The teenage stars of an Oscar-nominated short film from Afghanistan hope to walk the red carpet at the Academy Awards in February, thanks to donations that are pouring in to pay for their travel.

A representative for the Buzkashi Boys film said on Thursday that an online campaign is two-thirds of the way to the $10,000 needed for 14-year-olds Fawad Mohammadi and Jawanmard Paiz to travel from Kabul to Los Angeles in time for Hollywood's biggest night on Feb 24.

Buzkashi Boys is about two children growing up in Kabul who dream of becoming Buzkashi riders, horsemen who compete in a dangerous Afghan national sport similar to polo, in which riders try to carry a headless goat across a goal line.