CWU Film Studies students receive nominations for ‘Student Emmys’

Seven Central Washington University Film Studies students recently learned that they had been nominated for the 63rd annual National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) Northwest Regional Emmy Awards.

Two students, Tyler Diltz and Keaton Weyers, were nominated for three NATAS Student Production Awards — often referred to as the “Student Emmys” — and classmate Emmett Giaccio received two nods. Gurdil Dardi, Javier I. Angulo, Madisyn Joyner, and Frank Purpura also were recognized by NATAS, which will host a black-tie event May 29 at Fremont Studios in Seattle.

“This is a pretty big deal for all of us,” said Diltz, a Film Studies major who serves as Editor In Chief for PULSE Magazine. “One of my goals during my time at CWU has been to get nominated for at least one NATAS Award. I submitted my work last year and we didn’t get anything, but to finally get recognized this year is really exciting.”

Diltz and Weyers both received a nod in the Photographer’s Craft category for their work on “Bedford’s Blind Date.” They were also recognized, along with Giaccio, in the Non-Fiction Short Form category for “Bringing Fish Back — MCF’s Story.”

Diltz, Weyers and Giaccio were joined in the Promotional Video category by their five classmates for “Bedford’s Blind Date.”

In addition, the PULSE team was nominated in the Arts, Culture, and Entertainment category for a winter 2026 feature on the dancing scene in downtown Ellensburg. Reporter Grace Thompson also participated in that project.

“The Northwest college division of NATAS is quite competitive, so to have all four of our submissions get nominated was a huge surprise,” Diltz said.

CWU alumna Gracen Bayer received a NATAS Award for Photography in 2024 for a promotional video she completed for PULSE Magazine.

This year’s CWU contingent will be competing against nominees from five states — Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska. Diltz commended the film programs at Gonzaga and Washington State, while also tipping his cap to Oregon State and Montana State.

“Some of the feature documentaries they are producing are similar to what you would see on PBS,” he said. “So, for us to be included with those programs is a huge honor, and it speaks to the quality of CWU’s Film Studies program.”

Added Giaccio: “Being able to show what we as CWU students have done, and are able to do, feels amazing. Our class has done some amazing projects together, and for other people to see our work means a lot to us.”

Diltz, Giaccio and their fellow CWU nominees are planning to attend the ceremony later this month. They also hope some of their supporters from Ellensburg will be able to make the trip over the mountains.

Most of all, they are hoping to return to campus with one of the crystal pillars presented to each of the winners.

“It would be nice for us to be able to display one of the awards in the film building,” Diltz said. “We’re turning out some really good film students here, and we want to be able to show that the students in our program are doing really valuable work. We’re a small but mighty community.”