For the 5th straight year, NATPE (National Association of Television Program Executives) presented the winners of its Annual Unscripted Breakthrough Awards with sculpture awards created by Bennett Awards. These recognition awards honor reality programs that broke away from the pack the preceding year, becoming part of our cultural conversation and generally altering the expectations of what constitutes a reality program.
As in past years, NATPE used the Bennett Awards design “Distinction” for these recognition awards. These unique sculpture awards were cast in pewter, silver-plated, and then mounted on marble bases with personalized engravings of the NATPE logotype, award category, and recipient name.
The award honorees were presented to recipients at the NATPE MIAMI Marketplace and Conference, held in January 2019. A special awards ceremony was held was held at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach, and was hosted by country-music super-star Kellie Pickler and Emmy Award-winning journalist Ben Aaron.
The 2019 awards were given out in the following categories: Innovation, Competition, Documentary, Docusoap, Factual, and Game Shows. The winners in each category were:
COMPETITION WINNER: RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
Nominees:
American Ninja Warrior
Big Brother
RuPaul’s Drag Race
The Voice
World of Dance
FACTUAL WINNER: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Nominees:
Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Real Time with Bill Maher
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
DOCUMENTARY WINNER: RBG (CNN)
Nominees:
Evil Genius: The True Story of America’s Most Diabolical Bank Heist
Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath
RBG
The Staircase
Wild Wild Country
GAME SHOWS WINNER: Ellen’s Game of Games (NBC)
Nominees:
Beat Shazam
Celebrity Family Feud
Ellen’s Game of Games
Hollywood Game Night
Match Game
DOCUSOAP WINNER: Born This Way (A&E)
Nominees:
Below Deck
Born This Way
Jersey Shore
The Real Housewives Franchise
Vanderpump Rules
INNOVATION WINNER: Live PD (A&E)
Nominees:
Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath
Live PD
Nailed It!
Queer Eye
Wild Wild Country