Wings (1927)
No, you can win an Oscar for directing a short film, but you can't win an Oscar for starring in a short film.
Almost all of the Oscar-winners are Americans.
No, "Tsotsi" is not the first African movie to win an Oscar. It won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2006, but the first African film to receive an Oscar was "Yesterday," a South African film that was nominated in 2005. Additionally, the film "The Gods Must Be Crazy" was nominated in 1981, although it did not win.
Technically, it was Flowers and Trees (1932). It was the first film to win the Oscar for Best Animated Short. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs did not win and Oscar but it did receive a special honorary Oscar for its achievement as the first full-length animated film in history. The first feature length animated Disney film to win a competitive Oscar was Pinnochio. It won Best Score and Best Song (When You Wish Upon A Star). Ironically, as of 03/07/2010, Disney has yet to win the Oscar for Best Animated Feature (unless you count Pixar as part of Disney).
Lord of the rings
The first German film to win the Best Foreign Language category was The Tin Drum (1979).
No, Lagaan was the first Indian (Hindi language) film nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, but it did not win.
Oscar Hijuelos was the first Hispanic American author to win the Pulitzer Prize.
Alfred Hitchcock did not win the Best Picture Oscar in 1940. However, his film "Rebecca," released in 1940, did win the Academy Award for Best Picture. It was Hitchcock's first American film and showcased his signature suspenseful storytelling and psychological depth. The film starred Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine, and it remains a classic in cinema history.
It was the first animated film to win the Best Animated Feature award, which began in 2001.
Hattie McDaniel
Ersatz (The Substitute) by Dusan Vukotic won in 1961 making it the first foreign animation to win an Oscar.