With the 70th annual Primetime Emmy Awards taking place on Monday in Los Angeles, it's worth taking a look at the TV shows and talent that shined at the Creative Arts Emmys, which were presented just this past weekend.
The Creative Arts Emmy Awards are generally awarded to those who work behind the scenes in TV programming, including video and sound editors, costume designers, and cinematographers. These are just a few of the roles that are working alongside casts, producers and directors to create some of America's most memorable TV shows.
This year's presentation in particular made history when more African-American artists took home awards than ever before. These included wins for FX's Atlanta (Katt Williams) in the Guest Actor in a Comedy Series category; four Emmys for Logo TV's RuPaul's Drag Race, including one for RuPaul for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-competition Program; and W. Kamau Bell who secured two Emmys for his show United Shades of America With W. Kamau Bell on CNN.
HBO led the way with 17 total awards—13 of those which went to individual artists. Among the network's wins included two for Last Week Tonight With John Oliver for Outstanding Interactive Program and Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming; and seven for Game of Thrones, which included Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup for a Series; Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-fi Costumes; Outstanding Production Design for a Fantasy Program; and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series, to name a few.
FX racked up eight awards (including another for Atlanta in the Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-camera Series category), and National Geographic scored five.
Apart from the two mentioned above for the United Shades of America With W. Kamau Bell, CNN took home five other awards posthumously for Anthony Bourdain's show, Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, and one for his digital show, Anthony Bourdain: Explore Parts Unknown. BBC America's Blue Planet II also snagged a victory for Outstanding Narrator, as did Cartoon Network for Rick and Morty in the Outstanding Animated Program category.
While there's no telling what surprises might be in store at the Emmys on Monday, it's safe to assume that we are due for another night that will celebrate the powerful storytelling and characters that inspire, thrill and entertain millions of Americans every day.
