A story about a renowned architect and another about the parenting skills of clownfish were winners for video producers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign at the 42nd Annual Mid-America Emmy Awards. The awards were presented Sept. 22 in Kansas City, Missouri. The Mid-America Chapter is one of 19 regional chapters of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The regional Emmys are presented for excellence in the television broadcasting industry for markets primarily in central Illinois, Arkansas and Missouri as well as Kansas City, Missouri.
“Illinois Icons: Max Abramovitz” was awarded a regional Emmy for best Historical-Cultural Program Feature Segment. It was produced by Kaitlin Southworth, Tim Hartin and Alison Davis Wood for the University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics and the Office of Public Affairs. This is the seventh regional Emmy awarded to the producers individually and as a team. Hartin and Wood have produced documentaries together for more than 20 years. They started working with Southworth when they became the Illinois campus producers for the Big Ten Network in 2008. The group received a regional Emmy in 2016 for “Making Their Mark: Jean Driscoll.”
“llinois Icons: Max Abramovitz” tells the story of University of Illinois alumnus Abramovitz, who created spaces for the campus to come together. His firm, Harrison and Abramovitz, helped create the United Nations complex, as well as the Philharmonic Hall at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. His experience with Lincoln Center inspired his work on Krannert Center for the Performing Arts on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus. The university also tapped Abramovitz to create a larger, multipurpose entertainment venue. Abramovitz’s goal was to give everyone inside an unobstructed view. His design of a 400-foot diameter unsupported dome for what is now known as the State Farm Center was a groundbreaking achievement. “When you walk in a door and you can see 16,000 people, that’s the art of architecture,” says James P. Warfield, a professor emeritus of architecture at Illinois. Executive producers of “Illinois Icons: Max Abramovitz” were Kent Brown, Martin Kaufmann, Robin Kaler and E. Todd Wilson.
“Nemo’s Dad: Clownfish Fathering” was awarded a regional Emmy for Informational-Instructional: Feature Segment. It was produced by Steve Drake for the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois. Diana Yates of the News Bureau served as an associate producer on the project.
The segment looks at clownfish dads, which are some of the best fathers in all of nature. Unlike most vertebrates, clownfish males are the primary caretakers of the eggs, spending most of their time nipping and fanning them to ensure their survival. Also known as anemonefish, this species gives psychology professor Justin Rhodes and graduate student Ross DeAngelis a valuable window into the powerful hormonal changes that take place in the brains of nurturing fathers. The award is Drake’s fourth regional Emmy and marks the second time he and Rhodes have collaborated on an Emmy-winning video, the previous being 2013’s “Why Men Are Better Navigators Than Women.”