Keisha Castle-Hughes

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Keisha Castle-Hughes
Born March 24, 1990 (1990-03-24) (age 18)
Donnybrook, Western Australia, Australia
Years active 2003-present
Official website

Keisha Castle-Hughes (born March 24, 1990) is an Australian born, New Zealand actress who rose to prominence playing Paikea Aprirana (Pai), in the 2002 film Whale Rider. Castle-Hughes was cast as Pai at the age of eleven where she went from her Auckland classroom to the set in 2001. Whale Rider not only established Castle-Hughes as an actress but nominated her for many awards including an Academy Award for Best Actress of which she was the youngest female nominated in the Best Actress category.

Since her debut, she has starred in four films, one of which she played the main character, the Virgin Mary in The Nativity Story. The others are Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Hey, Hey, It’s Esther Blueburger and The Vintner's Luck.

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[edit] Career

[edit] Whale Rider film debut (2001-2004)

In 2003, Castle-Hughes made her debut in the independent film Whale Rider of which she portrayed Paikea Apirana (Pai). Despite not having had any previous acting experience, the 11-year-old actress went directly from her Auckland classroom to the set when the film began shooting in New Zealand in late 2001, and received widespread critical acclaim for her performance and turned Castle-Hughes into an international celebrity. A year later she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress at the 76th Academy Awards. This made her the youngest female nominated in this category.

[edit] International celebrity (2004-2005)

She soon followed the role by appearing in Prince's controversial music video for his song "Cinnamon Girl" and with a shoot in Vanity Fair magazine. In 2004, Castle-Hughes was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[1]

[edit] General roles (2005-2006)

Castle-Hughes' most recent film roles were as Queen Apailana in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and the Virgin Mary in The Nativity Story, released in 2006. New York Times critic A. O. Scott said that she "seemed entirely unfazed by the demands of playing Mary. She had the poise and intelligence to play the character not as an icon of maternity, but rather as a headstrong, thoughtful adolescent transformed by an unimaginable responsibility." [2]

[edit] Comeback (2006-present)

In 2007 she returned to her major roles. She began with starring in the comedy-drama film Hey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger, which was filmed in late 2006. [3] She will again reunite with director Niki Caro for the film adaption of The Vintner's Luck, which is currently in production. [4]

[edit] Personal life

Born on March 24, 1990 in Donnybrook, Western Australia to Desrae Hughes, a Māori mother and Tim Castle, an English-Australian father, Keisha Castle-Hughes was 18 months old when her family moved to New Zealand; her parents (who had never married) later separated. Castle-Hughes became a New Zealand citizen in 2001. She has three younger brothers and a younger sister. Her siblings include Rhys, Liam, Maddisyn, and Qayde. She is currently living in Papakura, Auckland and was once a student of Bailey Road School, Penrose High School, and Rosehill College, all in Auckland. On April 25, 2007, she gave birth to a daughter, Felicity-Amore, at age seventeen. The baby's father is Hughes' boyfriend of four years, Bradley Hull, 20.[5]

[edit] Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
2002 Whale Rider Paikea
2005 Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith Queen of Naboo
2006 The Nativity Story Mary
2008 Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger Sunni
2009 The Vintner's Luck post-production

[6]

[edit] Awards

Year Organisation Award Film Result
2003 New Zealand Film and TV Awards Best Actress Whale Rider Won
Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Awards Best Actress Nominated
2004 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards Best Young Actor/Actress Won
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Actress Nominated
Promising Performer Won
Chlotrudis Awards Best Actress Nominated
Image Awards Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture Nominated
Online Film Critics Society Awards Best Breakthrough Performance Won
Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards Best Performance by a Youth in a Lead or Supporting Role - Female Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Nominated
Teen Choice Awards Choice Breakout Movie Star - Female Nominated
Young Artist Awards Best Young Actress in an International Film Won
2007 Best Performace in a Feature Film - Leading Young Actress The Nativity Story Nominated

[edit] References

  1. ^ Academy Invites 127 to Membership
  2. ^ The Virgin Mary as a Teenager With Worries The New York Times. December 1, 2006.
  3. ^ For Keisha, the show must go on The Adelaide Advertiser. October 23, 2006.
  4. ^ "Keisha Castle-Hughes and Niki Caro reunite for Vintner's Luck", Feature, The New Zealand Herald, 2007-05-22. Retrieved on 2007-09-11. 
  5. ^ Whale Rider's Keisha Castle-Hughes Has Baby Girl. People (2007-04-29). Retrieved on 2007-04-30.
  6. ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1095720/

[edit] External links

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Films starring Keisha Castle-Hughes