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Pakistan picks documentary 'Hanging by a Wire' as its Oscar international feature entry

Pakistan has chosen Mohammed Ali (Mo) Naqvi's documentary thriller 'Hanging by a Wire' for the international feature Oscar at the 99th Academy Awards, the first documentary to represent the country in the category.

2 outlets · 1L · 1C · 0R First reported Account updated
Image: Variety
Image: Deadline

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The story, neutrally told

Pakistan has selected Mohammed Ali (Mo) Naqvi's documentary thriller "Hanging by a Wire" as its submission for the international feature film Oscar at the 99th Academy Awards. It is the first time a documentary has represented the country in the category. The Pakistan Academy Selection Committee made the choice, and its deputy chair, Sana Zahra Jafri, called it a historic milestone for Pakistani documentary filmmaking.

Naqvi directed the film and wrote and produced it with Bilal Sami. It revisits the August 2023 cable car emergency in Battagram, northern Pakistan, when eight people, including six schoolboys, were left suspended about 900 feet above a ravine after a cable snapped. The film combines witness footage, survivor testimony and reconstructions featuring people who took part in the rescue. Deadline adds that it centres on local rescuers such as cable car repairman Sahib Khan and Ali Swati, and on district police chief Sonia Shamroz, who oversaw the operation. Naqvi told Deadline he was honoured by the selection, called the film "a straight-up disaster film, except it really happened", and said the community on the ground filmed the events themselves and so "co-authored" it.

The film premiered in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at Sundance in 2026 and has since played Tribeca. Deadline also lists the Seattle and Sydney festivals, and says it screens at the Bend Film Festival in Oregon next Friday. EverWonder Studio, Universal Pictures Content Group, Mindhouse Productions and 64th Street Media produced it. Dogwoof handles UK theatrical distribution and Abramorama the US release. Variety says it streams on Paramount+ on 28 October. According to Variety, Pakistan has submitted 13 films in the category since 1959 without a nomination. Saim Sadiq's "Joyland" in 2022 was its only shortlist appearance.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on.

Left1 outlet

Framing
Variety runs it as an exclusive, a concise awards-race news item built on the committee announcement, with Pakistan's Oscar history as context.
Emphasis
The historic first for a documentary, the committee's statement, distribution and streaming dates, and Pakistan's record of 13 submissions without a nomination.
Leaves out or plays down
No comment from Naqvi, and no detail on the rescuers or on the film's style.
Charged language
“historic milestone”
For example
“marking the first time a documentary has represented the country in the category” — Variety
“Pakistan has submitted 13 films in the category since 1959 without a nomination” — Variety

Centre1 outlet

Framing
Deadline presents it as a filmmaker-focused piece, with an exclusive Naqvi quote and a vivid account of the rescue story.
Emphasis
Naqvi's comments, the rescuers and the police chief, the festival run and the film's thriller quality.
Leaves out or plays down
Pakistan's past Oscar submission record and the Joyland shortlist; gives no exact Paramount+ date.
Charged language
“straight-up disaster film”“sky pirate”“nonfiction action thriller”
For example
“It’s a straight-up disaster film, except it really happened” — Deadline
“known in his community as a “sky pirate” for his aerial exploits” — Deadline

Right0 outlets

No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.