Hobbits and kids sweep Oscar nominations

A 13-year-old New Zealander became the youngest ever to be nominated for a best actress Oscar on Tuesday. The announcement of the name of Keisha Castle-Hughes, who starred in Whale Rider, was one of many surprises on a morning when the final film in The Lord of the Rings trilogy ruled with 11 nominations.

International acting talent was recognized with a raft of nominations for New Zealanders, South Africans, Australians, Japanese and others, with British actors up for an Oscar including Jude Law (Cold Mountain), Sir Ben Kingsley (House of Sand and Fog) and Samantha Morton (In America). Screenwriter Steven Knight was nominated for Dirty Pretty Things, director Stephen Frears' film of the twilight life of immigrants in London.

Cold Mountain, directed by Anthony Mingella, which had been tipped as a contender for awards, got a comparatively chilly reception, being ignored in both the best film and best director categories. Its star, Nicole Kidman, had also been seen as a likely nominee for her portrayal of a southern belle awaiting the return of Jude Law's Confederate soldier.

Predictably, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, the third episode of the J.R.R. Tolkien epic, received the greatest recognition.

New Zealander Peter Jackson, who took the Golden Globe for best director and best film on Sunday, was nominated again, partly in tribute to the seven years he has dedicated to bringing the books to life.

But attention focused yesterday on the unexpected names on the lists, mainly films with Hobbit-sized budgets compared to the Hollywood blockbusters.

Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles was nominated for City of God, a harrowing account of gang warfare in Rio de Janeiro. The film had not made the foreign-language shortlist last year and was allowed into contention under a new rule. American Splendor, a quirky and much-praised tiny film based on the downbeat comic book stories of the eccentric Harvey Pekar, was also recognized.

Surprise

Sofia Coppola, who made Lost in Translation, was named in the best director category, only the third woman to have made the cut and the first American woman to do so. Jim Sheridan's semi-autobiographical film In America, which he co-wrote with his daughters, also fared well. Heavy spending on Seabiscuit's promotional budget in the final days of voting appears to have paid off with a best film nomination for the traditional tale of the racehorse that defied the odds.

The greatest surprise, perhaps, was the naming of Keisha Castle-Hughes for the small Maori movie, Whale Rider. She had not been on most critics' radar as a likely nominee, not least because of her age.

Coincidentally, the film Thirteen, a much-lauded non-formulaic story of the grimmer sides of teenage life in California, was recognized with a nomination for Holly Hunter in the best supporting actress category for her role as a puzzled mother.

Often criticized for being too parochial and homogeneous, the lists of nominees this year embraced a variety of nationalities. The Iranian actress, Shohreh Aghdashloo (House of Sand and Fog), Benin actor Djimon Hounsou (In America), and Japanese star Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai) were all recognized.

Diane Keaton (Something's Gotta Give) was the only American in the best actress nominees' list where she will be a joint favorite with the South African Charlize Theron (Monster). The Australian Naomi Watts (21 Grams) joins them, Morton and Castle-Hughes on the list.