Anwar Iqbal

WASHINGTON: Pakistani journalist and filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s latest documentary ‘Saving Face’ has won an Oscar nomination in the ‘best documentary (short subject)’ category, an official announcement said on Tuesday.

She is the first Pakistani to be nominated for an Oscar.

‘Saving Face’ is a film about two women of south Punjab who have been victims of acid violence.

“It’s a positive story about Pakistan on two accounts: firstly, it portrays how a Pakistani-British doctor comes to treat them and it also discusses, in great depth, the parliament’s decision to pass a bill on acid violence,” Ms Obaid-Chinoy had said when her film was short-listed for nomination in October 2011.

Under the Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Bill, the perpetrators of this crime will be punished with life imprisonment.

In a Twitter message, Ms Obaid-Chinoy said that ‘Saving Face’ would be released in the US on March 8 and then in Britain. “We will also release it in Pakistan soon afterwards.”

While she acknowledges that there is no real market for documentaries in Pakistan, Ms Obaid-Chinoy is excited about the international recognition she has gained. “You can come from anywhere but if you produce quality work, you will be noticed and appreciated,” she said.

Ms Obaid-Chinoy began her career with New York Times Television in 2002 where her film ‘Terror’s Children’ won her several international awards. Since then she has produced over 12 films and is the first non-American to win the Livingston Award for International Reposting.

Last year, Ms Obaid-Chinoy won an Emmy award for her documentary ‘Pakistan: Children of the Taliban’.

“The day I received an Emmy, my father died, had to turn around and go to airport. Today, I’m sure he is smiling down,” she writes. “Thank you for all the support! We need more good/positive news in Pakistan.”

Source: Dawn