[1] She began her acting career at the age of 10 with the TV serial Plein soleil and two years later she made her film debut with Just Jaeckin-directed Girls.

[2] She was nominated for César Award in the category Most Promising Actress for her performance in Que les gros salaires lèvent le doigt !

Pernel had her breakthrough as an adult when she played the character of Sandrine in the 1993 drama film Three Colors: Blue (French: Trois couleurs:bleu) directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski.

[4] She acted alongside Juliette Binoche and Benoît Régent in the film,[5] and her role earned her a César award nomination in the "Best female debut" category.

[7] Pernel played the role of Nicolas Sarkozy's second wife, Cécilia, in the 2011 biopic The Conquest, directed by Xavier Durringer [fr].