New Zealand schoolgirl Keisha Castle-Hughes was woken from dreamland at 3am yesterday with the real news she had become the youngest ever-Oscar nominee for best actress.
Castle-Hughes, 13, was nominated for the low-budget New Zealand movie Whale Rider, her debut film.
"My mom came running into my room saying `Keisha, you've just been nominated,'" she told National Radio.
"I was like, I thought I was still sleeping. I thought I'll be happy in the morning."
However, excitement got the better of Castle-Hughes, who was soon out of bed taking congratulatory calls from the film's US distributor.
"They were yelling down the phone at me... and I realized it was real."
The calls continued through the day, with her new-found fame catching the youngster off-guard.
"I still haven't taken everything in. It's kind of strange. There's been a lot of media calling and over at the house, but it's settled down a bit now."
In Whale Rider Castle-Hughes plays Paikea, a girl who bucks tradition imposed by her grandfather to become leader of her Maori tribe.
She is hoping to follow in the footsteps of fellow New Zealander Anna Paquin, who was only 11 when she won the best supporting actress Oscar for her performance in Jane Campion's 1992 film The Piano.
The nomination for best actress was something of a surprise to Hollywood insiders. She had not been nominated for a Golden Globe award and the film distributor had been pushing her in the supporting actress category.
However, Castle-Hughes is likely to be regarded as an outsider to beat Charlize Theron for her Golden Globe-winning portrayal as real-life prostitute-serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster, although Oscars expert Tom O'Neil told reporters she could surprise.
"The Academy loves kids, particularly girls, but they almost always put them in the supporting categories even if they are lead stars like Tatum O'Neal in Paper Moon (1973).
"But this feisty little girl, after winning over the Maori tribal chiefs in her Whale Rider role, is now taking on the big girls of Hollywood and stands a very strong chance winning," he said.
The other nominees are Diane Keaton for Something's Gotta Give, Samantha Morton for In America and Naomi Watts for 21 Grams.
"When I heard the nominees I was like, Diane Keaton, Charlize Theron, Renee Zellwegger, I was yelling out to everyone. It's amazing," said an excited Castle-Hughes, adding in Zellweger who has a best supporting actress nomination.
Whale Rider producer, John Barnett, said Castle-Hughes' nomination "surpasses everyone's hopes and dreams."
He said the casting agent considered thousands of children for the pivotal role of Paikea, but Castle-Hughes stood out. "She had all those qualities you see on screen: stillness and maturity and wisdom. The camera just loves her and she holds the screen so well."
The previous youngest nominee for best actress was Frenchwoman Isabelle Adjani, who was 20 when she was nominated for 1975's The Story of Adele H.
The youngest-ever Oscar nominee was eight-year-old Justin Henry, as supporting actor for 1979's Kramer vs. Kramer. The youngest-ever winner was Tatum O'Neal, a winner for supporting actress at age 10 for Paper Moon.
Castle-Hughes' nomination added to a strong New Zealand showing in the Oscars with the third film in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy scooping 11 nominations, the most of any film and one more than the Australian-made Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.
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