Franklin Graham's docu 'Facing Darkness' wins award at Indiana film festival

"Facing Darkness," a documentary about the true story of aid workers who got infected by the deadly Ebola virus in Liberia, won the Best Premiere for Documentary Feature award at the 2016 Heartland Film Festival in Indiana.

The documentary, which was produced by Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse, features interviews with people who directly fought against the Ebola outbreak in Liberia.

Heartland Film Festival, which celebrated its 25th anniversary this year, announced the winners on its website on Oct. 30.

Greg Sorvig, the festival's director of programming and marketing, said: "A powerful documentary, 'Facing Darkness' is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of conviction and hope in the face of despair."

"Congratulations to the Samaritan's Purse team on bringing Dr. Kent Brantly's story to screen. Heartland Film Festival audiences have been inspired and transformed," he added.

The documentary was shot in Liberia and the U.S. where the events happened, according to The Christian Post. The story centers on the heroes who risked their lives to prevent the spread of one of the deadliest epidemics this century. More than 28,000 have been infected with Ebola in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone and 11,000 lives were claimed by the disease.

The outbreak was first reported in March 2014 and it became a raging epidemic by June. Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol went to the ELWA Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia in an attempt to fight the outbreak only to end up catching the virus themselves.

Samaritan's Purse quickly worked relentlessly to help Brantly and Writebol return to the U.S. to be treated.

The aid workers also faced other problems apart from the outbreak. The Liberians' distrust of authorities led them to suspect the missionaries of spreading the virus. They attacked the hospitals and the people but Samaritan's Purse continued with the mission.

"I think when there's a crisis, God wants us to be there," said Graham regarding the organization's commitment to stay in the country.

"He doesn't want us to run away. God has put us there for a reason, and he expects us to do something about it," he added.

Liberia has been declared Ebola free due to the cultural shift that helped in preventing the spread of the disease. Graham's organization has been instrumental in the public health education program that was spread to 1.5 million people.

"Facing Darkness", which was directed by Arthur Rasco, will be shown in select U.S. theaters only for one night on March 30, 2017.