Indie Gets Emmy Nod from NATAS-DC

PR Log (Press Release) – May 17, 2008 – On Monday, The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS), National Capital Chapter, announced Steven Fischer’s nomination for his cinematography on the Civil War docu-drama Now & Forever Yours: Letters to an Old Soldier, which Fischer also produced and directed.

Now & Forever Yours tenderly retells the true story of a secret romance between a southern belle named Antonia Ford and Union Major Joseph Willard (co-founder of Washington’s famous Willard Hotel), between 1862 and 1864. Fighting political and social roadblocks, the lovers risked personal and professional ruin to cultivate a love that was tragically lost by Ford's untimely death.

The docu-drama stars Katie Tschida and Winston Shearin. It premiered on August 10, 2007 through Comcast Cable in Northern Virginia.  Actor Clay Steward’s standout southern drawl and down-to-earth countrified storytelling adds a memorable touch as the movie’s narration. Northern Virginia Community College, one of the country’s largest community college systems, subsidized the 6-minute movie. Additional support came from Historic Fairfax City, Inc., The Fairfax Museum, and historic Welbourne Manor. The docu-drama was co-produced by Susie McCauley and Charles Siegel.

The script, written by Fischer, takes its dialogue directly from the lovers' existing letters archived at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC and The Fairfax Museum in Virginia. The story's natural look is due to Fischer's primary use of natural light to imitate 19th Century milieu. The film was shot digitally using Panasonic's P2 HVX 200. The P2 memory card is a tapeless recording media.

NATAS divides the Emmy Award competitions into several divisions including Daytime and Primetime, News & Documentary, International, National, and Regional. Market percentage and the number of viewing households determine which division each entry is eligible. A program seen by less than 50 per cent of the television homes in America, such as Now & Forever Yours, which aired in Virginia, qualifies for the Regional Emmys. The National Capital Emmy Awards take place June 14th in Washington, DC.

Known primarily as a producer (Freedom Dance, Silence of Falling Leaves, and the long-running Steve & Bluey cartoon series), Fischer, 35, has traditionally photographed and edited his own movies since his start in 1995.

His first Emmy nomination came in 2000 for producing the haunting Silence of Falling Leaves, a poetic 60-second PSA recorded in Polish honoring the 15,000 Polish POWs murdered in the 1940 Katyn Forest Massacre. The film uses falling autumn leaves to represent the fallen soldiers, a boldly artistic move that prompted Baltimore Magazine to describe Silence as, "an art film trapped inside a commercial".

In April, Fischer took home three statuettes from the 29th Annual Telly Awards, one of the most sought after awards by television production and broadcast leaders internationally, including one for photographing Now & Forever Yours.

Fischer’s versatile career in entertainment includes documentaries, cartoons, and radio theater. He divides his time between Los Angeles, New York, and Annapolis.