Michael Fassbender has joked that Carey Mulligan was a "nightmare" to work with.

The pair co-starred in their latest film Shame, which follows the life of a sex addict.

Michael was amazed by the 26-year-old's powerful performance.

"She was such a nightmare," he laughed. "No, she was fantastic."

He revealed that the pair needed to support and trust each other during some of the more difficult scenes.

Michael was often surprised with how Carey approached the material.

"We were going to some pretty dangerous places at times and you need to trust one another to protect each other and provoke each other and surprise each other," he told Cover Media at the British Independent Film Awards on Sunday.

"And you know Carey's really an intelligent actor and she's also very sensitive and she's also very spontaneous and responsive, so she's got all of those things in spades. She takes me to a place and I'm like Wow, how did I get here?' and it's because I'm trying to keep up with her and bounce off her. And that was the same with the rest of the cast."

Michael was named best actor for his performance in Shame at the British Independent Film Awards.

The ceremony which celebrates independently funded British filmmaking - was held at Old Billingsgate, London.