Washington, Feb 21 : Vanessa Hudgens has opened up about how she plans to make the tough transition in her career after surviving a nude photo scandal in 2007.

The `High School Musical' star took naked photos of herself at age 18, which were leaked online.

"That was just a really s--tty situation that sucked. That was by far the worst moment of my career," Us magazine quoted her as telling Paper magazine.

She said that she has since matured as an actress.

The 24-year-old said that ever since she was young, she wanted to play really heavy and intense roles and really pushed herself in a dramatic direction.

She revealed how this led her to her role in thriller `Frozen Ground', in which she plays a drug-addicted prostitute. (ANI)