<P> After she graduated from Calabasas High School in 1999, Hoffmann followed her half - sister Alex's example and entered New York's Bard College to pursue a degree in literature and writing . Around 2001, she temporarily left her acting career to complete her studies and graduated in 2004; her senior thesis was a documentary film . </P> <P> After college, she spent much of her 20s drifting . She interned with a chef in Italy, and then trained to be a doula after helping deliver Alex's children . For a time, Hoffmann and a boyfriend lived in an old trailer in the Catskill Mountains . </P> <P> Hoffmann began her acting career at the age of four to help pay the family bills by acting in commercials . In 1989, she starred in her first movie, Field of Dreams, with Kevin Costner. 1989's Uncle Buck followed, working beside John Candy and up - and - coming child star Macaulay Culkin . However, she grew tired of the rigors of screen performance and temporarily retired . Nevertheless, upon hearing that Culkin (whom she disliked when they worked together) was making a lot of money in feature films, her "competitive spirit got the best of her," as she later put it, and she re-entered the profession . She went on to star in This Is My Life (1992), Sleepless in Seattle (1993) with Tom Hanks and The Man Without a Face with Mel Gibson (who also directed the film). According to Hoffmann, it was the praise she received for her performance in This is My Life which encouraged her to pursue a full - time acting career in Hollywood as it gave her the confidence she needed to handle major roles . </P> <P> In 1994, Hoffmann was given the starring role in her own sitcom Someone Like Me (on NBC) about a young girl, Gaby, and her dysfunctional family . Although generally well received, the show only lasted six episodes . Publicity work for the show included personal appearances by Hoffmann on late night talk shows like The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Show with David Letterman . </P>

Who played the little girl on uncle buck
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