction on visits.