LOS ANGELES?Hailee Steinfeld beat over 15,000 girls to get the ?True Grit? role which earned her an Oscar Best Supporting Actress Award nomination.

Hailee, who is part Filipina (the father of her mom, Cheri Steinfeld, is a Filipino), has been earning acclaim since the release of ?True Grit.? The 14-year-old actress said of her parents: ?My mom is an interior designer but in the past few years, she has thankfully devoted all her attention to me. My dad (Peter) is a personal fitness trainer.? When she was a stewardess, Cheri got to visit the Philippines several times. Hailee?s uncle is Jake Steinfeld, an actor and a popular fitness trainer.

In ?True Grit,? a western film by the Coen brothers, Hailee holds her own against the likes of Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon and Josh Brolin. She brings remarkable confidence and presence to her character, Mattie Ross, a stubborn girl who is tracking down her father?s murderer.

Will Hailee?s first Oscar nod lead to her first Academy trophy? She is up against Melissa Leo and Amy Adams (both for ?The Fighter?), Helena Bonham Carter (?The King?s Speech?) and Jacki Weaver (?Animal Kingdom?).

Below are excerpts from our interview with Hailee before all the buzz began:

What were your thoughts when you went to that final reading for ?True Grit??

My hopes and dreams were nothing but to get the job. I read for the Coen brothers with Barry Pepper, Jeff Bridges and Dakin Matthews who plays the role of Stonehill. I was really excited for that call because I was working on the material for five weeks. I felt 110-percent prepared. I went there dressed in character?my vision of Mattie Ross.

What other traits do you share in common with Mattie?

The biggest similarity between this character and myself is that we would both stop at nothing to get what we want. I feel that as much as this girl. The film is her journey.

How was your own journey to becoming an actress?

I was about 8 years old when I found different inspirations that pulled me in. I had a cousin who was doing commercials at the time and a close family friend who was doing this play. I was sitting a few rows back from the stage and just watching her. Watching the play ... made me think that it was actually possible, so after that, I went to my parents and asked them if I could start acting. They made me study for one full year before we took any step further.

What did you have to learn for this role?

How to shoot a gun and how to roll a cigarette.

Was that a real snake on your body in one scene?

Yes, it was real (laughing). This is funny?
most of the snakes that we used were in the movie ?Snakes on a Plane.? So I was working with famous snakes. They were experienced snakes. The snake wrangler was very reassuring and calm about it.

What do you do in your downtime?

My mom and I are involved in a mother-daughter organization, National Charity League (NCL). In my spare time, we do volunteer work. We work shifts at NCL which has a thrift shop that raises money for 13 different organizations. I?m very passionate about it.

E-mail the columnist at rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com.