Montana PBS and Montana State University staff and alumni recently won Emmy Awards for local productions at the 58th annual Northwest Regional Emmy Awards. The winners were announced Saturday, June 5, during a virtual awards gala hosted from Seattle.

The Northwest Emmy Awards are a division of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Entries in the contest came from the states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Alaska and Montana.

Winning entries from Montana PBS included a one-hour documentary, “Charlie Russell’s Old West,” about Montana’s legendary cowboy artist, which received an Emmy in the documentary (cultural/historical) category. Those cited on the award were Paul Zalis, co-producer/writer; Maria Anderson, associate producer; and William Marcus and Aaron Pruitt, executive producers.

In addition, Montana PBS’ science film, “The Last Artifact,” about the redefinition of the kilogram, received an Emmy in the documentary (topical) category. Recipients include Jaime Jacobsen and Ed Watkins, producers; and Aaron Pruitt, executive producer.

“The Last Artifact” also received an additional five Emmys in the following professional craft categories:

• Director: Jamie Jacobsen and Ed Watkins.
• Writer, non-news (short/long form content): Ben King, Ed Watkins, Stefanie Watkins.
• Photographer, non-news (short/long form content): Rick Smith, Scott Sterling.
• Editor, non-news (short/long form content): Ben King, Stefanie Watkins.
• Audio: Jeremiah Slovarp, Luke Scheeler, Parker Brown, Sheridan Tongue.

Finally, Montana PBS producer and on-air host John Twiggs was inducted into the prestigious Silver Circle of the Northwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, or NATAS. The Silver Circle recognizes individuals who have than 25 years of public service, as well as mentoring, leadership and professional accolades. In addition to Twiggs’ service at Montana PBS, he is an adjunct professor in the School of Journalism at the University of Montana.

To see the full list of Emmy nominations and winners or to learn more about NATAS Northwest, visit natasnw.org. To learn more about Montana PBS, visit montanapbs.org.