Emmy Category Analysis: Main Title Design

The Film Experience Team takes a look at the major Emmy categories & some extras, too.

By Nathaniel R

If you're a regular reader 'round Emmy time you'll know that this particular category is of significant niche interest to us. That's partially because voters are (mostly) forced into keeping it fresh. Unless your show changes its opening titles significantly each season, you'll only be eligible on your first season. It's also because we dig main titles and we totally miss them in cinema which seems to have (mostly) abandoned this wonderful practice of setting the mood before the story begins. Let's look at the nominated titles.

The nominees are listed below the title and, unless otherwise noted, this is a first nomination for each of them...

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Emmy Analysis: Who will win Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series or TV Movie?

by Cláudio Alves

Like its respective writing category, the Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series or TV Movie Emmy race is a mess of inconsistent rulings. Some shows compete with entire seasons, while others have submitted individual episodes. This is allowed, so that miniseries with different directors per episode can compete. However, this year, I May Destroy You's Sam Miller got two nods through a technicality, making the rule feel superfluous and poorly conceived. Beyond that, the big oddity of the category is the presence of Hamilton's Thomas Kail. While similar projects of filmed theater were deemed TV Specials and are competing in that race, the Disney+ musical somehow got into this lineup. If he wins, Kail will repeat his Tony victory. With that out of the way, let's dive in and explore the nominated works…

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Emmy Analysis: A close race in Outstanding Writing for Limited Series or TV Movie

The Film Experience Team takes a look at the episode submissions for all the major Emmy categories.

by Cláudio Alves 

Unlike the Drama and Comedy writing categories at the Emmys, the Limited Series or TV Movie one can find entire seasons competing against solo episodes or single films. In the recent past, individual chapters of Sherlock and Black Mirror, classified as TV movies, won out against juggernaut series such as Fargo and Big Little Lies. This year, there are no such "movies" nominees. Indeed, despite six slots, only four series are recognized across the board. Wandavision is the nomination leader as well as the only show competing with single episodes instead of seasons. Indeed, with three nods, it thus becomes only the second limited series to score triple writing nods in the same year. The first one was American Crime Story: The People v O.J. Simpson. That Ryan Murphy show won in 2016, despite the threat of vote splitting, and maybe the Disney+ program can do the same. Let's take a look at the nominees…

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Emmy Analysis: Can "Ted Lasso" beat itself to Outstanding Comedy Writing?

The Film Experience Team takes a look at the episode submissions for all the major Emmy categories.

By Nathaniel R

Oustanding Writing in a Comedy Series has paired with the Comedy Series winner for the past three consecutive years even though a different show won each time (Mrs Maisel, Fleabag, Schitt's Creek). This was true even when the winning show had multiple writing nominations so it should have (theoretically) been splitting its vote. This suggests that the adorable and brilliant frontrunner Ted Lasso is going to win with ease... but which episode? WAIT, not so fast. Not long at all before that, Master of None and Louie both took this prize twice beating out their year's Comedy series winner (Veep and Modern Family). In the not-so distant case of Master of None vs Veep, Veep had multiple nominated episodes both times, theoretically splitting its own vote. This suggests Ted Lasso could also lose. But to what?

So let’s take a look at the nominees... 

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Oscar Predictions: Will Best Actress be dominated by biopics yet again?

by Nathaniel R

Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin in "Respect"

We'd love not to be a broken record but until the Academy isn't, we must sing the same choppy tune: The Academy has a biopic problem. They just can't give them up and nearly always view mimicry (of various degrees) as more of an achievement than character creation from scratch. We'll never understand it exactly but it keeps reasserting its truth. So that's always where you have to begin with predictions. This year's Best Actress category has the potential to be entirely performances based on real people.

Not that it will be. There are (that we know of thus far) seven real life characters as female leading roles this season...

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