'Planet Earth'
With all due respect toward the other nominees, it's impossible to ignore the monumental achievements of Discovery's Channel's "Planet Earth."
There certainly have been programs in the past that have explored the animal kingdom, but the manner in which this 11-part series (narrated by Sigourney Weaver) was produced, with painstaking detail to animals who have rarely been captured on camera living in their natural habitats, will be difficult to overlook.
Another popular Discovery series, "Deadliest Catch," documents the dangers of crab fishing. The subject matter might seem out of touch for many viewers, but it exposes an issue that's worth exploring.
"Biography" and "Inside the Actors Studio" are both longtime popular celebrity-oriented series that will attract voter attention -- as could "American Masters," which spotlights our cultural icons, dates back to 1983 and won back-to-back Emmys in 2003 and 2004.
Contact Stuart Levine at
stuart.levine@variety.com