International Emmy Awards: Martin Freeman, Amazon’s ‘La Caída,’ Netflix’s ‘The Empress’ Among Top Winners

Turkish telenovela “Yargi,” German miniseries “The Empress,” Mexican drama “La Caída” and actor Martin Freeman were among the top winners at the 51st annual International Emmy Awards, held Monday at the New York Hilton Midtown.

All told, the International Emmys recognized TV programs from across the continents, with strong showings from the U.K. and Australia. Brazil logged the win for unscripted series for its adventure competition series “A Ponte” (The Bridge). “Vir Das: Landing,” a Netflix comedy from India, tied with the U.K.’s “Derry Girls” for the win in the comedy series category.

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The ceremony was hosted by comedian Rhys Darby. Special awards were presented to “Succession” creator/executive producer Jesse Armstrong, who received the Founders Emmy, and Ektaa R. Kapoor, co-founder Balaji Telefilms, who took home the Directorate Award. Armstrong was feted by Casey Bloys, HBO and Max chairman-CEO, while Deepak Chopra did the honors for Kapoor.

The drama win went to Netflix’s German-language drama “The Empress,” a costume drama set in a 19th century Viennese court. Amazon’s “La Caída” (Dive) prevailed for miniseries, and its star Karla Souza won best actress. Martin Freeman of U.K.’s “The Responder,” revolving around a first responder working a tough area of Liverpool, was crowned best actor.

Canada’s “Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On” took the trophy for arts programming, despite the recent revelations that have cast doubt on the singer’s assertion that she was born to an Indigenous family in Canada before being forcibly relocated as a child to a white family in Massachusetts.

Here is a complete list of International Emmy Awards honorees:

Arts Programming

Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On
Eagle Vision / White Pine Pictures / Paquin Entertainment
Canada
Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry it On is a challenging account of this cultural and musical icon’s lifelong commitment to music, and sharing the truth. Buffy shares her own story from her early love of music to the activism she continues to this day.

Best Performance by an Actor

Martin Freeman in The Responder
Dancing Ledge Productions
United Kingdom
Chris (Martin Freeman) drives a frontline response vehicle in his fragmented hometown of Liverpool. Night after night he faces crime, violence and addiction on the streets, whilst battling against personal demons that threaten to destabilize his work, his marriage and his mental health.

Best Performance by an Actress

Karla Souza in La Caída [Dive]
Madam / Filmadora / Infinity Hill / Amazon
Mexico
Mariel started diving when she was 8 years old. The pool is her life. She says she has water, not blood flowing through her veins. She has trained with Braulio her entire life and trusts him more than she trusts herself. He sees her like no one else can. He keeps his promises; she’s become a world renown Olympic diver. Mariel is the most recognized Mexican athlete of all time. Introverted, disciplined, and determined, Mariel has to choose between Olympic greatness, or healing her painful past.
Comedy

Derry Girls – Season 3
Hat Trick Productions
United Kingdom
Lisa McGee’s sitcom about a group of working-class teenagers coming of age in the 90’s in Northern Ireland. While theres hope in the air that The Troubles may finally be over, the gang’s troubles are only just getting started as they get ever closer to adulthood.

Vir Das: Landing
Weirdass Comedy / Rotten Science / Netflix
India
Vir Das dives deep into his childhood in India, the perils of outrage and finding his footing in the world for his fourth Netflix stand-up special.

Documentary

Mariupol: The People’s Story
Top Hat Productions / Hayloft Productions / BBC
United Kingdom
Told and mostly filmed by the people of Mariupol, this is the deeply personal account of the destruction of a Ukrainian city. This documentary is a story of war crimes and suffering but also one of startling courage, of the endurance of morality and love in the midst of war, and of undaunted spirit.

Drama Series

The Empress
Sommerhaus Serien GmbH / Netflix
Germany
When rebellious Elisabeth falls for Emperor Franz and becomes his unlikely bride, she enters a world of tensions and intrigue at the Viennese court.

Non-Scripted Entertainment

A Ponte – The Bridge Brasil
Warner Bros. Discovery / Endemol Shine Brasil
Brazil
12 participants isolated in the wilderness have 20 days to get to know each other and build a bridge that will take them to a treasure that awaits on the other side of a river. If they succeed, they will have to choose the winner.

Short-Form Series

Des Gens Bien Ordinaires [A Very Ordinary World]
Magneto / Canal+
France
In a dystopian world where women hold the power, Romain, a sociology student, is attracted to the bright lights of porn film sets, which he sees as a path to emancipation. This story puts a twist on the porn industry to deliver a critique of our world.

Sports Documentary

Harley & Katya
Stranger Than Fiction Films
Australia
A documentary about Indigenous Australian figure skater Harley Windsor and his young Russian pair skating partner Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya. This unlikely duo made history, but at what cost?

Telenovela

Yargi [Family Secrets]
Ay Yapim
Turkey
Prosecutor Ilgaz has to find a highly competent attorney when his brother is accused of murder. He crosses paths with Ceylin, a limitless attorney. Things change when the victim turns out to be Ceylin’s sister. When the war between them turns into a passionate love, everything turns upside down.

TV Movie/Mini-Series

La Caída [Dive]
Madam / Filmadora / Infinity Hill / Amazon
Mexico
Mariel (Karla Souza) is a veteran competitive diver who has one last chance at the Olympics. However, when a terrible truth surfaces, Mariel has to confront her biggest personal dilemma yet: is winning really her ultimate dream?

Kids: Animation

The Smeds and The Smoos
Magic Light Pictures
United Kingdom
On a faraway planet, Janet and Bill meet in the Wurpular Wood and fall in love, but their families, the Smeds and the Smoos, cannot accept the match after generations of division. When the pair elope, the warring families must work together to find the young Smed and Smoo.

Kids: Factual & Entertainment

Built To Survive
Butter Media / Breslin Media / Australian Broadcasting Corporation / Australian Children’s Television Foundation
Australia
Get up close to the world’s most unique creatures to reveal the ultimate survivors of Australia’s most extreme natural habitats. Join Phil Breslin in his quest to answer – who is Built to Survive?

Kids: Live-Action

Heartbreak High
Fremantle / Newbe / Netflix
Australia
An incendiary mural exposes everyone’s secret hook-ups at Hartley High. Its author, Amerie, has to grapple with the messy fallouts as a total outcast.

(Pictured top: Ana Laura Rascon, Karla Souza and Ramiro Ruiz of Amazon’s “La Caída”)

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