Keisha Castle-Hughes (born 24 March 1990) is a New Zealand actress. Her opening debut was in the drama film Whale Rider (2002) where she was nominated for the prestigious Academy Award for Best Actress, making her an incredibly young nominee in the category. From that point onwards, she built a respectable filmography which includes works such as The Nativity Story (2006) and Hey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger (2008). What makes her story incredible is that she went directly from her Auckland school classroom to the film set when she was casted in Whale Rider in late 2001, having no previous acting experience. This speedy transition into the world of acting and her successful performance in the film led to critical acclaim and an Academy Award nomination, making her the youngest person nominated in this category at the time. Over the years, the actress has starred in various films, of different genres, indicating her versatility. She also embraced roles in television series starting with The Walking Dead in 2014 and later joined the cast of Game of Thrones in Season 5 as Obara Sand. Also to mention, she voiced a character in the Star Wars franchise. Additionally, she participated in activism where she campaigned for Greenpeace.