On the historical drama front, “The Great” (Hulu) finally broke through in Season 2 with an impressive win for period costumes, while “Bridgerton” (Netflix) took period hairstyling, and “The Gilded Age” (HBO Max) earned period/fantasy production design.
On the downside, Marvel’s mind-bending “Moon Knight” only managed one win (sound editing), while the time-bending “Loki” was shut out. On the animation front, “Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers” (Disney+) became the first-ever animated film to win Television Movie, while Netflix took Animated Program honors for first-time streaming winner “Arcane” and Short Form once again for “Love Death + Robots.” In addition, the Juried Award winners for Individual Achievement in Animation went to: Anne-Laure To, “Arcane”; Julien Georgel, “Arcane”; Bruno Couchinho, “Arcane,”; Lexy Naut, “The Boys Presents: Diabolical”; Kecy Salangad, “The House”; Alberto Mielgo, “Love, Death + Robots.” Here’s what we learned:
However, “Euphoria’s” greatest change in direction came in cinematography with Levinson and Emmy-winning cinematographer Marcel Rév going from large-format digital to 35mm, reviving Kodak’s Ektachrome film stock. The result was a switch from mirroring the visual language of its teenage protagonists in Season 1 to nostalgic memory of evoking old photographs in Season 2. This look was conveyed by Ektachrome’s creamy green and amber glow and blown-out contrast of a thin negative. The strongest episode, “The Theater and Its Double,” showcased the provocative high school play, “Our Life,” as a tour de force. In terms of editing, the shift in Levinson and Rév’s visual approach had an impact, resulting in a “more restrained yet poetic cutting pattern” for supervising editor Julio C. Perez IV. He reveled in the impressionistic tone and ambiguities, yet wasn’t afraid of the show’s overall bombast. This was especially appropriate in conveying the doppelganger theme among various characters, Netflix 4. How “Squid Game” became an emerging crafts winner The emergence of “Squid Game” as a global juggernaut already made Emmy history as the first non-English speaking show competing for Best Drama Series. That translated into craft wins for contemporary production design, special visual effects in a single episode, and stunt performance. But is it enough to push it over the top for Best Drama Series? The production design of Chae Kyoung-sun, though, was key for her enormous, custom-built space that accommodates six large-scale game sets. The shape language and color palettes were inspired by fairy tales and the sets were built around the notion of chaos and confusion. The “Gganbu” episode, devoted to survival for all the marbles, was noteworthy for its recreations of a suburban neighborhood that evoked childhood nostalgia. “Squid Game’s” win for special visual effects in a single episode (launched last season as a replacement for special visual effects in a supporting role) went to South Korea’s Gulliver Studios for the impressive work on the glass bridge on “VIPS,” working with reflections and colorful lighting to evoke a deadly high-wire circus act in Vegas. Lucasfilm Ltd. / Disney+ 5. How “The Mandalorian” helped “The Book of Boba Fett” “The Book of Boba Fett,” the “Star Wars” spin-off (Disney+), starring the bounty hunter-turned crime lord (Temuera Morrison), took advantage of ILM’s Emmy-winning VFX on “The Mandalorian” to score its own Emmy win. ILM continued to excel at its StageCraft sequences (especially Mando’s elevator ride), Mando’s trip to a ring-shaped space station (the Ringworld Megastructure), a host of character work (the Tatooine sand ape, the animatronic Rancor, the BD droid, and the pit droids), and the improved de-aging of Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker (ILM shot performance actor Graham Hamilton on set with Hamill giving instructions and applied their deepfake technique along with other CG facial capture tech as a composite performance).
Atsushi Nishijima / Apple TV+ 6. How “Severance” underperformed admirably “Severance” (from showrunner Dan Erickson and directors Ben Stiller and Aoife McArdle) was touted by many as the season’s best new series. It had an ingenious premise — a surgical procedure that splits its characters’ workplace and personal memories — along with a minimalist aesthetic. But while it was nominated for seven craft Emmys, it was rewarded only twice for the haunting score by Theodore Shapire and the inventive main title design. Shapiro took an appropriately minimal approach by confining himself to four chords. He also experimented with piano notes by reversing, glitching, and making them fall apart. However, the main theme has a wonderful melancholy quality that recalls David Shire’s “The Conversation.” The main title sequence, created by Berlin artist Oliver Latta (aka Extraweg), is extraordinary, like Saul Bass on acid. The way it fixates on Mark Scout (Adam Scott) as an animated figure, struggling to move like a rat in a maze, or escape, split into multiple versions, is the perfect metaphor for the show. Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
