NORTH HOLLYWOOD- Dakota Fanning is like most 8-year-olds. She adores Harry Potter, plays make believe with her little sister, wishes her mother would let her have a dog and would like to have a baby brother. But don't let her age fool you. This affable and precocious little girl could walk away with a Screen Actors Guild Award on Sunday (TNT at 8 p.m. ET/PT)

Her role as Sean Pean's daughter in I Am Sam earned her an unexpected best-supporting nod, making her the youngest actor to be nominated for a SAG Award. "I couldn't have done the best job that I did if it hadn't been for Sean because he did so unbelievable and he really, really made me do good," says Dakota as she sits in a sunny conference room at her agent's office. "He was un-bee-lievable."

Her character, Lucy, is put in foster care when she is 7, because her intelligence has begun to exceed that of her single father. Dakota is touching as the loving, protective daughter who tries to pretend she isn't as smart as her mentally retarded dad. "Dakota possesses a real strength and wisdom that is beyond her years," says Sam director/co-writer Jessie Nelson.

The night before the SAG nominations in January, Dakota, then 7, was sleeping with her mother because of an earthquake. What did she do when she learned that she'd been nominated? "I was so excited," she says. "I jumped on the bed, but my mother's bed is really, really hig. I was afraid I was going to hit my head because I was jumping so high." And what does she thing it's going to be like at the SAG Awards? "If I get to see Cameron Diaz, I will flip out. She's my fav-o-rite--that I haven't worked with. If I get to see Judi Dench, that would be so fantastic, too." Diaz (Vanilla Sky) and Dench (The Shipping News) are up against Dakota for a SAG, along with Cate Blanchett (Bandits) and Helen Mirren (Gosford Park). During the show, Dakota will introduce a special tribute to child actors.

I Am Sam is Dakota's biggest role to date. She grew up in Conyers, Ga., and to her agent's dismay, occasionally slips into a Southern drawl. She learned to read at 2 1/2 and at 5 nabbed a Tide commerical. She moved to Los Angeles soon after with her mother and sister Ellie, 3 (who plays the young Lucy in Sam), while her father stayed in Georgia. She's done TV appearances, including ER, Ally McBeal and The Practice, and made her film debut in Tomcats in 2001, Later this year she'll play Charlize Theron's daughter in 24 Hours, and a young Reese Witherspoon in Sweet Home Alabama. What's her favorite character? "They've all been so great. I like them all."

She has no idea, and no desire to know how much money she makes from acting, but it's probably enough to pay for ballet and jazz dance lessons she takes on Saturdays. While Dakota, who is home-schooled, is wise beyond her years, she's still a kid. Listen to her remembering being hugged by Witherspoon after the two met. "I'm going like this when I go out," Dakota says, rising from her chair to twirl around several times." Reese Witherspoon hugged me two times! Reese Witherspoon hugged me two times! Reese Witherspoon hugged me two times!"

The article is accompanied by a small color photo of Dakota as Lucy in I Am Sam- Dakota Fanning is nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award for her work in I Am Sam.