NEW YORK – New York Festivals® International Television & Film Awards™, now in its 57th year, announced the World’s Best TV & Films™ winners last night at their annual Gala at the NAB Show in Las Vegas. The GrandJury® panel awarded 140 Gold World Medals, 146 Silver, 112 Bronze, and 235 Finalist Certificates from entries submitted from over 50 countries. The following prominent media companies earned the prestigious Grand Award: Endemol Worldwide Distribution, Caryn Mandabach Productions & Tiger Aspect Productions for Peaky Blinders; History Channel for The Men Who Built America; and WIGS for Lauren Season 2.
ESPN USA once again achieved prominence earning the title of Broadcaster of the Year for the 7th consecutive year and took home 10 Gold World Medals, 18 Silver, 9 Bronze and 9 Finalist Certificates.
“We are proud of the work the people of ESPN do every day, and the great recognition they receive at the NY Festivals is both gratifying and deserved,” said John Wildhack, Executive Vice president, Production, ESPN. “I am especially pleased that such a wide variety of endeavors have been honored – journalism, storytelling, technical expertise, event production and studio shows – reflecting the excellence behind all we do.”
The Edge Picture Company was recognized with the title of Production Company of the Year for the 8th year in a row. The UK based company earned a total of 10 Gold World Medals, 4 Silver, 2 Bronze and 9 Finalist Certificates.
“At The Edge we’re absolutely delighted to have been crowned NYF’s Production Company of the Year for the 8th year running!! This award is testament to the faith our clients put in us year in year out, and to our wonderful, hardworking employees!” -Pete Stevenson, Executive Director, The Edge Picture Company
New York Festivals honored David Mazza, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for NBC Sports Group, with the fourth annual New York Festivals Lifetime Achievement Award. For 35 years, Mr. Mazza’s technical work has spanned the world of sports, entertainment, and news. Career highlights include: 13 Olympic Games, 13 Wimbledon Championships, 3 Super Bowls, 14 seasons of Championship Boxing on HBO, and 10 seasons of NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. Gary Zenkel, President, NBC Olympics, and President, Operations & Strategy, NBC Sports Group presented the award.
“Peaky Blinders” Endemol Worldwide Distribution/Caryn Mandabach Productions/Tiger Aspect Productions UK, earned the Grand Trophy for their historic British crime drama. The series chronicles the lawless neighborhoods in the slums of post-war Birmingham, England.
“The Men Who Built America” History USA earned the Grand Trophy. The 8-hour series recounts the times and lives of the visionary men whose names are synonymous with innovation, big business, and the American Dream.
“Lauren Season 2” WIGS USA was honored with the Grand Trophy. Starring Troian Bellisario (“Pretty Little Liars”) and Jennifer Beals (“The L Word,” “Flashdance”), this online entertainment series, although fictionalized, is a brutally honest portrayal of the red tape and bureaucracy that many victims of sexual assault experience while serving in the military. WIGS also earned two Gold World Medals for Best Performance by an Actress with both Troian Belisario and Julia Stiles each earning Gold World Medals.
The 2014 New York Festivals Television & Film Awards saw top international media companies take center stage in competitive categories including: Best Innovation, Special Effect, Technical Production Team, Online Entertainment, Special Event, and Corporate Social Responsibility.
The following prominent industry executives and performers presented awards this year: Chris Brown, NAB; Mihai Gadea and Mircea Badea, Antena 3; Aela Callan, Al Jazeera English; Jodain Massad, KC Chiefs; “The Blue Rose” lead actresses, Antonia Prebble and Siobhan Marshall, and actor Raj Varna; and Roni Selig, CNN.
Entertainment categories were featured prominently in the winner’s circle with Hollywood blockbuster “Pacific Rim” Industrial Light & Magic earning the Gold World Medal in Special Effects. Other programs achieving top honors include: “Peaky Blinders” and “Black Mirror” Endemol Worldwide Distribution; Boardwalk Empire Director’s Chair HBO; and “Vicente Ferrer” TVE earned Gold Medals. “Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2013” Special Event and “Kelly Clarkson’s Cautionary Christmas Music Tale 2013” Variety Special created by Done + Dusted were each recognized with Gold Medals. Two drama programs, “In the Net” and “The Hagedorn Case” Westdeutscher Rundfunk were both honored with Gold Medals. Mini-Series earning medals include: “Generation War” ZDF, UFA Fiction (former teamWorx) and Beta Film; and “Barefoot on Red Soil” Minoria Absoluta S.L each earning the Gold Medal; and “The Bible” History earned a Silver World Medal.
News coverage was in the spotlight with multiple entries earning Gold Medals. CNN scored 5 Gold Medals: “CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360: Newtown Tragedy: Victim’s Parents Speak Out”; “Reports from Aleppo”; “Arwa Damon”; “Weed: Dr. Sanjay Gupta Reports” and “Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown” for Best Nonfiction Series. Channel NewsAsia, MediaCorp’s “Silent Screams” and “Living In The Shadows” each earned Gold Medals.
HBO’s promos were front and center with Gold Medals earned by “Louis C.K.”; The Newsroom Desert Shoot Trailer “True Detective Teaser Trailer”; Boxing Fall Shoot Image ’13 and “Behind The Candelabra Campaign,” in addition, “Sr. Avila HBO” for HBO Latin America Group also received 2 Gold Medals. HBO promo’s scoring Silver Medals include: “Game of Thrones: “The Politics of Marriage”; #TRUEBLOOD: Live from the Set; “Veep S2 Campaign”; “Boardwalk Empire Campaign”; and “Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight Tease”.
Prime time promos struck Gold this year: National Geographic Channel International took home 4 Gold Medals for “The 80’s” and a Gold for both “Explorer Top 125” and “Abandoned Combo Promo”. NBC’s “The Voice” earned Gold and their “Thursday Night Comedies” took home a Silver World Medal. Other promos taking home the Gold include: Fox International Channels Italy “Cucine da Incubo”; Sony Pictures Entertainment Television Iberia “Goldberg-New Fall Season 2013”; Starz’s “The White Queen Series Overview”; and Turner Latin America “Followers”.
ESPN scored high with 10 entries earning Gold World Medals: “SportsCenter,” “X Games 2013 Edit Team,” “Indy 500 Open,” “E:60 Busted Coverage,” “Richie Parker: Drive,” “AJ & Starla: Just Trust,” “Going Home,” “Urban Dove Team,” “JaMarcus Russell: Waking Up,” and “Matt Woodrum: Run With Me.”
Sport-related programming scored multiple medals. Golf Channel’s “In Play with Jimmy Roberts: Reg Murphy” and “In Play with Jimmy Roberts: Valentino Dixon” each earned the Gold. CBS Sports LT: The Life & Times” earned a Gold Medal and “New Orleans: Let The Good Times Roll” took home a Silver World Medal. Kansas City Chiefs “Chiefs Kingdom: Joe Delaney” earned a Silver and “Chiefs Kingdom: 442nd Fighter Wing” earned a Bronze. Major League Baseball earned a Silver for “MLB Tonight Open and “Harold Reynolds” was awarded a Bronze for Best Sports Anchor.
“Dr. Doof’s Shark Tank Pitch” Disney Channels Worldwide earned a Gold Medal in the Online Special Events category. Other successful Online Programming entries earning Gold include: “60 Minutes Overtime” CBS Interactive; “Forever Mine” UFA LAB; and “Lauren Season 2” WIGS. Silver Medalists include: “82nd & Fifth” The Metropolitan Museum of Art; “Manigances” Productions Kebweb.tv; and” Memorable Moments: March Madness” Yahoo Studios.
The spotlight was on Documentary Programs earning Gold Medals for exceptional storytelling including: “The Battle of amfAR” Telling Pictures, Inc. /HBO; “Everest: 60th Anniversary” Al Jazeera Network; “Nelson Mandela: The Struggle is my Life (1918-2013)” Sky Vision/ Sky1; “Children Are Not For Sale’ ANTENA 3; The Heartland Tapes” Smithsonian Channel; “Decades” Conde Nast Entertainment; “Namibia’s Desert Kingdom” Terra Mater Factual Studios GmbH; “NATURE: Legendary White Stallions” THIRTEEN/WNET/PBS; and “Against The Tide” Ross Greenburg Productions /Showtime.
Corporate Films receiving top honors include: The Edge Picture Company’s Gold World Medalist, “Cyber Security. Evolved” and Silver award-winners “Newseum at 5” Newseum; along with “Excellence” Lockheed Martin Information Technology.
The newly launched Corporate Social Responsibility category saw a robust number of entries striking Gold including: Basta de Bullying” Cartoon Network Latin America; “The Man Behind Your Chocolate” Nice & Serious; “Louise’s Story” and “One Voice” The Edge Picture Company; and “Swarovski Waterschool Project” Pretzel Films earned a Silver World Medal.
Annually NYF, in collaboration with the United Nations Department of Public Information, selects entries that exemplify the aims and ideas of the United Nations and honors them with the United Nations Department of Public Information (UNDPI) awards. “It’s A Man’s World” Al Jazeera Network, Current Affairs earned the Gold UNDI Award; “CNN Special Projects: Girl Rising” CNN, Human Concerns earned the Silver UNDPI; and “Lessons Learnt?” BDA Creative, Human Concerns was awarded the Bronze UNDPI Award.
New York Festivals 2014 International Television & Film Awards ceremony and acceptance speeches will be available for viewing on the TV & Film Awards website. To view this year’s award-winning entries click HERE.
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