Beasts of the Southern Wild featured the actress Quvenzhané Wallis.
Beasts of the Southern Wild . The film was nominated for four Academy Awards at the 85th Academy Awards , in the categories Best Picture , Best Director ( Benh Zeitlin ) , Best Adapted Screenplay ( Lucy Alibar , Benh Zeitlin ) , and Best Actress ( Quvenzhané Wallis ) . Quvenzhané Wallis ( [ kwə.ˈvɛn.ʒə.neɪ ] ; born August 28 , 2003 ) is an American child actress .