Claim: Zooey Deschanel plays the banjo.

Zooey Claire Deschanel -LRB- -LSB- ˈzoʊi_ˌdeɪʃəˈnɛl -RSB- born January 17 , 1980 -RRB- is an American actress and singer-songwriter . She made her film debut in Mumford -LRB- 1999 -RRB- , followed by her supporting role in Cameron Crowe 's semi-autobiographical picture Almost Famous -LRB- 2000 -RRB- . Deschanel soon became known for her deadpan comedy roles in films such as The Good Girl -LRB- 2002 -RRB- , The New Guy -LRB- 2002 -RRB- , Elf -LRB- 2003 -RRB- , The Hitchhiker 's Guide to the Galaxy -LRB- 2005 -RRB- , Failure to Launch -LRB- 2006 -RRB- , Yes Man -LRB- 2008 -RRB- , and -LRB- 500 -RRB- Days of Summer -LRB- 2009 -RRB- . She also did dramatic turns in the films Manic -LRB- 2001 -RRB- , All the Real Girls -LRB- 2003 -RRB- , Winter Passing -LRB- 2005 -RRB- and Bridge to Terabithia -LRB- 2007 -RRB- . Since 2011 , she has played Jessica Day on the Fox sitcom New Girl , for which she has received an Emmy Award nomination and three Golden Globe Award nominations .   For a few years starting in 2001 , Deschanel performed in the jazz cabaret act If All the Stars Were Pretty Babies with fellow actress Samantha Shelton . Besides singing , she plays keyboards , percussion , banjo , and ukulele . In 2006 , Deschanel teamed up with M. Ward to release a debut album , Volume One , under the name She & Him in March 2008 . They released a follow-up album , Volume Two , in March 2010 , with their Christmas album A Very She & Him Christmas being released in 2011 , Volume 3 in 2013 , and Classics in 2014 . She also received Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media nomination for her song `` So Long '' , which featured in the Winnie the Pooh soundtrack .   Deschanel is also a co-founder of the female-focused website HelloGiggles , which was acquired by Time , Inc. in 2015 .