So the “client” had no knowledge of, and had not authorised, a submission to The Telly Awards. Peterson is very clear about that.Personally, I knew nothing of the Telly Awards — had never so much as heard of them — until our 2021 theatrical film Witnesses won a bronze Telly. But I knew for a certainty that the Interpreter Foundation had submitted neither Witnesses nor Six Days in August to the Tellys, and I knew that we hadn’t paid any submission fees. (Being president of the Foundation, I have full access to our financial records.)
It turns out that it was the folks at Redbrick Filmworks who had submitted Six Days in August for consideration by the Tellys and who had paid the entry fee. And why on earth not? It’s their industry, after all. They’re professional filmmakers. They have a right to submit a film for a possible award, and an interest in doing so.
Here is an excerpt from the rules governing submissions to The Telly Awards
Clearly Red Brick Films don’t own Six Days In August, nor did they seek the permission of the Executive Producer and President of Interpreter, who claims to have been oblivious to the submission. So they appear to have gained the awards under false pretences. I wonder if The Telly Award judging committee know they’ve been duped…and would they care as long as those submission fees keep rolling in?Entry Terms
The Telly Awards assumes all entries are original and the entrant either owns the work or has permission from a client or other appropriate party to enter the work, with all rights granted therein.