Josh Oshinsky ’00 Wins National Sports Emmy for TV Series

At the 33rd Annual Sports Emmy® Awards ceremony, Josh Oshinksy ’00 and his team took home the top award in the outstanding edited series/anthology category for “The Franchise: A Season with the San Francisco Giants.” These top awards in 33 categories of sports television production were presented April 30at the Lincoln Center in New York City by the National Academy of Television Arts and Science.

Josh Oshinksy ’00 (right) receives a National Sports Emmy

Oshinksy, founder and executive producer of Ocean Sky Films, New York City, which he started in 2007, was senior producer of the MLB Productions series, which appeared on Showtime.

“For the series we spent most of a full season following every move made by the defending World Series champion San Francisco Giants, both on and off the field, and turned that into an eight-episode docu-series,” says Oshinsky. “The award is in essence the sports equivalent of the Oscar for Best Picture. We also defeated stiff competition—HBO’s ‘Real Sports,’ ESPN’s ‘E:60,’ and NFL Films’ ‘A Football Life’ were among the other nominees.”

He also received a New York Emmy for another 2011 production, “Rockette Summer Intensive,” for MSG Varsity in the teen: program/feature segment category.

“It was my love of theater that drove me to television and film production,” says Oshinsky, an English graduate with a concentration in theater. “Many aspects of theatrical precision correlate to producing television programs, from understanding timing and layering audio to extracting the best performance possible from your subject.”

Oshinsky had the opportunity to test out his interest in television during the summer prior to his senior year when he interned for “Inside Edition,” and then during the year for WFMZ 69 in Allentown.

“But my education, both as a student and as a young adult, came directly from one professor—Michael O’Neil,” says Oshinsky. “He was my adviser, my friend, and my mentor. As an educator Michael was excellent, but as an adviser and director he went far beyond what we as students had any right to expect. And, if you ask any of those he was closest to during that era, I think you’ll find a fierce loyalty remains to this day. He certainly helped shape me into the man I have become, and I’m sure others would feel the same.”

Upon graduation, Oshinsky was convinced he was going to be an actor. “I was on my way to my first audition, a commercial for Dannon Yogurt, when I received a call from Major League Baseball radio offering an internship. I played varsity baseball at Lafayette and always wanted to stay involved in the game I love.”

But, Oshinsky says the passion to create quality entertainment as a career stemmed from “the theatrical success we had as a program while I was at Lafayette.” He shortly moved to MLB’s television branch and in the next six years rose to editor and associate producer. He then joined ESPN as lead editor for a new program called “Classic Now.” When the show was cancelled after three months, he became an independent producer.

Since then Oshinsky has won numerous awards for his work and while most of it is focused on baseball, he has branched out into cooking and reality shows. Some highlights include:

• 2011, open tease producer/editor/writer for international broadcasts of American League Championship Series and World Series, seen in over 160 countries
• 2010, producer/editor of 30 series documentary for ESPN 30, “Four Days in October,” which won a Peabody Award
• 2010, producer/editor/writer for Cooking Channel reality series “Hook, Line, and Dinner”
• 2009, produced a video for opening ceremony of FOX broadcast of the All-Star Game, which included a tribute by all living presidents, including Obama
• 2008, producer, New York Emmy Award-winning show, “Yankeeography: Yankee Stadium”
• 2007, lead editor, New York Emmy Award-winning series, “The 50 Greatest Moments in Madison Square Garden”