MSU graduates and Montana PBS win regional Emmy awards
Montana PBS and Montana State University alumni won four Emmys at the 51st Annual Northwest Regional Emmy Awards this month in Seattle with “11th and Grant with Eric Funk” and “Indian Relay” both winning in two categories.
Winning in the arts and entertainment category as well as in the audio category was “11th & Grant with Eric Funk featuring Tumbledown House.” Award winners include Eric Funk, host and artistic director; Scott Sterling, director; Paul "Gomez" Routhier, producer; Aaron Pruitt, executive producer; and Jeremiah Slovarp, audio director. Slovarp, who is an adjunct professor in the MSU School of Music, also won an Emmy in the audio category.
“Indian Relay” won Emmys in the cultural documentary category and in photography.
In the cultural documentary category, the Emmy winners were Charles Dye, producer; Pruitt, executive producer; Darren Kipp, co-producer; M.L. Smoker, writer; Katie Lose Gilbertson, editor; Andy Adkins, editor; and Jaime Jelenchick Jacobsen, field producer.
Receiving Emmys for the cinematography in “Indian Relay” were MSU alumni Daniel Schmidt, Dawson Dunning, Rick Smith, Christi Cooper-Kuhn and Dye.
“Indian Relay,” an independent collaboration between Montana PBS and Dye, follows three teams from different American Indian communities as they prepare for and compete in an Indian relay season.
“The film is a spectacular example of Montana PBS capturing the spirit and beauty of Montana, while also telling a compelling, uplifting story about Montana’s native peoples,” said Eric Hyyppa, director and general manager for KUSM-TV and Montana PBS. “This film was at times moving, at times frightening, and beautifully crafted throughout.”
This year’s award wining episode of “11th & Grant” was “Tumbledown House,” featuring vocalist Gillian Howe and guitarist Tyler Miller.
“For the second year in a row, our commitment to making music a regular part of our schedule, and showcasing not just musicians from New York, Los Angeles or Austin, Texas, but from right here in Montana, was recognized as the best arts and entertainment program in the entire Northwest,” Hyyppa said.
Adkins, Gilbertson and Jacobsen all received a master’s in Science and Natural History Filmmaking from MSU. Pruitt and Sterling are both graduates of the School of Film and Photography.
“Indian Relay” is available online at http://www.montanapbs.org/IndianRelay/.
