Burbank Channel scores Emmy
The Burbank Public Information Office did more than inform the public about the state of the city in 2015 — it earned itself an Emmy.
The Burbank Channel, the city’s government channel, won its fourth Emmy Award during the 68th Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards on Saturday at the Television Academy’s Saban Media Center in North Hollywood.
“Drawing Power of Burbank,” the 2015 State of the City address given by then Mayor Bob Frutos, won the Emmy in the “Information Segment” category. Burbank was up against KCET and LA CityView 35, Los Angeles’ government channel.
Burbank’s 15-minute video highlighted various topics in the city, such as economic development, innovation at Burbank Water and Power, the status of the Empire Avenue interchange along the Golden State (5) Freeway and the impact Warner Bros. Studios has had on the region’s economy, said city spokesman Drew Sugars, who produced the video.
Sugars, who has been with the city for the past four years, said that each mayor has a different way of presenting the State of the City. Former Mayor Dave Golonski had a PowerPoint presentation, Councilwoman Emily Gabel-Luddy decided to make a question-and-answer video and Councilman David Gordon presented a video about workforce training, which won a Golden Mike Award from the Radio & Television News Assn. in February.
However, Frutos wanted to showcase Warner Bros. and even interact with a cartoon character during the video.
“I said, ‘OK. Not sure how we’re going to do that, but let me look into it,’” Sugars said.
Frutos said that he was pessimistic about the studio helping them with the video, but much to the surprise of himself and Sugars, Warner Bros. officials agreed to lend their assistance.
Burbank was able to use footage from a 1940s animated short with Daffy Duck talking with Porky Pig, but Sugars’ staff edited out Porky Pig and put Frutos in his place. The city was also able to retain one of the voice actors who portrays Daffy Duck to interact with the council member in the video.
“We were able to pull off what [Frutos] wanted without having to create something new,” Sugars said. “With the technology that exists now, it really wasn’t that hard.”
As a retired Los Angeles police officer and now a Burbank council member, Frutos said that winning an Emmy never crossed his mind of what he would accomplish.
“The film exceeded my expectations of the directions that I gave city staff,” Frutos said.
