Tom Hooper

( Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times )

Nominated for directing "The King's Speech." The 38-year-old Englishman, previously known for his lauded work on television movies and miniseries such as "Longford" and "John Adams," took a specific visual approach to recounting the true-life saga of King George VI's struggles to overcome a debilitating stutter: "I felt the language of the close-up is needed for stammering, because you see what's going on in the eyes."