In today’s unveiling of the juried award winners for the Primetime Emmy Awards, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced that Apple TV+ has won two Primetime Emmy Awards ahead of the 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony, which is set to take place on Sunday, September 19:
• “Calls” — won for Outstanding Motion Design
• “For All Mankind: Time Capsule” — won for Outstanding Innovation in Interactive Media
“Calls” is a groundbreaking, immersive television experience based on the buzzy French series of the same name, masterfully using audio and minimal abstract visuals to tell nine bone-chilling, short-form stories. Directed by Fede Álvarez (“Don’t Breathe”), each episode follows a darkly dramatic mystery that unfolds through a series of seemingly average, unconnected phone conversations that quickly become surreal as the characters lives are thrown into growing disarray. Featuring Lily Collins, Rosario Dawson, Pedro Pascal, Aubrey Plaza and more, “Calls” proves that the real terror lies in one’s interpretation of what they cannot see on the screen and the unsettling places one’s imagination can take them.
“For All Mankind” explores what would have happened if the global space race had never ended. The series presents an aspirational world where NASA astronauts, engineers and their families find themselves in the center of extraordinary events seen through the prism of an alternate history timeline — a world in which the USSR beats the US to the moon.
“For All Mankind” is created by Golden Globe nominee and Emmy Award winner Ronald D. Moore, and Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominees Ben Nedivi and Matt Wolpert. Moore, Nedivi and Wolpert executive produce alongside Golden Globe Award nominee Maril Davis of Tall Ship Productions and Nichole Beattie, David Weddle and Bradley Thompson. “For All Mankind” is produced by Sony Pictures Television.
“For All Mankind: Time Capsule” is an augmented reality (AR) experience that brings the world of the popular Apple TV+ series right into the homes of fans to uncover memories from the lives of Danny Stevens (Casey Johnson) and his parents, astronauts Gordo (Michael Dorman) and Tracy Stevens (Sarah Jones), in the decade between season one and season two. Through an interactive AR experience, fans join Danny as he examines keepsakes full of details about the off-screen lives of the characters and world of “For All Mankind,” where every object tells a story.
In the “For All Mankind: Time Capsule” experience, AR is used to establish a unique connection with the world of “For All Mankind,” allowing those who experience it to actually see and interact with the objects — and every AR object tells a story. A simple mixtape unveils how young love first began. A home Apple II computer is not only a place to play “Crater Quest,” but a place to read D-mail messages between Danny and his friend Kelly that hold secrets of the teens’ changing lives. On devices with a LiDAR scanner, including iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max, and iPad Pro, fans will be able to use an old slide projector that displays photos of Danny and some family photos of the Stevens, projected perfectly on any wall in their space. And items as ordinary as a newspaper and answering machine shed light on impactful events in the lives of Danny, Gordo and Tracy Stevens, revealing more about the alternate world of “For All Mankind.”
The winners of the juried categories are voted on by a panel of professionals in each of the peer groups, and announced before the winners of the Creative Arts Emmys and Primetime Emmys are revealed next month.
Last month, Apple landed 35 Emmy Award nominations, including a historic 20 nominations for “Ted Lasso,” which broke records by becoming the most nominated comedy series this year, and the most nominated freshman comedy series ever.
Apple’s global comedy phenomenon “Ted Lasso” dominated across major categories with 20 nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series; Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Jason Sudeikis; two nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for Hannah Waddingham and Juno Temple; four nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for Brendan Hunt, Brett Goldstein, Jeremy Swift and Nick Mohammed; three nominations for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series; two nominations for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series; and two nominations for Outstanding Single-Picture Editing in a Comedy Series.
Apple also earned nominations across 10 total programs for this year’s Emmy Awards, including “Mythic Quest,” “Central Park,” “Servant,” “Billie Eilish: The World’s A Little Blurry,” “Boys State,” “Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special,” “Bruce Springsteen’s Letter To You,” “The Year Earth Changed” and “Carpool Karaoke: The Series.”
Apple TV+ is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $4.99 per month with a seven-day free trial. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac or iPod touch can enjoy three months of Apple TV+ for free
MacDailyNews Take: Congratulations to the Calls and For All Mankind teams!
Calls reminded me of an ad I saw on Instagram for stories told using an instant messaging screen (with the chat bubbles), don’t remember the details. Calls was much more interesting visually, but it’s really just an audio play. Like an old-school radio show, with something flashy to watch on the screen.