WEB DESK: Pakistan has chosen Mohammed Ali Naqvi’s documentary, Hanging By a Wire, as its official submission for the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards.
This marks the first time the country has selected a documentary for this honor. The film revisits the dramatic August 2023 rescue in Battagram, northern Pakistan, where six children and two adults were stranded 900 feet up after a cable snapped on a makeshift cable car.
Directed and produced by Naqvi with Bilal Sami, Hanging By a Wire blends eyewitness footage, survivor stories, and reconstructions featuring rescue participants. Local residents, including “sky pirate” Sahib Khan and Ali Swati with zipline gear, aided the rescue. Police chief Sonia Shamroz oversaw the mission.
Naqvi expressed gratitude for the film representing Pakistan in the 99th Academy Awards’ International Feature Film category, highlighting its authentic disaster narrative captured by the local community.
Sana Zahra Jafri of the Pakistan Academy Selection Committee hailed this as a significant milestone for Pakistani documentaries, bringing northern Pakistan’s story to the global stage.
