Jim DeMarco of Nashville Public Television took home the Emmy award for Lighting – for his work on the NPT original production Christmas at Belmont – when the 21st Annual Midsouth Regional Emmy Awards were handed out on Saturday, January 27 at Schermerhorn Symphony Center in downtown Nashville. The Midsouth Regional Emmy Awards are presented by Nashville/Midsouth Chapter of The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS).
It is DeMarco’s third Emmy Award.
Recorded at Belmont University in Nashville, Christmas at Belmont (2005) premiered on NPT-Channel 8 and was broadcast on PBS stations nationwide in December 2005 and 2006. Country music artist and Belmont University graduate Josh Turner hosted the event, which included students from Belmont’s acclaimed School of Music performing a festive holiday repertoire ranging from traditional carols to classical masterworks to lighthearted secular songs.
Several NPT program and producer partners also won Emmys.
The Rise of the Southern Biscuit, produced by Maryann Byrd for Byrdword Productions and premiered on NPT, took home the Emmy for best Cultural Documentary, while Byrd won for best Writer/Program. The documentary also aired on several public television stations nationally.
The Big Comfy Couch, produced by Radical Sheep Productions/Amity Entertainment, won the Emmy for best Children’s Programming, while Karen Valleau won for Set Design. The Big Comfy Couch had its series premiere on NPT and is presented nationally to public television stations by NPT through American Public Television.
Tennessee’s Wild Side, produced by the Renaissance Center, was awarded an Emmy for best Magazine. The show airs statewide in Tennessee and in Kentucky and is presented by NPT.