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Keisha Castle-Hughes from Whale Rider

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I don't really follow this stuff, but I just read that Keisha Castle-Hughes, the cute little New Zealand girl from Whale Rider (one of my favorite films from last year) was just nominated in the Best Actress category in the Academy Awards. Very cool!

[ Edited by: DawnTiki on 2004-01-27 09:08 ]

She's a real cutie. She was really good in Whale Rider, which I actually purchased. I saw her recently on Jay Leno and was really surprised when she said she was going to get her drivers license soon and asked for one of Jays' cars. I thought that was hilarious and an impossible request but then thought 'hec, you never know unless you ask!'

I hope she wins.

S

Yeah, I was really suprised. Whale Rider was really good and she was fantastic, but I was still shocked that the Academy recognized her. I think it's Great!

That's great!

She wouldn't even be the first kiwi teen to win an oscar: Anna Paquin won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her part in THE PIANO (which is another great movie set in NZ w/ a significant number of Maori actors in the cast).

[ Edited by: Tiki Chris on 2004-01-27 10:32 ]

The amazing thing is, she's never acted in anything prior to Whale Rider.... the casting scout was looking for extras at the school they were planning to film in, and loved her personality, sent her in for screen test, and the rest you can see in the movie!

If you haven't seen Whale Rider, rent it!

Whale Rider is a great film, tiki or no. I have a weakness for movies about ocean lore, tikis, and realistic portrayals of childhood, so this one was a real triple threat. I almost get weepy just thinking about it.

I am thrilled to see her wonderful performance recognized. She was really outstanding.

Talented Actress!!
Whale Rider depicted a lot about the true (non hollywood) Maori culture.
I was in New Zealand for a culture exchange in 1998. I loved every minute of the trip from the people to the island.
I heard that she is coming to Long Beach for a Pacific Islanders Conference in November 2004.

Pages: 1 6 replies