Best Feature Documentary
This gripping documentary film, produced in association with Tyrone Productions Ltd., chronicles the harrowing 222-day ordeal of Bernard Phelan, an Irish/French citizen wrongfully taken hostage in Mashhad, Iran. The film opens with Phelan’s abrupt capture outside the holy Imam Reza mosque, thrusting viewers into his nightmarish experience inside the notorious “Satan’s Block” of Mashhad prison. Through dramatic first-hand accounts and realistic reconstructions, this feature documentary portrays Phelan’s struggle for survival, his relentless defiance against his captors, and the critical diplomatic efforts that ultimately secured his release on humanitarian grounds in May 2023.