NPT Productions, ArtQuest: Art is All Around You and Looking Over Jordan: African Americans and the War, picked up Emmys on Saturday night when the Midsouth Regional Awards were announced at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center.
ArtQuest: Art Is All Around You won for best Children’s Program, with statuettes going to producer and writer Linda Wei and editor Matthew Emigh from NPT, the Frist Center for the Visual Arts’ Samantha Andrews and Anne Henderson and co-host Dajiah Platt.
Looking Over Jordan: African Americans and the War was tops in the historical/cultural program category, with awards going to NPT producer and editor Ed Jones, NPT associate producer LaTonya Turner, NPT composers Joey Hodge and Joe DelMerico, and associate producer Clarence Ball.
Additionally. Joe Elmore, host of Tennessee Crossroads, was inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences prestigious Midsouth Silver Circle. The Silver Circle Award is given to an individual who began his or her television careers at least 25 years ago, either in a performing, creative, technical, or administrative role within the industry, or in a peripheral area directly related to television, such as commercial production, journalism, or education, etc. Candidates must also have made a significant contribution to the community and to Midsouth television and for a least part of their 25-year career. Congratulations, Joe!
NPT productions went into the awards with 10 nominations.
ArtQuest: Art Is All Around You, produced by Nashville Public Television in collaboration with educators from the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, is a series of short broadcast segments focusing on developing children’s creativity and fostering a love for the visual arts through an interdisciplinary approach. Titled after the Frist Center’s interactive learning gallery for children of all ages, the segments are geared toward viewers ages 7-9 and will air on NPT between 4-6 p.m. around the popular children’s programs “Arthur,” “WordGirl,” “Wild Kratts” and “The Electric Company.” You can watch all the series segments at the ArtQuest website or by visiting the NPT Arts Youtube Channel.
Through in-depth interviews with Civil War scholars, historical reenactments, and moving songs of faith and hope that made life bearable, Looking Over Jordan: African American and the War highlights the African American experience in Tennessee during and after the war. The Civil War began as a means of preserving the Union. But to nearly four million African Americans, it held a much more personal promise. As Northern armies swept south, self-emancipated slaves sought refuge behind Union lines. Determined to claim basic human rights, former slaves turned soldiers helped defeat their oppressors. But the road to freedom would be a rocky one. Despite continued oppression and violence, African Americans worked tirelessly to rebuild families torn apart by slavery, to educate themselves, and to claim their rightful place as American Citizens. Looking Over Jordan: African American and the War is part of the Tennessee Civil War 150 series, a collaboration between NPT and the Renaissance Center. Learn more, and watch all the docs in the series at wnpt.org/civilwar.
For a full list of winners please visit the NATAS-Nashville Chapter website at http://emmynashville.org/.
