Cate
Blanchett was born in Melbourne, Australia on May 14, 1969. Due to an erroneous
article in the New York press, that date has been widely reported as being January
1.
After
growing up in Melbourne, she began studies of fine arts and economics at the University
of Melbourne, but, departed, after a fashion, to continue her education via travel.
After the expiration of her vistor's visa forced her to leave England, she eventually
found herself in Egypt, desperate for money. In an effort to earn some cash, and
get a crack at craft services, she signed on as an extra in an Arabic boxing film.
It was the first time she had ever been on a film set, but, it wouldn't, obviously,
be the last.
Upon
her return to Melbourne, she enrolled at Australia's prestigious National Institute
of Dramatic Art. This decision would change her life. She recalled, "It was
only when I realized how actors have the power to move people that I decided to
pursue acting as a career".
It
was Cate's starmaking portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I in Shekhar Kapur's Elizabeth
that shot her into the stratosphere in terms of both popular and critical acclaim.
Her stunning metamorphosis from innocent, lovestruck young lass to the hardened,
seemingly calcified, ruler of England was stunning and heartbreaking, Igniting
a firestorm of focused attention within the film community. Cate's chameleonlike
qualities astounded both the industry and the public. Consequently, it was of
little surprise when the Awards began to pour forth.