Stars' delight at Oscar shortlist

Frontrunner Brokeback Mountain has eight nominations in total

Oscar nominees are celebrating after a host of fresh faces were backed to win awards at next month's Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles.

Cowboy romance Brokeback Mountain leads the field with eight nominations, including best actor for Heath Ledger.

Ledger, receiving his first Oscar nomination, called it "a real honour".

The UK's Keira Knightley, who scored her first nomination for Pride and Prejudice said: "I'm very happy everyone liked it as much as they did."

"I was terrified of taking on such a well-known character - to the point where I didn't want to do it. But my agent persuaded me and I'm very glad she did," said Knightley, who plays Elizabeth Bennet in the Austen adaptation.

Knightley faces competition from fellow Briton Dame Judi Dench, who said she was "thrilled" to receive her fifth Oscar nomination.

It was a very special experience to make the film Keira Knightley

Reese Witherspoon, Charlize Theron and Desperate Housewives' star Felicity Huffman complete the best actress line-up.

'So pleased'

"I'm so lucky," said Witherspoon, who plays June Carter Cash in Walk the Line.

"As an actress, I never thought I would get a part like this. I just feel so pleased to be considered," she told BBC One's Breakfast.

"It's just the top," said Huffman, 43, on learning of her Oscar nomination for playing a transsexual in Transamerica.

"I've only had two dreams in my life - to marry Bill Macy and to win an Academy Award, something I gave up on after I didn't work for two years straight. I feel pretty swell," she told industry paper Hollywood Reporter.

"I'm still over the moon, and I ain't coming down," said Terrence Howard, who won a surprise best actor nomination for his role as a rapper in Hustle & Flow.

Howard has picked up his first nomination for Hustle and Flow

"It's going to be a battle of friends up there," said the first-time nominee, referring to his rivals Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix. "We're going to be happy no matter who wins."

Phoenix, 31, is nominated for his portrayal of US music legend Johnny Cash in Walk the Line.

"I was an actor because the work was rewarding," Phoenix told the Hollywood Reporter. "I never imagined that it would all lead to this moment."

'Cool gang'

The trio are joined by David Strathairn and Ledger, 26, who said: "It's a cool gang to be a part of."

"It helps when your partner is nominated and you can roll over and give her a hug," he added, referring to his girlfriend and Brokeback Mountain co-star Michelle Williams, who won a nomination for best supporting actress.

MAIN NOMINATIONS Brokeback Mountain - 8 Crash - 6 Good Night, and Good Luck - 6 Memoirs of a Geisha - 6 Capote - 5 Munich - 5 Walk the Line - 5 Pride and Prejudice - 4 The Constant Gardener - 4 King Kong - 4 Click here for the nominations in full

Capote director Miller joins George Clooney, Paul Haggis, and veterans Ang Lee and Steven Spielberg in the best director line-up.

"I've felt on the outside my whole career," said Miller, who is nominated for his debut feature film.

"To get recognised and respected like this is a new dynamic for me. It resets the bar and makes me want to live up to it."

Clooney said of Good Night, and Good Luck's six nominations: "It means that we'll get another crack to do more films like that." The 44-year-old also picked up a best supporting actor nomination for Syriana.

'Courageous year'

The nominations are seen as a triumph for independent film over big budget blockbusters, with only Munich having a budget over $15m (£8.4m) out of the five best film nominees.

Click here for our guide to the best film nominees

Spielberg, earning his sixth Oscar nomination for best director, told the Hollywood Reporter he was "so happy my teeth started to itch".

"This is a courageous year for film-makers. They are saying 'If I never make another film, this one says what I think and feel,'" said Spielberg.

Racial drama Crash, which will compete against Munich for best film, picked up six nominations.

Director Paul Haggis said he believed audiences were ready to embrace serious issues. "That's what these films all do, they pose questions in really entertaining ways."

The 78th Academy Awards take place at Hollywood's Kodak Theatre on 5 March.