UWTV earned an Emmy nomination from The Northwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) for its production of Inside Access: Daniel’s Story. The 20-minute documentary follows the story of a boy born with part of his brain outside of his skull and the surgery he underwent at Seattle Children’s Hospital, with help from doctors from Harborview and UW Medicine.

“I loved working on this project,” said Charlie Hinckley, senior producer at UWTV. “It was one of those stories that tells itself. Daniel is an adorable child with great parents, and [the] surgery was fascinating.”

Performed by craniofacial and neurological surgeons, Daniel’s operation sealed the hole in his brain and gave him a new face. Children’s Hospital approached UWTV with the story, knowing that the complex procedure would fit well on Inside Access, a series of medical programs begun by Stephanie Wright at UW Medicine Marketing.

“What we want people to take away from watching this is what great medicine is practiced here, and also that if someone knows a person with a similar condition, there are cures available,” Hinckley said.

Hinckley and editor Kathy Medak both received the nomination. They will find out whether or not they won at the 45th Annual Northwest Regional Emmy Awards Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony, scheduled to take place June 7 in Seattle.

The Regional Emmy Awards include more than 800 entries from five states — Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Alaska and Montana. Those interested can send in a piece for review, and they are scored by a minimum of six voluntary judges who are industry experts and live outside of the aforementioned states.

“Judges score pieces individually, without discussion,” said Diane Bevins, chapter administrator with NATAS Northwest. “We generally decline from disclosing their names, as that keeps everything honest.”

After all the results are received, NATAS members tally all the scores for each entry and rank them accordingly. A median is determined, and everything above that is nominated.

Daniel’s Story falls under the “program” category. Other categories are health, science and special.

Entries are scored for content, creativity and execution.

“After completing the nomination process, NATAS already knows who has won, but we wait until the ceremony to present the awards,” Bevins said.

Almost every year, UWTV has received a nomination for one of its productions.

“It’s something we hope for each year,” Hinckley said.