NATAS Unveils New Emmys Ceremony Focusing on Children’s and Family Programming

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences on Wednesday unveiled the Children’s and Family Emmy Awards, which will debut next year.

The children’s and family programming categories had, up to now, been part of the Daytime Emmy Awards, but this move separates them into their own show.

The announcement marks the first standalone expansion of the Emmy Award competition since 1979, when the Sports Emmy Awards and the News and Documentary Emmy Awards debuted.

NATAS said that children’s and family content represent the fastest-growing genre that it presents awards in, with a 23 percent increase in related programming the past two years. For example, the individual achievement in animation category received the largest number of entries across all NATAS contests, with nearly 300 submissions last year.

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On a related note, seven new categories have been added to accommodate a rise in preschool programming.

The move comes a year after the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and NATAS — which split into two separate groups in 1977 — agreed to consolidate all children’s categories together under NATAS’ purview.

Last year, the Daytime Emmys held a separate, virtual ceremony to announce winners in children’s and family categories. The year, the Daytime Emmys for the first time handed out trophies in children’s programming across all dayparts, including content previously recognized by the Primetime Emmys, which are overseen by ATAS.

“NATAS has always been a leader in recognizing and celebrating excellence in our industry, and nothing is excelling and expanding more dramatically than the children’s and family community,” said Adam Sharp, president and CEO of NATAS. “Recent years have seen explosive growth in the quantity and quality of children’s and family programming, and now is the perfect time to acknowledge and honor this impactful content with a dedicated competition and celebration.”

Categories, eligibility rules and the call for entries will be announced next year.