‘The Studio,’ ‘The Penguin’ and Julie Andrews are among the winners at the Creative Arts Emmys

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Julie Andrews won her third Emmy Award at age 89 Saturday at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards, while “The Studio” will take nine trophies and “The Penguin” will take eight into next weekend’s main Emmys ceremony.

Andrews won for best character voice-over performance for her work on Netflix’s “Bridgerton,” her first Emmy since 2005.

“The Studio,” the Hollywood satire from Apple TV+ that is this year’s top-nominated comedy series, won for its cinematography, production design, casting and other craft categories.

“Thank you, Sal Saperstein,” nearly all the “Studio” winners said from the stage, a running gag that is a reference to Ike Barinholtz’s character who gets unexpectedly thanked on the show.

The show’s winners got to use their real filmmaking chops to recreate a fake one, including Adam Newport-Berra, whose cinematography evoked the beauty the show’s comic characters were trying to capture.

He won for a very meta episode called “The Oner,” in which an on-screen crew is trying to capture a long single shot in an episode that is itself done in a single shot.

“’The Oner’ was sort of the pinnacle of what we were trying to achieve,” Newport-Berra said backstage.

In a similar visual vein, “Adolescence,” the acclaimed Netflix show where every episode is a single shot, won best cinematography in a limited series.

But it was one of only two Emmys won by “Adolescence” on a night when HBO’s “The Penguin” dominated the limited series categories. The abundance of craft categories given out allowed it to win eight, including prosthetic makeup and visual effects.

“Andor,” the Disney+ “Star Wars” series, won four in the drama categories.

The Creative Arts Emmys, where nearly 100 awards are handed out across two nights, are a precursor to the main Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony, which will air live on CBS on Sept. 14.

“This is the real Emmys,” presenter Maya Rudolph said at the beginning of the show at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. “This is that Emmys they couldn’t have the other Emmys without, cause nothing would get made.”

Julianne Nicholson and Bryan Cranston were winners in the guest acting categories that add some star power to the proceedings.

Nicholson trumped Oscar winners Jamie Lee Curtis and Olivia Colman to win her first Emmy for best guest actress in a comedy, for playing a character known as Dance Mom on HBO Max’s “Hacks.”

Nicholson, who is also nominated for best supporting actress in a drama for “Paradise” at next weekend’s main ceremony, usually plays starkly serious roles, and loved going in a new direction on “Hacks.”

“It was so fun to just go balls to the wall in a way that I don’t usually get the opportunity to do,” she said backstage while holding her Emmy. “This was a huge surprise and something I’ve been searching for.”

Shawn Hatosy won best guest actor in a drama for playing the supervising doctor on “The Pitt” who is relieved by star Noah Wyle at the beginning of the all-in-a-day show then relieves him at the end of the intense medical series.

He used much of his speech to praise Wyle, who was in the audience and may be the favorite to win best actor in a drama next weekend.

“Your leadership, your performance on ‘The Pitt’ is extraordinary,” Hatosy said from the stage. ”It is unbelievable being on the other side of what you’re bringing.”

The guest actors on “The Studio” made for an extra star-studded category, and gave luminaries Ron Howard and Martin Scorsese a chance to win their first acting Emmys. But it went instead to their Emmy veteran “Studio” castmate Cranston, who won his seventh after taking six in his years on “Breaking Bad.”

Merritt Wever won best guest actress in a drama for “Severance.” It was one of six Emmys won on the night for the Apple TV+ series, a fine showing but a relatively light load of trophies for the year’s most nominated show that is among the favorites for best drama next weekend. It was a far cry from last year’s Creative Arts Emmys, when “Shogun” broke a record for Emmys in a season with 14 before it went on to dominate the main ceremony.

The count suggested that next weekend’s major drama categories could be wide open.

Another big nominee, “The White Lotus,” won just once Saturday, for its opening title music, and Hatosy was the lone winner for “The Pitt.”

Neither Andrews, nor Cranston nor Wever were at the ceremony, as can be common at the Creative Arts Awards. Nominees who were present as presenters, including Rudolph, Curtis and Howard, did not come away winners.

Andrews won her first Emmy for the special “The Julie Andrews Hour” in 1973 and another for “Broadway: The American Musical” in 2005. She has both an Oscar and a Grammy for playing Mary Poppins. She strangely lacks only a Tony to complete her EGOT status, despite being a giant of the Broadway stage in shows including “My Fair Lady.”

Sunday will be devoted to reality and variety TV. Kendrick Lamar and Beyoncé are both nominated for football halftime shows, while Barack Obama’s competition for his second Emmy in the narration category includes Tom Hanks and Idris Elba.

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This story has been corrected to reflect that “Severance” won six awards, not five.

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