Oscars 2017: Kiwi Oscar nominee says Australia can't have him

Kiwi film editor John Gilbert hasn't yet won an Oscar, but Australia is already trying to claim his nomination as their own.

Gilbert, from Wellington, told Newstalk ZB that at a Film Australia function celebrating the country's record 14 nominations, his Best Editing nod was celebrated as a 15th.

"They were trying to count me as an Australian but I told them to make it 14.5 - I really am a New Zealander when I comes down to it.

"New Zealand and Australia, we're just seen as the same kind of area I suppose."

Gilbert, who is nominated for Mel Gibson's WWII drama Hacksaw Ridge, says he's excited for the ceremony, but also 'vaguely terrified'.

"You sit in this auditorium with 1000 people, knowing that there's 100 million people watching, and the idea of having to get up and actually win the award and speak to all those people is a bit of a worry.

"I don't expect to win, but if I do I'll be nicely surprised."

As an Academy member, Gilbert wasn't ashamed to say he voted for himself.

This year is his second chance at an Oscar win, with a nomination in 2002 for the first Lord of the Rings instalment.

Earlier this month he won the BAFTA for Best Editing on Hacksaw Ridge.

He's not the only New Zealander up for an Oscar nomination this year: Weta Workshop is nominated for its work on The Jungle Book.

• Listen to the full interview with John Gilbert here.