Craft & Design Awards 2016

Channel 4 RTS Awards (Credit: Richard Kendall)

Awards Ceremony

Monday, 28 November, 2016

rts_craft_design_awards_-_the_highlights

The RTS has announced the winners of the 2016 Craft & Design Awards in partnership with Blackmagic Design.

Comedian Sandi Toksvig hosted the Awards, which were held at the London Hilton on Park Lane on Monday 28 November.

Hit BBC drama The Night Manager scooped three awards on the night, including Costume Design – Drama, Make Up Design – Drama, and Music – Original Title.

To download the awards criteria click here.

Winners

Costume Design - Drama: Signe Sejlund

Title: The Night Manager
Production Company: The Ink Factory, Demarest Films, Character 7, Producciones Fortaleza AIE, BBC and AMC
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Phoebe de Gaye - The Living and the Dead
Fotini Dimou - The Dresser

“High end intensity across the board; characterisation through costume, every last decision was carefully thought through, dripping with style and wit.”

Costume Design - Entertainment & Non Drama: Heather MacVean

Title: The Keith Lemon Sketch Show
Production Company: Talkback (part of FremantleMedia UK)
Broadcaster: ITV2
Nominees:
Claire Finlay-Thompson - Hunderby
Lucy Williams - Murder In Successville

“Larger than life stereotypes, as befits the show, skilfully delivered, creative and funny.”

Design - Programme Content Sequences: Made in Colour

Title: Newsround: China - The Left-Behind Children
Production Company: Made in Colour
Broadcaster: CBBC
Nominees:
Simon Baker, Diana Elkins & Tamsin Herbert - Formula 1 British Grand Prix
Made in Colour - Newsround: The Battle of the Somme

“Amazing achievement on the budget – complex story and emotions conveyed simply and beautifully. The whole package – music, script, animation, hit the melancholy note at the heart of the story really gracefully.”

Design - Titles: Miki Kato & Momoco

Title: The Last Panthers
Production Company: Warp Films
Broadcaster: Sky Atlantic
Nominees:
Ron Chakraborty, Jonathan Bramley, BBC Sport Marketing Team & RKCR/Y&R - 2016 Rio Olympics
Alex Maclean - The Durrells

“A haunting, dreamlike and memorable visual sequence and the judges loved the Bowie track!”

Design - Trails & Packaging: Ron Chakraborty, Jonathan Bramley, BBC Sport Marketing Team & RKCR/Y&R

Title: 2016 Rio Olympics
Production Company: BBC Sport, RKCR / Y&R, AAO @Passion Pictures, Jamie N Commons, Native Music & Jungle
Broadcaster: BBC
Nominees:
Lambie-Nairn - Channel identity for Olympic Channel
Shaun Qureshi - The Rack Pack

“Lovely idea, brilliantly executed – utterly compelling, couldn't take your eyes off it – and the slow reveal as to the conceit works perfectly. Witty, stirring and inspiring. A really big idea that perfectly captured the epic nature of the event.”

Director - Comedy Drama/Situation Comedy: Jack Clough

Title: People Just Do Nothing
Production Company: Roughcut TV
Broadcaster: BBC Three
Nominees:
Rob and Neil Gibbons - Alan Partridge: Scissored Isle
Richard Laxton - Mum

“The jury were blown away by the winners’ joyous mastery of the comic documentary style – even making the downright ordinary look beautiful. His smart and varied choices make the comedy and characters totally take off, making this show a stand-out comic tour de force, totally confident in its own world.”

Director - Documentary/Factual & Non Drama: James Bluemel

Title: Exodus: Our Journey to Europe
Production Company: KEO Films
Broadcaster: BBC Two
Nominees:
Huw Cordey - The Hunt: The Hardest Challenge
Clare Johns - Life and Deaf

“…hard hitting, personal and with huge impact, this piece brought fresh insight and compelling narrative to stories we may feel we've seen many times before. You haven't, unless you've seen this programme. Incredible, heart stopping footage, shot on mobile phones, telling some of the most fundamental survival stories of a generation. The simple confrontation of truth and reality was devastating in its effect.”

Director - Drama: Bruce Goodison

Title: Murdered by My Father
Production Company: BBC Studios
Broadcaster: BBC Three
Nominees:
John Alexander - One Child
Craig Viveiros - And Then There Were None

“The winner stood out due to their marked decision to put text and performance above all else, allowing for an authenticity of storytelling, atmosphere and environment. This detailed and empathetic approach ensured that a harrowing story got told in the most sensitive and thoughtful of ways, making for an important piece of drama that lacked any sense of self-importance or worthiness, it just allowed an audience into the drama to experience it directly for themselves.”

Editing - Documentary/Factual: Simon Sykes, Nick Fenton & Sunshine Jackson

Title: Exodus: Our Journey to Europe
Production Company: KEO Films
Broadcaster: BBC Two
Nominees:
Alex Elkins - Handmade by Royal Appointment: Steinway & Sons
Gwyn Jones - The Prosecutors: Real Crime and Punishment

“The Jury was particularly impressed with how the editors had tackled this complicated narrative structure, successfully stitching together material from multiple sources in a way that allowed the refugees to tell their own stories in their own words.”

Editing - Drama: Tom Hemmings

Title: Doctor Foster
Production Company: Drama Republic
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Adam Biskupski - Neil Gaiman's Likely Stories
Katie Weiland - The Tunnel: Sabotage

“A fantastic example of creating tension between two characters. The choice of shots conveyed a sense of impending violence. Totally immersive and believable, always in the right place for each beat and building seamlessly to a terrific climax.”

Editing - Entertainment and Comedy: Selina MacArthur

Title: Flowers
Production Company: Kudos
Broadcaster: Channel 4 in association with Seeso
Nominees:
Gary Dollner ACE - Fleabag
Ben Yeates - The Rack Pack

“The jury was particularly impressed with the cutting on this show, which was performed with skill and sensitivity, but also the bravery and originality of some of the editing decisions which successfully complimented the quirky yet moving subject matter of this comedy series.”

Editing - Sport: Nicholas Perry, John Nicholson & Simon Livingstone & BBC Sport Production Team

Title: Olympics 2016 (Opening Ceremony Opener)
Production Company: BBC Sport & Karma
Broadcaster: BBC
Nominees:
Dave Horwell and the Editing Team - Ski Sunday 2016
Whisper Films & Channel 4 & Matt Loughlin - Channel 4 Formula 1 - Monaco Grand Prix Opener

“The editing skill on display in this sequence is hugely impressive. Literally cut to the beat of a drum. The archive shot selection is clever and near perfect, as is the pace and build. This film is so full of energy and is visually stunning, a triumph of painstaking research and careful crafting.”

Effects - Digital: BDH Digital Effects Team

Title: Countdown To Life: The Extraordinary Making Of You
Production Company: BBC Studios/Science/London
Broadcaster: BBC Two
Nominees:
Lola Post Production - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Milk Visual Effects - Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands

“This was a stunning entry, with the success of the whole show entirely dependent on the skill of the Effects team. The textures and liquids they created were so realistic that the jury felt completely immersed, forgetting they weren’t watching a real embryo. An extraordinary piece of work.”

Effects - Special: Jens Doeldissen & Darius Cicenas @ Film Effects

Title: War and Peace
Production Company: BBC Cymru Wales in association with TWC & LookoutPoint
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Pau Costa Moeller - The Night Manager
Real SFX & Millennium FX - Doctor Who Series 9

“The jury was enthralled by the scale and authenticity of the in-camera effects, particularly the massive, muddy explosions. This team brought Hollywood-style effects to the small screen, and made a huge contribution to the visual success of this landmark piece of television.”

Lighting for Multicamera: Gurdip Mahal, Ross Williams & Rob Bradley

Title: The Voice 2016 Series 5
Production Company: Wall to Wall
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Martin Kempton - Upstart Crow
The Lighting Team - Coronation Street Live

“In a crowded and competitive market, the winning lighting team managed to be consistently imaginative, different and challenging – their work contributed significantly to the impact and personality of the programme.”

Make Up Design - Drama: Jenna Wrage

Title: The Night Manager
Production Company: The Ink Factory, Demarest Films, Character 7, Producciones Fortaleza AIE, BBC and AMC
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Claire Pritchard Jones & Neill Gorton - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Jenny Shircore - The Dresser

“Elegant and subtle. The make up design made a significant contribution to how the ambitious extremes were painted in this drama, from hot and cold landscapes to elegant nights out and sometimes brutal scenes.”

Make Up Design - Entertainment & Non Drama: Vanessa White, Floris Schuller & Neill Gorton

Title: Tracey Ullman's Show
Production Company: BBC Comedy & Allan McKeown Presents
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Neill Gorton & Vanessa White - Catherine Tate's Nan
Emma Leon & Reza Karim - The Keith Lemon Sketch Show

“An extraordinary range of transformations, with that variety executed with the highest level of skills.”

Multicamera Work: The Camera Team

Title: Coronation Street Live
Production Company: ITV Studios
Broadcaster: ITV
Nominees:
Camera Team & Nikki Parsons - Strictly Come Dancing - Series 13
Coky Giedroyc & Richard Valentine - The Sound of Music Live!

“The winning show was staggering in scale and ambition throughout; it created a genuine sense of event. No concessions had been made to playing safe and so the direction and production fuelled the adrenalin felt by the viewer.”

Multicamera Work - Sport: Andrew Clement, Joe Noonan, Richard Lancaster & Glen Woodcock

Title: FA Cup 2015-16: First Round – Salford City v Notts County
Production Company: BBC Sport & Arena
Broadcaster: BBC
Nominees:
Pete Andrews & Centre Court Camera Crew - Wimbledon 2016: The Men’s Final
Jim Storey - The Open

“This was a textbook example of a sporting event where the coverage and technical craft and imagination on display significantly added to the natural drama. It was felt to be of a standard that would engage the non-football lover as well as truly deliver for the ardent fan; a triumph on all fronts.”

Music - Original Score: Arthur Sharpe

Title: Flowers
Production Company: Kudos
Broadcaster: Channel 4 in association with Seeso
Nominees:
Edmund Butt - From Darkness
Edmund Jolliffe - Elizabeth at 90 – A Family Tribute

“There was a lot going on in this score and the music effectively became another character in the show with a sense of quirkiness and drama – which is hard to pull off, but done so with aplomb in this winning entry.”

Music - Original Title: Victor Reyes

Title: The Night Manager
Production Company: The Ink Factory, Demarest Films, Character 7, Producciones Fortaleza AIE, BBC and AMC
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Edmund Butt & Tim Rice - From Darkness
The Insects - The Living and the Dead

“Wow, they got it right! The music gave you a sense of the show, it branded the series with a sense of menace, scale, glamour, danger, you name it. Perfect.”

Photography - Documentary/Factual & Non Drama: Morag Tinto

Title: imagine. . . Antony Gormley: Being Human
Production Company: BBC Studios
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Peter Beard - My Son the Jihadi
Camera Team - New Zealand: Earth’s Mythical Islands

“The photography interacted beautifully with its subject matter, providing real insight and emotional resonance in capturing Antony Gormley’s installations on screen. It also found provocative stimulating ways of exploring the relationship of his art to its surroundings and, especially poignantly, the general public.”

Photography - Drama & Comedy: George Steel

Title: War and Peace
Production Company: BBC Cymru Wales in association with TWC & LookoutPoint
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Stuart Biddlecombe - Hinterland
Tony Miller BSC - Fleabag

“The jury was especially impressed with the emotional intimacy that the photography achieved, using bold, original choices to keep us connected to the characters, despite the scale and breadth and technical challenges presented by such a complex period story.”

Picture Enhancement: Kevin Horsewood

Title: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Production Company: BBC Wales
Broadcaster: BBC One
Nominees:
Ross Baker - Doctor Thorne
Simone Grattarola - War and Peace

“The jury was in awe of the bold colour palette which created a truly magical world – more Oz than the Wizard of Oz. The skill of keeping skin tones realistic, while all else zinged with vibrancy and richness, made this an outstanding entry, and a very worthy winner. It was beautiful.”

Production Design - Drama: Stevie Herbert

Title: The Durrells
Production Company: Sid Gentle Films/Masterpiece
Broadcaster: ITV
Nominees:
Luana Hanson - Flowers
Chris Roope - War and Peace

“This seamless and discreet design beautifully delivered this ramshackle and idyllic world with a warmth and integrity that is deceptively difficult to achieve. A subtle and impressive accomplishment.”

Production Design - Entertainment & Non Drama: Antony Cartlidge

Title: Murder In Successville
Production Company: Tiger Aspect
Broadcaster: BBC Three
Nominees:
Patrick Doherty - Strictly Come Dancing - Series 13
Peter Gordon - Time Crashers

“Working to a low budget and unforgiving schedule the success of the production design was absolutely at the heart of this entertaining show. Rigorous, ambitious and witty, the design achieved this with a knowing and impressive flourish.”

Sound - Drama: Simon Bysshe, Nigel Squibbs, Jamie Caple & Jeremy Price

Title: The Tunnel: Sabotage
Production Company: Kudos and Shine France
Broadcaster: Sky Atlantic and Canal +
Nominees:
James Bain, Howard Bargroff, Pete Gates & Steve Browell - Marcella
Billy Quinn, Martin Jensen, Duncan Price & Alex Ellerington - River

“The Sound Effects set the mood. Naked dialogue worked with huge dynamics and a very delicate mix to create intimacy but with scale.”

Sound - Entertainment & Non Drama: Greg Gettens, James Evans & Gregor Lyon

Title: Charlie Hebdo: 3 Days That Shook Paris
Production Company: Films Of Record
Broadcaster: More4
Nominees:
Matt Coster, Harry Hills, Pete Howell & Ben Wood - Life in the Air
Tony Revell - Strictly Come Dancing - Series 13

“The sound gave impact and felt like great storytelling. You were caught in the moment and it felt natural. It enhanced the viewing experience and the transitions between the sources was seamless.”

Design & Craft Innovation

Springwatch BBC NHU for BBC Studios

“This year the judges have awarded the RTS Design & Craft Innovation Award to a series that was able to capture and share the most dramatic and intimate wildlife dramas as they unfolded live.

Through the use of cutting edge technology including the very latest in military grade thermal imaging cameras and robotic animals – robo spoon bills no less – this intrepid and dedicated team filmed in and amongst Britain’s prolific wildlife day and night.

With a compelling desire to present the animals honestly and with minimal human interference, the Springwatch team have pioneered live broadcast systems which enable the audience to enjoy glimpses of such inaccessible places such as the nests of tiny birds through the use of mini cameras, inhospitable ledges on the tops of mountains to the murkiest of depths in deep and freezing waters all in real time.

Each series has seen them push the boundaries of technology to advance not only broadcasting knowledge but to also contribute to furthering our scientific understanding. The team made the startling discovery of giant flocks of birds in the skies over our heads here in the UK, which they achieved via their use of parabolic microphones in the course of filming Springwatch.

Alongside their innovations in image capture they have pushed boundaries in post-production too – adopting new techniques such as editing in the cloud, which mean that next year they will be able to shoot during the day on one side of the world and then pick up the editing seamlessly back here in the UK the second after the footage is uploaded. A huge participation push online has also seen the series elicit an impressive audience response from natural history enthusiasts who want to contribute and be part of this national phenomenon.

This driving desire to combine new filming technologies and techniques with the ability to edit from around the world and broadcast back out across multiple platforms – as well as live streaming to thousands of fans – has enabled us to share in the wonders of the natural world in a way we never have before.”

 

Judges’ Award

We’re The Super Humans, Paralympics Trailer, Channel 4

“In August 1996, Great Britain’s Paralympians brought home a whopping 123 medals only to find that coverage of their success had largely been condensed into two half-hour compilations, late night, on BBC Two.

20 years later, not only has society made huge steps in the acceptance and understanding of disability – the 2016 Paralympics enjoyed as much anticipatory glee as any other major sports event this year.

The Channel 4 teams who got behind the games in 2012 and afforded them the respect and celebratory status that all global sporting events deserve have undeniably played a huge part in how the Paralympics and disability are perceived in the UK today.

The team behind this year's Judges’ Award – the Channel 4 2016 Paralympics trail We are the Superhumans have gone on to build on this seismic shift in attitudes. This single piece of work was the pinnacle of two year’s work creating bespoke content and teasing the elaborate campaigns pointing to the success of the Paralympics in Rio this year.

In three minutes the trailer successfully dispels any notion of disadvantage in a beautiful race through every aspect of life – from changing nappies to martial arts, to shredding guitars to wheelchair fencing. The resounding ‘Yes I can’ message combines with the visceral thud and snap of wheel, and track creating a thrilling soundscape in which to wonder at the steely determination and skill of our Paralympians.

The public reaction was one of awe and inspiration as well as a heightened sense of anticipation for the most exciting Paralympics yet.

It was said of the trailer: “I don’t think I’ve viewed, shared, talked about or thought about any other three minutes of telly more than this. I know it’s a trailer, rather than a film, doc or series, but it was beautifully and cleverly crafted, amazingly cast, had a strong message, was tonnes of fun, made you feel good and was just brilliantly made.”

The production team should be extremely proud of creating a piece of work that is so technically accomplished and so beautifully reflects and amplifies the changing attitudes to disability we see today.  

We’re delighted to present the RTS Judges’ Award 2016 to Dan Brooke and the Channel 4 team behind We are the Superhumans.”

 

Lifetime Achievement Award

David Odd

This year’s lifetime achievement award deservedly goes to a superb cinematographer who has worked non-stop over 25 years across many genres and in many styles. From early Prime Suspects to Our Mutual Friend, White Teeth, Great Expectations, The Second Coming, Line of Beauty, Persuasion, Occupation, The Village, Complicity, Endgame, Marvellous and plenty more.

More than that though, the pleasure in giving this award relates to personality. His way of working – free, intuitive, helpful, instinctive. The idea that things should be done with as great a simplicity as possible. Adrian Shergold describes him as “a magical maverick and the fastest most fabulous butterfly of all time”, who once told him that “every light is a problem, so let’s just use one”.

Our man inspired friendship wherever he worked; always supportive of all elements of production, and always in favour of giving opportunity to others. Actors love him because his fundamental approach to capturing what’s in front of him allows them space, to feel they are the priority. To do that betrays an absence of ego or vanity, but to do that AND have the results as fantastic as they requires a special kind of talent.  

Above all, film-making for him was always a joy, a privilege, a shared endeavour, a celebration. And celebration is what we feel handing over this award tonight – celebration of a purity of spirit, of an inspirational character, and a very deserved winner of this esteemed award – David Odd.