Faith-based documentary by Manitoba filmmakers receives Webby nomination

When they first started on Discovering Heaven, co-producers Stephen Gray and Chris Radtke knew they had found a special story to tell.

What they didn't realize, however, was just how far their film would reach.

Now nominated for what has been hailed as "the Internet's highest honor," Gray and Radtke are excited and thankful for the opportunity they've had to share this story.

"We're really honoured to receive a Webby Awards nomination for Discovering Heaven," Gray said. "We're super blown away by it."

Not only is Discovering Heaven the only faith-based film nominated within their category at the 22nd Annual Webby Awards; they're also the only Canadian entry to receive a nomination. Other nominees this year include BuzzFeed, Time Magazine, Google, Spotify, and Netflix.

What began initially as a search for answers themselves has now become a chance to tell a life-changing story, on a scale larger than either Gray or Radtke first anticipated.

"We're a very small crew with just a huge dream of putting this kind of a story together because we thought this was really important to let people contemplate," said Radtke. "We didn't just want to throw it out into the air and have no direction with it. Our faith, to be able to tell that story, and to be Canadian too, we're proud of that.

"Steve said to me two years ago when this started, 'Chris, if I lose all my money and invest all of what I have in this, and we literally touch one person's life and we're able to impact them and send them in the right direction, then it's all worth it because that's just what we should be doing.' I totally agreed, and that's when I jumped on. We have the same vision."

Regardless of whether Discovering Heaven is chosen or not, Gray and Radtke are thankful for this opportunity to share their faith on the big screen.

Gray also shared that Captain Dale Black, the pilot about whom the film was created, is excited to have his story bring to people's minds the larger issues of life and death.

Discovering Heaven is eligible for two notable awards, including The Webby Award for Best Documentary: Individual Episode Shortform and The Webby People's Voice Award.