Oscar: The next generation

Marion Cotillard

Age: 32

Back story: Cotillard began acting onstage in France as a child and scored her first major film success with the 1998 Luc Besson production "Taxi." Her credits include "A Very Long Engagement" and "Big Fish."

Nominated for:

Actress ("La Vie en Rose")

Noteworthy: Cotillard's depiction of French singer Edith Piaf required her to undergo a physical transformation and to study the mannerisms of the woman known as "the little sparrow."