<Tr> <Th> Budget </Th> <Td> US $7 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> US $140 million </Td> </Tr> <P> The Piano is a 1993 New Zealand drama film about a mute piano player and her daughter, set during the mid-19th century in a rainy, muddy frontier backwater town on the west coast of New Zealand . It revolves around the musician's passion for playing the piano and her efforts to regain her piano after it is sold . It was written and directed by Jane Campion and stars Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill, and Anna Paquin in her first acting role . The film's score by Michael Nyman became a best - selling soundtrack album, and Hunter played her own piano pieces for the film . She also served as sign language teacher for Paquin, earning three screen credits . The film is an international co-production by Australian producer Jan Chapman with the French company Ciby 2000 . </P> <P> The Piano was a success both critically and commercially, grossing US $140 million worldwide against its US $7 million budget . Hunter and Paquin both received high praise for their respective roles as Ada and Flora McGrath . In 1993, the film won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival . It won three Academy Awards out of eight total nominations in March 1994: Best Actress for Hunter, Best Supporting Actress for Paquin, and Best Original Screenplay for Campion . Paquin was 11 years old at the time and is the second youngest actor to win an Oscar in a competitive category; Tatum O'Neal also won the Best Supporting Actress award in 1974 for Paper Moon at age 10 . </P>

Who directed the oscar winning film 'the piano' in 1993