Catalina Sandino Moreno
"Maria Full of Grace"
Career nominations: 1

Every year, Oscar produces a fairy-tale story of an unknown who trumpets to the top of the profession. This year, the princess is the 23-year-old Moreno, who was taking acting classes at a theater in Bogota, Colombia, when someone anonymously gave her name to the casting agent for "Maria Full of Grace." Moreno makes her film debut as a pregnant young Colombian who becomes a mule for drug dealers in the Spanish-language drama.

(Christobal Corral / Fine Line Features)