TV company boss chosen as judge for Emmy awards

A TV company boss from North Wales will be rubbing shoulders with superstars from the world of television after being chosen as a judge for the prestigious Emmy awards in New York.

Dylan Huws, the managing director of Caernarfon-based Cwmni Da, will be joining the glitterati on the red carpet at the luxury Sofitel hotel in Manhattan for the ceremony in November that will be televised to millions of people world-wide.

The 47th International Emmy Awards rank alongside their movie equivalent, the Oscars, in terms of glamour, prestige and achievement.

Dylan is the first person from Wales to be asked to be a judge for the Emmys and he’s hoping that one day a Welsh language television programme will be among those being honoured.

Last year he also made history when he announced he was turning the £5m-a-year company, which employs 50 people, into an employee-owned firm. The move is believed to be a first in the UK broadcast industry.

Dylan has just returned from Beijing where he was part of the international judging panel chosen to run the rule over the best European-made productions in two different categories, for documentaries and for arts programme.

He said: “It was a real honour to be asked to be one of the judges because he panel was full of high-level producers, directors and industry figures – including programme makers I have a huge respect for.

“Among them was Andre Singer, an iconic Oscar-nominated documentary maker who has won an Emmy.

“Also on the panel were Ruby Chen, who is on the selection committee for the Oscars, and Vikram Chana, a vice-president of the Discovery Channel, so I was in very good company.

“It was very intense from the word go. We were viewing from 9am and had a short break for lunch before carrying on viewing until 7pm. It was hard going but hugely enjoyable.”