2023
NATAS Chicago/Midwest Chapter
HIGH SCHOOL PRODUCTION AWARDS
CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNERS & NOMINEES

CATEGORY #01
NEWSCAST
WAtv Season 8 Episode 8
Wheaton Academy
    Belay Brummel
    Breck Peacock
    Nate Wilding
    Jacob York
    Alex Bagley

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

CPTV News QuickCUT for January 20, 2023
Crown Point High School
    Christopher Gloff
    Madeline Degenhart
    Eli Lane
    Hailey Lloyd


CATEGORY #02
NEWS REPORT - SERIOUS NEWS

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

False School Threats on the Rise in the U.S.

Crown Point High School
    Christopher Gloff

Banned Book Week
Maine West High School
    Addie Webb


CATEGORY #03
NEWS REPORT - LIGHT NEWS
Spare Me a Trip
York Community High School
    Kathryn Castanoli

HS Transition
Geneva High School
    Rebecca Spezzano

BHS TV: Winter Recap
Barrington High School
    Rohan Soorya
    Jay Damaraju
    Aanchal Capoor
    Nicole Vojack
    Jake Feightner

Dusty Groove News Package
Riverside Brookfield High School
    Makayla Angshed

Lasky on the Street - The Chicken Wrap
Maine East High School
    Quintin Lasky
    Mark Vincent Lazo

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

The Goose
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Eliya Hobson
    Ella Aceves


CATEGORY #04
ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT/CULTURAL AFFAIRS
Next Generation
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Lea Ryndak
    Patrice St. Jean

STUNTS Returns
Deerfield High School
    Brooke Bernstein
    Ben Goss
    Ian Reid

Expressing Identity Through Art
Maine West High School
    Asher Carmichael

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Joey: In the Limelight
Glenbrook South High School
    Hannah "Han" Schuberth
    Jack Conlon
    Ewan MacLean
    Zidan Raab
    Joey Hitzeman

Sticking With It
Wheaton Academy
    Greta Gustafson

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Behind the Scenes of "Annie" The Musical
Deerfield High School
    Nathan Lee
    Ben Goss
    Brooke Bernstein


CATEGORY #05
MUSIC VIDEO

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Dani California
Maine South High School
    Nicole Scimeca

Busy
Riverside Brookfield High School
    Makayla Angshed

Milky Way
Maine South High School
    Tyler DeMott
    Riley Gibson
    Rae Robles

In My Mind
South Elgin High School/Beacon Academy
    Hailey Rivera

The Wrecked and the Worried
Batavia High School
    Joey Monty


CATEGORY #06
FICTION – SHORT FORM
Black Magic
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Nate Locker

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Wordle: The Musical
Maine South High School
    Nicole Scimeca

Bittersweet.
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Nichelle Alexander

The Hunt
Glenbrook South High School
    Hank Leahy
    Maddie Nukk
    Chloe Fellinger

Behind Closed Doors
Maine South High School
    Angie Guercio
    Nicole Scimeca
    Tyler DeMott

Boogie!
Glenbrook South High School
    Matthew Nugent
    Hank Leahy


CATEGORY #07
NON-FICTION – SHORT FORM
ChatGPT
Metea Valley High School
    Ananya Gondesi

Life Before and After Ukraine: Lidiia’s Story
Glenbrook South High School
    Lissette Garcia
    Nur Yalinbas
    Rayna John

A Taste of the Renegades
Maine South High School
    Tyler DeMott
    Riley Gibson

Bridging the Gap
Metea Valley High School
    Sofia Petrov
    Raj Kamal Amalakanti

Rock Your Socks Off
Maine South High School
    Nicole Scimeca

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Young Survivor
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Makayla Taylor

Leroy Booker: The Beating Heart Behind the Song
Indian Trail High School
    Nobert Otieno
    Sebastian Romero
    Angel Peña


CATEGORY #08
SPORTS STORY OR SEGMENT
The Mental Race
Glenbrook South High School
    Matthew Nugent
    Jeffrey Podjasek
    Kevin Mahoney

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Bigger than Basketball
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Nate Locker
    Kalel Fargo

Sports Spotlight: The Judhts
Indian Trail High School
    Nobert Otieno
    Eydie Furnett


CATEGORY #09
SPORTS - PROGRAM
The Fantasy Rundown hosted by Liam Hickey
Riverside Brookfield High School
    Liam Hickey

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Crossover Sports
Riverside Brookfield High School
    Sam Egan
    Jake O'Brien


CATEGORY #10
LIVE SPORTING EVENT/GAME
WA Boys Basketball vs Timothy
Wheaton Academy
    Jacob York
    Kitan Fajemisin
    Lainee Jones
    Colin Campbell
    Alex Harris

2022-2023 - Boys Varsity Basketball - South Elgin vs. Larkin - January 19, 2023
South Elgin High School/Beacon Academy
    Nick Martinez
    Ryan Lewin
    Justin Burzynski
    Owen Stout
    Lucien Noland

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

RBTV Live Event Basketball
Riverside Brookfield High School
    Sam Egan
    Jake O'Brien
    Matt Morgan


CATEGORY #11
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT (PSAS)
Be Kind PSA
Maine West High School
    Russell Adaya

Black History Month
Metea Valley High School
    Zara Saleem
    Ananya Gondesi

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Just Text Me
Maine South High School
    Dylan Sarsany
    Tyler DeMott
    Gaetano Iannotta
    Riley Gibson


CATEGORY #12
PUBLIC AFFAIRS/COMMUNITY SERVICE
LemonAid
Maine South High School
    Riley Gibson
    Tyler DeMott
    Dylan Sarsany
    Nicole Scimeca
    Angie Guercio

Gratitude Generation
Deerfield High School
    Micah Wolkenberg
    Ben Goss
    Brooke Bernstein
    Ian Reid

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Antisemitism Rising
Deerfield High School
    Ruby Levy
    Ben Goss
    Brooke Bernstein


CATEGORY #13
MAGAZINE PROGRAM
Warrior Update; Episode 1
Waubonsie Valley High School
    Sophia Tamburino

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Wildcat Weekly
Neuqua Valley High School
    Brooke Harrison
    Shandana Malik
    Salimah Scott
    Hannah Kestenberg

The VTV Show
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Aden Kozel


CATEGORY #14
COMMERCIAL
Mr. Clean Magic Eraser
Glenbrook South High School
    Matthew Nugent
    Kendall Hackett

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

LEGO - The Purrfect House
Lyons Township High School
    Ben Cunin Alvarado

Chromebook Ultimate - Why Does it Feel so Good?
Maine East High School
    Mark Vincent Lazo

OPI Nail Polish
Glenbrook South High School
    Sara Khan
    Megan McKew


CATEGORY #15
DIRECTOR
Ghostbusters at BHS
Barrington High School
    Hanna Faulkner
    Sahil Mittal

Bridging the Gap
Metea Valley High School
    Sofia Petrov
    Raj Kamal Amalakanti

Tyler DeMott Director Reel 2022-2023
Maine South High School
    Tyler DeMott

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Behind Closed Doors
Maine South High School
    Angie Guercio
    Nicole Scimeca


CATEGORY #16
EDITOR

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

The Wrecked and the Worried
Batavia High School
    Joey Monty

Kevyn Kerwin Editor Composite
Glenbrook South High School
    Kevyn Kerwin

Riley Gibson Editing Reel 2022-2023
Maine South High School
    Riley Gibson

Bhargav Chandramouli Editor Portfolio
Metea Valley High School
    Bhargav Chandramouli

Composite
Wheaton Academy
    Mason Hockett


CATEGORY #17
PHOTOGRAPHER

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Kevin Mahoney Photography Composite
Glenbrook South High School
    Kevin Mahoney

Barrington Police Department Promotional Video
Barrington High School
    Andy Zhai
    Jay Damaraju
    Aanchal Capoor
    Ben Peterson
    Rohan Soorya

Hank Leahy Photography Composite
Glenbrook South High School
    Hank Leahy

Julia Miller Photography Composite
Glenbrook South High School
    Julia Miller

Matthew Nugent Photography Composite
Glenbrook South High School
    Matthew Nugent

11 Miles
Riverside Brookfield High School
    Makayla Angshed

Locker's Reel
Homewood-Flossmoor High School
    Nate Locker


CATEGORY #18
TALENT - NEWS OR SPORTS

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Ananya Gondesi - Talent Reel
Metea Valley High School
    Ananya Gondesi

Christopher Gloff - Talent Reel
Crown Point High School
    Christopher Gloff

Madeline Degenhart's News Talent
Crown Point High School
    Madeline Degenhart

Sahil Mittal - Sports Talent Compilation 2023
Barrington High School
    Sahil Mittal


CATEGORY #19
WRITER
The L Word
Batavia High School
    Ravyn Willuweit

Ghostbusters at BHS
Barrington High School
    Hanna Faulkner

Boogie!
Glenbrook South High School
    Adam Bode
    Sara Khan
    Ariana Tomasek
    Andrew Boyer
    Kate Palmer

***CRYSTAL PILLAR WINNER

Wordle: The Musical
Maine South High School
    Nicole Scimeca

Behind Closed Doors
Maine South High School
    Angie Guercio

Lt