Pakistan submits documentary for Oscars 2027 — Dawn

Pakistan’s selection committee for the Academy Awards has chosen director Mohammed Ali Mo Naqvi’s documentary Hanging by a Wire as the country’s official entry in the Best International Feature Film category for 2027. As Dawn reports, this is the first documentary Pakistan has selected to represent the country in this category.

A rescue story in Battagram

The film tells the story of the cable car incident in Battagram in August 2023. Eight people, including six children, were stranded in a cabin above the raging Jhangri River at a height of 900 feet.

The rescue operation lasted from morning until late at night. First, two children were evacuated by helicopter. Rescuers then brought out the remaining passengers one by one, moving toward the stranded cabin along one of the surviving cables. All eight people were rescued.

The cable car was the only way for local children to cross the river, as there were no roads or bridges in the area.

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The country’s first documentary entry

Naqvi wrote and produced the film together with Bilal Sami. Production involved teams from Pakistan, the United States and the United Kingdom, while Universal Pictures Content Group was involved in the process.

Hanging by a Wire premiered on the first day of this year’s Sundance festival. The film was also screened at festivals in Sydney, Seattle and at the Tribeca Festival in New York.

Pakistan first submitted a film in this category in 1959 and has yet to receive a nomination from 13 entries. The country’s best result was a 2022 shortlist placement for Joyland, directed by Saim Sadiq.

In 2008, Naqvi won a Television Academy Emmy Award for his work on Shame. He also made the films Among the Believers, Pakistan’s Hidden Shame and The Accused: Damned or Devoted? and chaired Pakistan’s selection committee for the Academy Awards.